📅 Date & Time: Saturday, November 16, 2024, at 5:00pm
📍 Venue: Amica Mutual Pavilion, Providence, RI
📺 Broadcast: FS2 with Emmanuel Berbari and Dave Leitao (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 -17, Over/Under 144
🎟️Tickets: SeatGeek (enter promo code pcbb1917 for $20 off your first purchase)
Providence College Friars:
- Record: 3-0
- Recent Performances: Providence has been up and down to start the season with two close games against poor opponents (Central Connecticut and Hampton) sandwiched by one solid performance in the middle against another poor opponent (Stonehill). But the Friars are 3-0 entering this Saturday matchup against Doug Gottlieb-led Green Bay.
- Providence vs: This will be Providence’s first matchup ever with Green Bay. The Friars are 8-0 all-time against current members of the Horizon League.
- Stat Leaders:
- Points/Game – Bensley Joseph, 13.7
- Rebounds/Game – Wesley Cardet, 6.3
- Assists/Game – Bensley Joseph, 3.0
- Minutes/Game – Corey Floyd, 29.3
Green Bay Phoenix
- Record: 1-2
- Recent Performances: Green Bay is coming off their first win of the season. The Phoenix beat the Western Illinois Leathernecks (just wanted to write that mascot name) on Wednesday, 87-73, behind 35 points from senior guard Anthony Roy. This was the first career win for new head coach, Doug Gottlieb. The Phoenix lost their opener at Oklahoma State, 89-76, and then their home opener last Friday against St. Thomas, 90-76.
- Stat Leaders:
- Points/Game – Anthony Roy, 28.7
- Rebounds/Game – Marcus Hall, 5.7
- Assists/Game – Preston Ruedinger, 4.5
- Minutes/Game – Marcus Hall, 36.0
Game Preview:
Providence hasn’t looked great in any of their 3 wins so far in the early days of the 2024-25 season, but they have done enough (and in the case of the game against Stonehill, won somewhat comfortably) to keep the 0 in the loss column. That fact is something that can’t be said for other Big East brethren through 11 days of the season. Providence is looking to start the season 4-0 for the first time since 2021-22. They have also held their first three opponents under 60 points for the first time since 2010-11 and if they were to do that again on Saturday it would be the first time they did it through their first four games since 1960-61.
There were some questions about toughness after the Hampton game on Tuesday where Kim English sat Christ Essandoko and Jabri Abdur-Rahim for the entire second half and a spark was provided by Eli DeLaurier after Providence trailed the Pirates, 30-22, at the half. It will be interesting to see the rotation on Saturday as Essandoko and JAR have both been early off the bench and JAR even got his first start in a Providence uniform in the Hampton game. Much will likely depend on how everyone practices which is not something we’ll know or see, so it will be interesting to see the starting 5 in this game, but even more interesting to see who is first off the bench and how quick of a hook English will have if he doesn’t see the effort and toughness he expects.
The Friars welcome Green Bay to the Amica Mutual Pavilion on Saturday in a game featuring (current?) broadcaster/radio host/TV personality turned college basketball coach Doug Gottlieb. Gottlieb, whose father was a college basketball coach, got his first win against a Division 1 opponent in the Phoenix’s last game on Wednesday night on the road at Western Illinois. Gottlieb’s squad rivals the Friars in their want to get lots of shots up from beyond the arc. Providence is currently 9th in the country at making 56.9% of their attempted field goals from beyond the 3-point stripe while Green Bay closely follows them at 55.7%, good for 12th most. The teams diverge from there with makes, though. Green Bay, powered largely by their senior guard Anthony Roy and his 18/32 shooting from deep, has been converting theirs at a much higher clips (37.8%, 64th vs 31.0%, 216th) than the Friars. The Phoenix have struggled mightily on the other side of the floor against the long ball, however, with opponents shooting 47.5% on the season which is in the bottom 10 of the rankings nationally. The D1 average is 32.8%. Green Bay’s defense is also ranking poorly at eFG% (55.1%, 269th), Offensive Rebound Rate (39.4%, 327th) and blocking shots (3.1%, 343rd). Their offense has been very good at making free throws to the tune of 86.4%, good for a top 10 rank nationally. They aren’t getting to the line a ton, though, at just 15.9% of points coming at the charity stripe (265th).
The Friars have a clear issue in the turnover department. I thought Chris Thurlow summed things up well in his below post on X/Twitter where he referred to the first half turnover rate this season of 29.3% through 3 games as “absolutely fatal.”
Providence Turnover Percentage
1st half of games 29.3% (absoultely fatal)
2nd half of games 19.5% (on the bad side of average)#pcbb #GoFriars— FriarStats (@StatsFriar) November 14, 2024
Providence’s 26.0% Turnover Rate ranks 350th and is nearly 8 percentage points higher than the D1 average of 18.1%. Yikes. Cutting down on turnovers, which have largely been self-inflicted and not caused by their opponents, and better flow on offense where driving and cutting with purpose would likely result in a very easy win on Saturday. However, keep up the giveaways, keep stinking it up at the free throw line (60.7%, 315th) and letting Green Bay hang around and this is a dangerous opponent if they are making 3-pointers given just how many they take (98 through 3 games).
The final thing to mention in this preview is that there have been some rumors in the latter half of this week that Bryce Hopkins may make his season debut on Saturday. Kim English said before the season that Hopkins’ debut this season would come at home, so if that is still the case and Hopkins is to play at all before the team goes to the Bahamas for their Thanksgiving MTE event in Atlantis that would mean this game and the next one against Delaware State are the most likely opportunities. My gut? We see Hopkins on a minutes restriction on Saturday against Green Bay.
Score Prediction: Providence 77, Green Bay 63
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