"We didn’t meet the mark in a lot of areas, mostly when it comes to our discipline to execute." Providence played hard enough, but not well enough, to beat Kansas State
In the aftermath of Providence's 73-70 overtime loss to Kansas State in the Baha Mar Hoops Championship, you can expect to hear how the Friars should have won this one from the diehards. But that wasn’t the case. Providence played hard enough to win, but not well enough.
Yes, Jayden Pierre only played five first-half minutes due to a groin injury suffered in practice on Thursday, but teams don’t deserve to win after committing ten turnovers in the game’s first ten minutes, fouling an opponent on three separate 3-point attempts in the second half and overtime, and when giving up an uncontested three with just over two minutes left in a one-possession game in overtime.
Providence shot 24-68 from the field (35.3%), 5-22 from beyond the arc, and missed seven free throws — and, despite all of that, they had an opportunity to win the game at the end of regulation.
Devin Carter took the ball hard to the rim in the closing seconds, absorbed a hit from (I guess we can call him) former Friar Will McNair Jr., but didn’t get a call as the buzzer sounded and the game went to overtime.
It was in OT that the Friars cracked. Carter fouled K-State star Tylor Perry on a 3-point attempt 12 seconds into the extra session. Perry, who made all 14 of his foul shots on the night, knocked down all three. The Wildcats then got a stop and a score to take a five-point advantage.
As had been the case throughout the night, the Friars battled their way back, but just didn’t do enough of the little things to finish against a program fresh off an Elite Eight appearance.
Bryce Hopkins split a pair of free throws to cut the lead to 62-58, and on the next possession Garwey Dual finished a traditional 3-point play to bring PC to within a point with 3:25 on the clock.
Providence then had an opportunity to take the lead on their next possession, but Hopkins couldn’t convert a contested layup. No one picked up former Creighton forward Arthur Kaluma (18 points, 6-10 from the field, three killer 3-pointers) and he buried a three from the top of the key to push Kansas State back up four with 2:18 to go.
After Ticket Gaines missed a 3-pointer on the ensuing possession, backup big man Rafael Castro (thrust into critical minutes after Josh Oduro fouled out) went high for an offensive rebound and flushed it home.
That was as close as Providence would get in extra time. The Wildcats scored an easy basket off a screen and roll, Hopkins missed a three on the other end, and K-State got a layup on their next possession.
The game ended in an ugly manner, as Dual took a cheap shot from fellow freshman Dai Dai Ames with under ten seconds to play, and retaliated with a dangerous forearm. Both players were ejected for the fight, and it’s looking likely that Providence will enter Sunday’s consolation game against Georgia without Dual and, at best, with a hobbled Pierre.
Friar head coach Kim English summoned Bill Belichick when asked about Dual’s altercation by ABC6’s Ian Steele in his postgame presser.
Steele: “What did you say to Garwey after the game?”
English: “I just checked to make sure he was okay.”
Steele: “I saw he left early before the referees made a decision; is there an injury or something there?”
English: “He was ejected from the game.”
Steele: “Any lessons he can take from this?”
English: “You shouldn't fight during a basketball game.”
It was an ugly ending to a physical game — one in which Providence could be commended for its effort, but chided for its execution.
“We didn’t meet the mark in a lot of areas, mostly when it comes to our discipline to execute — fouling 3-point shooters, losing guys in crucial moments in transition, and missing layups,” Friar head coach Kim English said after the loss. “We have to do a better job of making sure our group is ready to execute when they are tired, when it’s late, when the game is at its most crucial moment.”
English wanted nothing to do with questions about Pierre missing most of the game, or how he coached around the foul trouble of Josh Oduro and Dual. Oduro (10 points, 4-9 shooting) fouled out in just 22 minutes, while Dual played much of the second half and overtime with four fouls. Oduro picked up a pair of fouls 16 seconds apart in the first half, and sat the final six minutes — minutes it felt as though Providence was just looking to survive as momentum had swung in favor of K-State. They did just that thanks to 3-pointers by Gaines and Carter in the final two minutes of the half.
Both Oduro and Pierre have been among the most stabilizing forces on the roster in the early going, and Providence was all out of sorts when playing without them on the offensive end. PC led this one 15-9 early, but looked rudderless after Pierre departed with just over 13 minutes left in the first after feeling increased tightness in his groin.
“No excuses. No one cares about our injuries, about our foul trouble. We had plenty (of opportunities) to win that game. That’s on me. That’s on the decisions that I made throughout the game. We’ve got to improve. We’ve got to make our free throws, we’ve got to stop fouling three point shooters, and we have to make layups,” English said.
In the first half, PC scored just 26 points on 8-26 shooting from the field.
“I’d say turnovers and missed layups aren't a good thing in basketball,” English deadpanned when asked of his team’s offensive effort.
PC shot just 15-30 at the rim (the national average is 62%) — a far cry from their 8-11 effort against Wisconsin earlier in the week.