Behind career nights from Bensley Joseph and Oswin Erhunmwunse, Providence takes another step forward with a win against Seton Hall
"At that moment he was not thinking about shooting threes. He was completely selfless to his team, to what we had to do, and the game rewards you when that’s your focus."
Following Providence’s win over Butler on Wednesday night, Kim English was asked about the development of center Oswin Erhunmwunse. “He hasn’t had much of a choice,” English quipped, an obvious reference to how the freshman was thrust into big minutes with Christ Essandoko and Bryce Hopkins both sidelined.
There had been signs of a breakthrough coming for Erhunmwunse dating back to his 10-point, 8-rebound, three block effort against DePaul in the Friars’ Big East opener on Dec. 10, but more recently his stroke at the free throw line looked smoother and he started rebounding in traffic more effectively.
Yet, over the past week we have seen the Oswin that excited so many in Friartown when he committed last year and then reclassified to 2024 in the spring.
Erhunmwunse was a deterrent against UConn last Sunday (9 rebounds, 3 blocks) and finished with five boards and three blocks in 17 foul-plagued minutes against Butler.
In Saturday night’s 91-85 win over Seton Hall, Erhunmwunse dominated defensively in the second half. All five of his blocks came in the final 10:15 of the game, and he made 6-7 shots from the field, including a late one with the shot clock running down to all but seal the victory for PC.
By game’s end, he had a 12-point, 10-rebound, five block double double, joining fellow freshman Ryan Mela (who had a double double early this week) and the likes of Ben Bentil, Kyron Cartwright, and LaDontae Henton as freshmen to notch double doubles since the Big East realigned in 2013.
“I just want to learn,” Erhunmwunse said of his big night. “I’m hungry to learn and be better because I know that right now I’m not the best of the best, and one day I want to be like that.”
English has taken his share of lumps in his second year at Providence (the Friars are now 9-8 overall and 3-3 in the league after consecutive victories), but there’s not much arguing that he went two for two in the recruiting class of 2024.
Mela followed up a 10-point, 15-rebound game against Butler with another outstanding outing: seven points, nine rebounds, and five assists in 32 minutes.
Mela looks to be just what English is looking to identify for this offense. He gets into the paint, finishes well inside, and last night showed his upside as a passer. Mela got teammates all sorts of great looks.
It’s hard not to be encouraged by the development of the two freshmen.
But last night wasn’t just about the youngsters. There was the unsung, sturdy play of Corey Floyd Jr. who made 4-5 shots from the field, 6-6 at the free throw line, and had a pair of assists. After so often getting stuck in the paint with the ball last season, Floyd is finishing over and around bigger defenders this year, and is starting to create for teammates as well.