The Friars and Bulldogs have been struggling of late. Providence enters Wednesday night’s game against Butler at the AMP on a 4-game losing streak and losers of eight of their last ten. Butler, on the other hand, is riding a 7-game losing streak and are already 0-4 in conference play. Something has got to give at 8:30pm at the AMP.
Will the Friars end their 4-game losing streak and work their way back to .500 in the Big East or will the Bulldogs get on the board in the league? Let’s take a deeper dive into tonight’s tilt.
Win Turnover Battle– The teams that will be playing in the NFL Playoffs this weekend are certainly hoping to win the turnover battle in their respective games. In hoops, the winner of the turnover battle isn’t as indicative of who will win the game than football, but this particular contest could come down to turnovers. The Friars and Bulldogs both have a propensity to turn the ball over and it has cost each team games this season. The winner of the turnover battle could very well be the winner of the game.
Guards Need to Play Well– Jayden Pierre and Wesley Cardet were excellent against UConn and need to continue that play in this one. Also, I’m looking for Bensley Joseph to have a bounce back game after struggling the last two games. Against UConn and Marquette Joseph combined for 10 points on 3/13 shooting. The Friars have a clear advantage in the guard department, and they need to play like it. The Bulldogs are built through their forwards Pierre Brooks, Jahmyl Telfort, and Patrick McCaffrey. PC’s guards need to play aggressive and looking to attack from the jump.
Control the Glass– Despite Butler being built through their forwards they aren’t the best rebounding team. The Friars hold a 3.4 rpg advantage over the Bulldogs thus far this season. Part of that could be due to the fact that the Friars defense is a bit better than Butler’s and the Bulldogs are seeing more shots going in thus less opportunities for rebounds. In Butler’s eight losess this year they are combined -35 on the glass. If PC wins the rebounding battle they will win the game.
Guarding the Butler Two Headed Monster – Butler is built really uniquely in that their two best players almost play the same position in that “big wing” role as a 3/4 in Telfort and Brooks. They combined score over 30 points a game and 9.7 rebounds a game. How do you stop them? Physicality with Cardet and Floyd Jr. I think those two will be tasked with guarding these dynamic forwards. How effective they are probably determines the outcome of this game, in my opinion, as Butler doesn’t have too much else besides these two.
For what it’s worth, Hopkins is the ideal guard for these two…
Bonke Coming Out Party? This may be more of a hot take than key to a game, but this is a game where Bonke can make his presence felt. Andre Screen, their big, is a tall human being and would have about 4-5 inches on Oswin. He isn’t overly mobile, which makes me think we see a fair amount of Bonke in this one. I’ll be bold and say Bonke plays meaningful minutes and has his best game of the season to the tune of 8-10 points, 6-8 boards, and 2 blocks.
Same Offensive Strategy as UConn – Attack the rim, take contested lay-ups to force the hand of the opponent and ref, operate in the mid-range. Use your athleticism advantage over the opponent. Don’t settle for 30+ three’s. That should be the recipe moving forward for this Friar squad. Let’s hope they don’t fall back on bad tendencies.
Predictions
Crier: The last time the Friars played at the AMP it was the least inspiring effort of recent memory. Look for the Friars to come out in this one with energy and effort. PC 80 Butler 72
BOC: They found something against UConn. Let’s see if they can replicate that. PC 72, Butler 69.