Providence enters Wednesday's game against Seton Hall with an opportunity to wipe away a bad memory from a season ago
The Friar faithful would like to forget the last time Seton Hall visited Providence.
On Senior Day last March, Providence suffered throughout the unthinkable: the worst home loss of the Ed Cooley era — an 82-58 loss against a Pirates team playing without star Kadary Richmond. Providence trailed by 19 points at half, was down by as many as 32 with two minutes to play, and looked utterly despondent through much of the afternoon.
“Seton Hall played an arrogant team today. That’s who they played. They played a complacent, arrogant team,” Cooley said following the loss — a loss that would ultimately be his final home game coaching the Friars. “Are we frauds? Who knows?” he later asked aloud.
Seton Hall outwardly enjoyed putting it on the Friars last March, and ten months later, PC will look to enact a measure of revenge against a Pirates team that enters with an 8-5 overall record and 1-1 mark in the Big East.
While several of the faces will be new from last year’s matchup, this is an experienced Seton Hall club. Shaheen Holloway starts five players who are either seniors or graduates. They are the 12th most experienced team in the country, according to Ken Pomeroy.
The Hall doesn’t have a bad loss on its resume, with all five losses coming against high major opponents (USC, Iowa, Rutgers, Baylor, and Xavier). They opened Big East play with a surprising win over Connecticut (75-60), a victory that trumped their previous best of the season when they took out Missouri.
The unorthodox Richmond is at the center of it all for Holloway, once again, this season. The 6’5 Brooklyn native is one of the more divisive players in the Big East. There are those that see a guard with a limited perimeter game (10% from three this season) versus those who view Richmond as a physically punishing player who can wreck a game plan defensively. He is averaging 15.2 points, 6.2 rebounds, 4.2 assists, and a Big East-leading 2.5 steals per game. Richmond had eight steals against the Huskies, who he has given problems over the past few seasons. He has 12 steals in two Big East games to date, and his matchup with Devin Carter will be a battle.
Perhaps the biggest surprise this season has been the play of Santa Clara transfer big man Jaden Bediako, who has almost doubled his career bests in points and rebounds this season. Keeping Bediako off the offensive glass will be key, as he averages 4.4 offensive rebounds per game, and has the third best offensive rebounding percentage in the country.
Dre Davis is another guard capable of putting up 20 points on a give night. He’s currently riding a hot streak, scoring 19-17-18 in the last three games versus Missouri, UConn, and Xavier. Davis is hitting threes at a near 35% clip, to go along with 13.4 points per game.
Al-Amir Dawes is struggling from beyond the arc this season (31% — a 3-15 night versus Rutgers really hurt his shooting percentage), but the graduate guard is still putting up 12.2 a night and must be accounted for on the perimeter, considering his career numbers at Clemson and last year with the Hall.
A final familiar face will be Dylan Addae-Wusu, the powerfully built transfer guard from St. John’s who is averaging over eight points, five rebounds, and two assists per game. Addae-Wusu is a versatile defender at 6’4, 230 pounds. He defended Bryce Hopkins at times for the Johnnies last year, and could get the call again on Wednesday.
This game could come down to Providence’s ability to slow Seton Hall inside the perimeter. The Pirates do a lot of their damage on two-point field goals, while PC is holding opponents to 41.7% shooting from two — the fifth best mark in the country.
On paper, this looks like a good matchup for the Friars at home. Seton Hall ranks 111th in the country in defensive efficiency, and 106th on the offensive end, per KenPom. Providence has a lot of length and strength to throw at Richmond, but in his only matchup with PC a season ago he went for 28 points, nine rebounds, and five assists. With any help (Richmond made 10 of Seton Hall’s 24 field goals), he likely would have led the Pirates to a victory, rather than a 71-67 loss in the conference opener.
Richmond just lives in the paint, and keeping him away from the rim will be essential.
The Hall had little answer for Bryce Hopkins (24 points, 10 rebounds 3 assists) or Ed Croswell (21/9) in Newark a season ago.
Providence enters Wednesday’s game ranked #23 in the latest AP poll and will look to start league play with a 3-0 record for the third time in the past five years. The Friars start league play with a three-game home stand, and would love to head to Creighton this weekend with a perfect start in the Big East.