Friar Basketball Newsletter: Providence Rebounds with a Stirring Comeback at Butler, Update on New England Preps, Big East Award Season Could be Bynum's Time to Shine, and more
What a wildly emotional week it was for the Friars. Providence rebounded from a difficult loss to Villanova on Tuesday night with a stirring come-from-behind victory at Butler Sunday afternoon.
PC was in a challenging spot on Sunday — coming down from the craziness of Tuesday at the Dunk, playing without Al Durham, and trailing by as many as 19 points before digging in and rallying late for an overtime victory.
With the win, Providence improved to 22-3 on the season and tied a school record with their twelfth conference victory. They are 12-2 in Big East play, and a half game up on Villanova for first place with three games remaining.
We broke down everything from the Butler game — from Jared Bynum’s monster second half, to the clutch shooting of Noah Horchler and AJ Reeves, to Nate Watson’s dominance on the interior. The article includes video, analysis, and thoughts from Ed Cooley and Watson.
You can also catch all of the highlights from the win here.
While Providence ultimately lost to Villanova in a matchup of top ten teams on Tuesday night, the game will long be remembered for one of the great crowds in Dunkin Donuts Center history. Here you will find a breakdown of the game, as well as what it felt like to be in such an amazing environment.
Video of the game condensed to about ten minutes can be seen here.
This week’s newsletter also includes features on Jared Bynum and some of the top prospects in New England’s classes of 2023 and 2024 — both are available for subscribers. Bynum has a chance to win both the Big East’s Most Improved Player award, as well as the league’s Sixth Man of the Year. The article includes a statistical deep dive — looking into his impressive conference numbers, as well as data from Synergy Sports on how effective Bynum has been in a variety of play types.
The article on New England prep products includes input from four coaches at some of the best programs in the country.
Finally, our weekly News and Notes column has exclusive video on former Friar Jyare Davis, who has seemingly found a perfect fit at Delaware. It also includes notes on PC’s next opponent (Xavier) looking to avoid another late-season swoon, Durham playing through injury, Lenny Wilkens’ rare accomplishment, Providence’s offensive efficiency, and more.
We’re coming down to the wire now. Providence hosts a pair of teams this week that figure to be in the NCAA Tournament in Xavier (on Wednesday) and Creighton (on Saturday), before closing out at Villanova on Tuesday, March 1.
There are nothing but big games remaining for the Friars, and we are so excited to cover them.