As the Friars move into December and get ready for their first road game of the season, against a better-than-expected Oklahoma Sooners team, I wanted to take a look at what makes the Friars unique this season. We learn each year that teams develop their own personality and mentality, and this year is no different. These differences are obviously heightened by the coaching staff change and new philosophy brought in by Coach English, but it also has a lot to do with the roster.
The main thing that has stood out to me is the guard play, and the overall size and athleticism of the guard rotation. In recent years, the top Friar teams have been led by quality undersized guards, with the exception of the two Kris Dunn years. Vincent Council, Bryce Cotton, Kyron Cartwright, and Jared Bynum all ran the Friar offense and were very successful, but they were all undersized and limited on the defensive end. Also, our entire guard rotations were limited athletically, again with the exception for Kris Dunn. This season, I would venture to say we have the most physical and most athletic guard rotation of my Friar following life, which goes back to Ernie D and Kevin Stacom.
The leader of the group is clearly Devin Carter. I was fortunate to see him practice several times during the summer of 2022 and immediately became a fan. His drive, hustle, and aggressiveness are hard to match. He made a major leap in his game from his freshman to his sophomore year and has done the same thing again this season. His 3-point shooting was 27% his freshman year, 30% last year, and is 35% this year to date on significantly more attempts. He is again averaging over a block per game and nearly two steals per game. The major leap though, has been with his rebounding. He already has three double doubles in the first eight games this year, compared to three in his first 61 games. Also, of the top 30 rebounders from the major conferences (Power 6 plus AAC and Mountain West), the 6’3” Carter is the only one under 6’7”. Against URI, Carter had 11 rebounds, and backcourt mates Corey Floyd and Jayden Pierre added 6 and 3, respectively.
The other part is that the entire group is physical and able to track down opponents and defend larger bodies. Carter and Floyd would look comfortable in the NFL, Dual is a physical gift, and Pierre has a little of each of them. They also share a high level of on the court IQ defensively. Carter is able to block more jump shots and passes than any guard I remember with his instincts. Dual and Floyd have a knack for cutting off driving guards and an ability to recover when caught out of position. Focusing on Dual is fun because you can see him anticipating when to go for the block or steal ahead of time. He still is vulnerable to mistakes, but the potential and athletic uniqueness is undeniable. Similarly, Floyd got burned a couple of times Saturday, but by and large did a very good job cutting off drives from the URI backcourt. He also got caught on a switch and ended up fronting 6’9” Tyson Brown, leading to URI trying a lob. Floyd was able to get up and tip the ball away, leading to a Devin Carter steal. I do not think it is a coincidence that the Friars increased their lead every time Floyd came into the game Saturday.
Finally, Jayden Pierre is correctly getting notice for his improved offense and leadership, but it also appears that his defense has taken a big step forward. Last year he was often pushed around by opponents, and that has not happened so far this year. He also plays great complementary defense with any of the other three guards, using his speed and quickness as another weapon. He also has at least one steal in every game he has played this year, after only getting 8 all of last season. If you want more details on Devin Carter’s elite rebounding and the Friars guard defense, check out this from the living legend, Ultimate Cranston: https://ultimatecranston.substack.com/p/nuggets-passing-big-men-rebounding. It should be noted that I started writing this on Sunday before reading his piece, proving that not only do great minds think alike, so do ours.
I will conclude by making sure to give credit to freshman Rich Barron. Barron was an unheralded recruit initially committed to George Mason, then followed Coach English to Friartown. Through the early going, he shows why player recruiting rankings, especially beyond the top 25-50, are a real crapshoot. Barron was unrated and was basically recruited by mid-major schools. Since the injury to Jayden necessitated playing time for him, he has not disappointed. While his numbers are not spectacular, he has hit at least one three-pointer in every game (5-11 overall in the four games) and provided meaningful minutes Saturday even with Pierre’s return. To be a lightly recruited true freshman and have the confidence to hunt his shot off the bench is a positive sign for Barron’s long-term development as a Friar.