Providence has struggled all season long. That is no surprise to anybody who closely follows the Friars. Offense was tough to come by even when Bryce Hopkins was healthy. Since his injury, it has seemed like a herculean effort each possession just to get consistent offense. It’s been volatile at best, ugly at worst.
The debate going on in Friar world is whether these consistent poor offensive outcomes is the result of poor offensive strategy versus subpar offensive players. Last night showed it’s a combination of strategy and personnel both falling well short of expectations.
Last night, the bar was lowered even more with the lowest point total of the season at 50 points. The previous low was against Oklahoma with 51. Providence made a total of 15 baskets in the game, shot 21% from 3, had more turnovers (13) than assists (11), and had ZERO points from the bench.
While the optimist in me wants to say “off night”, the realist in me understands that this isn’t a one-off. There is a consistency in how inconsistent and poor Providence is on the offensive end. Kim English recognizes this based off his postgame comments, and frustration levels appear to be boiling over.
This was not your Villanova teams of years past under Jay Wright. Providence was thoroughly dominated from opening tip to close to a Wildcats team that is not very good at the present moment. There was a very real possibility that the 11-10 Wildcats, losers of 5 straight prior to this game, would have entertained pulling the trigger on firing Neptune Monday morning if they got beat at home to an, objectively speaking, mediocre Friar squad. Instead, Providence laid down without much resistance and took a thorough beating.
Beyond the struggles on the offensive end, there was no energy, enthusiasm, or want-to being exhibited by ANY of the Friars. They looked like they would rather be anywhere else than in Philadelphia. Devin Carter, one who I’ve referred to as The Energizer Bunny, was continuously beaten on the defensive end and didn’t seem to have any juice to his game. When things are going poorly for DC, you know it just isn’t your night.
In a game where a win further moves them off the bubble, Providence played with an apathy that didn’t reflect the urgency of the game. It was a horrific showing by the Friars that has this Providence alum scratching his head.
We revisit below what went wrong last night and what can be done to salvage a once promising season. While the outlook is grim, there is still A LOT of basketball to be played.
Revisiting the Keys to the Game
Stifling Defense – Villanova finished with 68 points, still below their season average. The frustrating aspect of this game is that Villanova went into half with only 26 points. If you hold a team at home to 26 points at half, you are thinking realistically that you have a 5 point lead. Instead, Providence was down TEN at half, 26-16.
The dam burst in the second half, and Villanova finished shooting 42% from the floor and 36% from 3.
Another Big Night for Oduro? Oduro finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Friars in scoring. Most of his damage was done from the free throw line. Oduro had a fine game, but still turned the ball over 4 times. Villanova did an excellent job of denying the entry pass and making life difficult for Josh.
Josh also did a fantastic job defensively on Dixon, limiting him to 12 and 5. The defensive scout was to double Dixon when he touched the ball, and it seemed to work for the first 25-30 minutes of the game before the three ball started clicking for Nova. By that point, the game was already well in hand.
Guard the Three – Providence didn’t do a great job here, as I mentioned above Villanova went 36% from 3. Villanova missed a lot of wide open looks, and I think these looks were the result of great ball movement and giving up the three to double Dixon. Pick your poison, if you will.
Corey Floyd Jr. Emergence – I feel for Floyd Jr. I was at the game, and you can just tell by the way he carries himself that he is significantly lacking in confidence right now. Once a few three balls didn’t drop for Corey, I knew it was going to be a long night. After a few misses, he tended to pump fake and drive to the lane, only to pick up his dribble with no apparent plan. I have no clue why he’s not trying to finish at the rim given his explosive leaping ability. It’s really confounding.
He is going through it emotionally right now from what I can decipher. English said there would be some changes against Creighton, and I’m curious if Floyd Jr. starts to come off the bench for Dual or Barron. Floyd Jr. is pressing and a “demotion” to the bench may help alleviate the pressure. I’m at a loss and grasping at straws.
Things just aren’t clicking right now for the redshirt sophomore, but we must continue to pull for him. It’s not for lack of effort or laziness. He just isn’t seeing the ball go through the hoop, and that is causing all other facets of his game to deteriorate.
Make Your Damn Free Throws – The ironic thing in this clunker of a game was Providence went 100% from the charity stripe. The basketball gods are cruel and have a sick sense of humor.
Offensive Strategy or Personnel? I had great seats to the game last night thanks to a gift from a close friend, and let me be blunt: the offensive sets aren’t the issue. You can be the best play designer on the planet, but if the players can’t execute, you look like a horrible strategist.
Of the 33 three point attempts, I would argue half of those were WIDE open looks. Like, not a player within 2 feet of the shooter when the ball was released. You need to knock those down. Basketball isn’t a complex sport. Make your open shots when presented with them. Providence didn’t do that.
If you want to argue that Kim English isn’t designing an offense around his personnel, I would listen to that argument. It’s clear this team cannot make three pointers. Even still, these players are Big East level players. Anybody playing basketball at the collegiate level, let alone the Big East, should be able to knock down a wide open shot. You can blame English all you want, but he can’t put the ball in the hoop for the players.
If there is anything to take away from the bottom falling out, it is that English now knows he needs to turn over his roster and find more shooters. I have a good feeling that we will see a lot of roster churn by season’s end.
Kim English is a good leader and will take the blame for not having his team prepared, but it’s just as important for the players to own their part of this outcome in that they point blank didn’t show up.
BOC– terrific recount of last nights debacle. What stands out to me the most is TOO MUCH DRIBBLING! Too much indecisiveness. Pierre dribbles the ball too damn much looking for a play. He is knocking 10 seconds off the clock before making a move. Also passing the ball in general is not good and is causing too many turnovers. We both could go on and on but bottom line: turn the page on this one and beat Creighton Wednesday and play like your ass is on fire! Go Friars!
Spot on once again. I’m not sure why its taken coach English to realize that this team as its presently composed can’t throw the ball in the ocean. Even with Hopkins whoever thought he could shoot 3’s didn’t make any sense. We must remember that outside the George Mason duo, these guys were recruited by cooley. They’re grinders, physical, tough but can’t shoot a lick. A cooley recruiting trait except for a few players. Outside of Epps on GT he’s got those same type of players there now. As for the George Mason duo, only O’Duro has made a change to a Big East Player but Ticket is a poor man’s streaky shooter. Who knows about the GM transfer Fernandez. Coach English showed me a lot with his post game words. It takes a lot for a coach to admit he made a mistake with his offense and is ready to make a change. I don’t expect the change to take place immediately, meaning Wednesday night. No way you can implement more than a couple of sets in two days but, I expect the changes to come gradually.