📅 Date & Time: Wednesday, January 3, 2024, at 6:30 p.m.
📍 Venue: Amica Mutual Pavilion, Providence, RI
📺 Broadcast: FS1 with Dave Sims and Donny Marshall (Fox Sports App); Radio with John Rooke and Joe Hassett on WPRO-99.7 FM/630 AM (The Varsity Network App & YouTube); FriarTV
🤑 Opening Line: Providence -5.5, Over/Under 137.5
Providence College Friars:
- Record: 11-2, 2-0
- Recent Performances:
- The Friars are on a 4-game winning streak, including a 2-0 start to Big East play with wins over Marquette and Butler. Devin Carter was named Big East Player of the Week on December 27th after averaging 23.0 points, 8.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists in Providence’s two Big East wins. Providence is ranked 23rd in this week’s AP Top 25 and USA Today Coaches Poll
- Providence vs:
- Providence is 57-55 all-time against Seton Hall with the Friars being 30-18 at home. Providence and Seton Hall first met on February 26, 1927.
- Stat Leaders:
- Points/Game – Devin Carter, 16.8
- Rebounds/Game – Bryce Hopkins, 8.7
- Assists/Game – Devin Carter, 3.0
- Minutes/Game – Bryce Hopkins, 34.5
Seton Hall Pirates
- Record: 8-5, 1-1
- Recent Performances:
- Seton Hall started Big East play 1-1 with an impressive win at home against UConn and a blowout loss, by 20, on the road at Xavier last time out on December 23rd.
- Stat Leaders:
- Points/Game – Kadary Richmond, 15.2
- Rebounds/Game – Jaden Bediako, 8.1
- Assists/Game – Kadary Richmond, 4.2
- Minutes/Game – Kadary Richmond, 31.8
Game Preview:
As the calendar turns to 2024, Providence and Seton Hall will meet after long layoffs with each team playing their most recent game on December 23rd. The 11 days between games marks the longest gap for Providence since the 2021-22 season when the waited 11 days between games 1 (12/18/21 at UConn) and 2 (12/29/21 vs Seton Hall) and 12 days between games 5 (vs. St. John’s on 1/8/22) and 6 (vs. Georgetown on 1/20/22) of the Big East season. That first gap was due to Christmas while the second one was the result of 3 games being canceled due to COVID-19.
The Friars were red hot heading into the Christmas break riding a 4 game win streak including a decisive victory of then 6th-ranked Marquette and an overtime thriller against Butler. This matchup with Seton Hall marks the end of a 5-game homestand for Providence with a 2-game road trip on the horizon at Creighton on January 6th and at St. John’s (Madison Square Garden) on January 10th. Interestingly, the next time Providence has a home game with school in session won’t be until January 27th when Ed Cooley returns to Providence with his Georgetown Hoyas team.
As for this matchup between the Friars and Pirates, Kim English referred to this Seton Hall team “a throwback Big East team” with their physicality and toughness. Seton Hall has been very good at turning their opponents over and grabbing offensive rebounds. Providence has struggled in the turnover department on offense, but they have surprisingly been better in their two Big East games with a Turnover rate of 14.2% in their Big East games against an overall 19.3% inclusive of their non-conference games. Kadary Richmond, who is Seton Hall’s leading scorer, is 27th nationally at Steal rate with St. John’s transfer Dylan Addae-Wusu being no slouch with the 102nd best Steal rate in the country. Addae-Wusu had 5 steals in a loss at Providence last season while playing for the Red Storm. Providence has been good at cleaning their own glass to the tune of 25% (43rd nationally and D-1 average of 29.6%) but Seton Hall is elite at 39.1% (9th nationally) with Pirates’ big man Jaden Bediako ranking 3rd nationally in Offensive Rebound rate at 21.2%. Bediako, who transferred to Seton Hall this year after 4 seasons at Santa Clara, also sports the 49th best Block rate.
Despite Seton Hall’s success at grabbing offensive rebounds they aren’t the biggest team overall. Richmond has good size for a point guard, but after that the 2-4 types for Shaheen Holloway are in the 6’4-6’6 range with Dre Davis ( listed at 6’6, 210 lbs) playing three quarters of the minutes at the power forward spot. Al-Amir Dawes is listed at just 6’2 and Addae-Wusu at 6’4. The Friars have a decided size advantage in the 2-4 spots and there are mostly equal sized players like Richmond and Bediako in Garwey Dual and Josh Oduro.
Seton Hall will want to play a slowed down slugfest while Providence will be looking to get the ball off misses and turnovers and get up the floor quickly looking for a good, open shot. The Friars have been very effective on defense this season (currently ranked 5th nationally in Adjusted Defensive Efficiency) and Seton Hall hasn’t been super careful with the ball to the tune of an 18.5% Turnover rate (221st nationally). If the Friars can let their defensive lead to good offense they should handle Seton Hall relatively easily. However, the Friars have struggled at the free throw line, which could allow the Pirates to hang around in a lower-than-usual possession game for Providence. Bryce Hopkins needs to get off to a good shooting start to 2024 as his confidence prior to Christmas was all but shattered with Butler slacking off Hopkins and giving him open looks at the 3-point line that he passed up. Look for Devin Carter and Dual to get most of the assignment on Richmond and, if Bediako gets into foul trouble for Holloway to sit him as Holloway has one of the lowest 2-foul participation rates in the country at 8.3% (299th nationally).
Score Prediction: Providence 72, Seton Hall 64