The Friars were looking to bounce back after a lackluster performance in Cincinnati over the weekend when they hosted the Villanova Wildcats Tuesday night at the AMP. However, that same lackluster effort spilled over into the first half where the Friars committed countless turnovers, let Villanova stroke it from deep, and found themselves in 12-point hole at the break.
PC put forth a much better effort in the second half cutting the deficit to 5 points on a few occasions, but couldn’t make enough plays or get enough defensive rebounds to complete the comeback. The Friars have now lost three straight games after knocking off St. Johns in Madison Square Garden 10 days ago. With the loss PC is now 8-9 on the season, 1-5 in league play and are 0-3 in league games at Amica Mutual Pavillion. Clearly it appears we are in for another long winter in Friartown.
Defense, Ball Security a Disaster Class in the First Half– The hope would’ve been that the Friars come out swinging in this one after the loss at Xavier but that was not the case. PC turned the ball over 12 times in the first half; they average 11.7 a game and allowed Villanova to hit 6 first half three pointers. Providence gave up 13 points in the first half off turnovers. The defensive lapses and ball security issues allowed Villanova to build a 12-point halftime lead.
To Providence’s credit they did clean some of this up. PC only finished with 13 turnovers for the game and Nova only made 4 threes in the second half. That’s what ultimately got Providence back in the game but when you’re at home you just can’t afford to have the first half that PC had.
Offensive Rebounds Doom Friars– PC was -7 on the glass against Villanova but they each had 20 defensive rebounds. The Wildcats advantage on the glass was sheerly on offensive rebounds. Allowing offensive rebounds has plagued the Friars all season long. When you’re trying to make a comeback, you need to hold the opposition to one and done. Especially playing a team like Villanova who doesn’t play fast, those key offensive boards they got allowed them to salt away more and more clock.
Nova Gets Big Boost from Bench– Villanova got a huge boost from their bench in this one getting 32 points off their bench including 22 in the first half alone. Devin Askew provided Nova with 20 points and hit some huge shots down the stretch. Malachi Palmer gave them a solid game as well. Providence on the other hand has gotten solid bench production throughout the season but only had 8 points tonight.
It didn’t help that starter Jason Edwards missed the game moving Stefan Vaaks, who has been in double-digit scoring every game this season, was inserted into the starting five.
Sellers/Jones/Vaaks Have Big Nights– Without their leading scorer in Edwards you knew Friars were going to have to get a scoring punch from multiple players. Jaylin Sellers and freshman Vaaks and Jones answered the call scoring a combined for 68 points on 25/44 shooting from the floor. The rest of the team however only mustered a combined 14 points on 6/12 from the floor. Providence got whatever they wanted at the rim and Jamier Jones was once again the catalyst with relentless drives at the rim. His success had Sellers and Vaaks be much more aggressive attacking the basket in the second half. Clearly the Friars have a special player in Jones and Stefan Vaaks for that matter.
PC will look to get off the snide when they welcome Creighton at the AMP on Friday night.