Friars Raise Banner, Edge Albany 64-60

Sunday, November 16, 2014

 

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The Providence College Friars (1-0) defeated the Albany Great Danes (0-1) of the America East Conference 64-60 on Saturday night at The Dunkin Donuts Center in front of a crowd of just under 10,000 people. Prior to the game, the Friars raised their Big East Championship banner to the rafters in a championship ceremony that also served as a final look back at last season, at least for the players and coaches. 

Carrying the load

Junior Tyler Harris led the Friars with 23 points and five rebounds while senior LaDontae Henton had a double-double with 21 points and ten rebounds for the Friars.

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Henton and Harris combined for 44 of the Friars 64 points in the game, something that the Friars will need to see more of, especially early on in the season. 

For the Great Danes, guard Evan Singletary led the way with 18 points and three assists, while his fellow guard Peter Hooley put up 15 points and six assists in the loss. 

Rusty

Point guard Kris Dunn looked a bit rusty in his first game after sitting out of the majority of the last two seasons with an injury. In the game, Dunn had two points and two assists and picked up four personal fouls. His two points came on two clutch free throws with time winding down that sealed the win for PC.

However, he missed all five of the shots that he took from the floor. 

The freshmen

Lots of attention was paid to the freshmen coming into this season and in their first game they showed flashes of what they can do. Kyron Cartwright started the game and played 34 minutes scoring eight points and dishing out five assists. He also did much of the ball handling in tonights game. Jalen Lindsey played 13 minutes but didn't register a point in the four shots that he attempted from the field. 

Ben Bentil played 15 minutes in the game and had four points and six rebounds, including a nice post move in the second half. The 7'2" Paschal Chukwu only played four minutes in the game and had one block.

Lastly, Junior Lamomba only played eight minutes in the game and came up with one steal, two points and two rebounds. 

Relax

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The general tone of the fans after the game was a little dissapointment that PC only beat Albany by four points. As Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers said "relax."

Albany is a good team, they have been in the NCAA Tournament the last two years, and last year they gave Florida a run for their money in the first round. The Great Danes were picked to finish third in the American East Conference, in part because they are only returning two players from last years squad. Albany has good guard play, and they are a good shooting team, shooting 47 percent from the field and 41 percent from three-point land.  

Providence is a young team this year with a lot of new parts, and it is going to take them time to gel and take the freshmen time to get adjusted. 

Next UP

The Friars stay home to take on Binghamton on Monday night at 9 p.m. as part of the Hall of Fame Tip-Off tournament. 

Click here for tickets 

 

Related Slideshow: Providence College Friars 2014-2015 Projected Starting Lineup

The Providence College Friars went on a magical run last year that saw them win the Big East Championship at Madison Square Garden in New York City. This year they look to defend their title and get back to the big dance. Here is the 2014-2015 projected starting lineup for the Friars.

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Guard- Kris Dunn

Kris Dunn will start at point guard for the Friars this season. Dunn hasn't played  much over his first two years with the Friars because of injury but when he is in the game, he makes things happen. Last season against Vanderbilt, Dunn led the Friars in an epic comeback from an 18 point second half deficit. The 6'3" Dunn posted ten points, five assists, four rebounds and three steals in that game and then recorded six assists in the next game before having season ending shoulder surgery.

The Friars will be in good shape if Dunn can stay healthy this season. 

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Guard - Junior Lomomba

Junior Lomomba is a 6'5"  sophomore guard who has found his way into the Friars starting lineup this season.

This season, Lomomba has averaged 1.5 points and 1.2 rebounds per game but a major reason why he is in the lineup is because he does not turn the ball over, only having three turnovers in the last four games for Providence.  

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Forward- LaDontae Henton

Last season, the 6'6" LaDontae Henton averaged 14 points per game which was second best to Bryce Cotton and just under eight rebounds per game which was the best on the team and second best in the Big East. Henton is a scrappy player who is not afraid to mix it up a bit and brings toughness to this Friars line up.

Henton seems poised for a big year. 

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Forward- Ben Bentil

6'8" freshman forward Ben Bentil will be one of the first players off the bench for Ed Cooley this year. Bentil can play three positions for the Friars, center, forward and small forward plus he is a good shooter and loves to rebound the ball.

Bentil is a player that is going to give coach Cooley several different options with his lineups and allow him to play the matchup game to perfection.

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Center-Carson Desrosiers

Carson Desrosiers is a seven foot senior forward who last season finished fourth on the team in rebounding, averaging 4.8 rebounds per game. He also had 82 blocks on the season, an average of just over two blocks per game. His 82 blocked shots led the team. 

Desroisers is a player that is mostly in the line up for his work on the defensive end and so like last season, he will be in and out of the line up depending on the situation. 

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6th man- Tyler Harris

Tyler Harris comes into this year as a 6'9" junior, however this is only his second season with the Friars after transferring from NC State. Last season, Harris averaged 11.6 points and five rebounds per game for the Friars and got better as the year went on. 

"Harris and Henton will be more effective this year, then they were last year" said PC Alum and Radio Analyst Joe Hassett

 
 

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