Overtime defeats against Virginia Tech, Butler, Connecticut and Marquette were all killers. None of them were like this.
PROVIDENCE – Where could this possibly go from here?
It felt like another red line was crossed for Providence on this Saturday afternoon at Amica Mutual Pavilion. The Friars weren’t supposed to lose against Ed Cooley this soon – and certainly not in this fashion.
Overtime defeats against Virginia Tech, Butler, Connecticut and Marquette were all killers. None of them were like this – a 21-point lead squandered against someone the home fans serenade with profanity every time he sets foot in his former building.
A slice of that vitriol was saved for Kim English and his players following this 81-78 stunner, with Georgetown staging an unlikely rally against Providence to snap its six-game losing streak. The Hoyas climbed out of the Big East’s basement by finding an opponent – perhaps the only opponent – currently carrying less confidence.
“I think it’s a culmination of a lot of moments – a lot of these games, different games,” English said. “I think there’s some fragility in the group with knowing how to do it.”
The Friars seemed to have complete control after Jaylin Sellers ran the length of the floor for a slam dunk with 13:04 left. KenPom.com gave Georgetown just a 1.2% chance to win what was a 59-39 game – that's how long the odds were for the Hoyas to capture Cooley’s third return to his home city.
It mirrored the 2.9% chance the Golden Eagles held to rally in Monday’s overtime thriller, the 3.2% chance the Huskies carried to complete its overtime rally here on Jan. 7 and even the 15.3% chance the Hokies clung to while downing Providence in overtime at Mohegan Sun in November.
“Just a crusher,” English said. “Crushing. Crushing defeat. Tale of two halves.”
The Friars stopped defending after the break, allowing the Hoyas to shoot a sizzling 67.7% from the floor and connect on all but one of their nine 3-pointers in the game. Georgetown averaged an incredible 1.81 points on 31 possessions – that number was 0.78 points on 32 possessions through the opening 20 minutes. The Hoyas were the ninth team in 20 games this season to perform like a national top-50 offense against Providence in terms of adjusted efficiency.
“It was there in the first half,” English said. “Again, our defense is in front of our bench in the first half. Second half, you’re on your own – five guys out there are on their own.”
The Friars benched freshman Jamier Jones for a pair of extended stretches in the second half – 11:02 to 5:41, 4:04 to the finish – after a pair of mistakes English recounted postgame. Jones allowed Jeremiah Williams to score on a drive to his right, making it a 61-49 game, and followed a turnover in the paint with a foul in a 71-68 game. Providence was minus-4 in nine second-half minutes with Jones on the floor – the Friars were minus-24 with Duncan Powell, minus-21 with Stefan Vaaks, minus-19 with Oswin Erhunmwunse and minus-18 with Corey Floyd Jr. after the break.
“Obviously uber-talented, and we need him, and he gets to play through a lot of mistakes," English said. “Jeremiah Williams is a driver – he's a right driver. And he hit a right drive layup and an and-one on Jamier. We had a play called – Jamier went in 1-on-3, got the ball knocked out, dove and took himself out of the play.
“We sat him at the end of the Creighton game. We get to see him every day. We know the freshman lapses that can happen – they happen to everybody when they’re freshmen. You try to avoid them when you can. We thought we did.”
Jason Edwards had his right foot in a walking boot Saturday while continuing a battle with plantar fasciitis. It’s the fourth straight game he’s missed, and it's certainly within reason that any team would be limited without its leading scorer. Is his potential return to health the answer?
A reminder – the Friars lost to Virginia Tech, Colorado, Butler and Seton Hall with Edwards available. And Providence left him on the bench for the final 7:52 of its best win to date, a 77-71 rally past St. John’s on the road. The Friars closed that afternoon on a 22-9 run with Vaaks, Sellers, Jones, Ryan Mela and Erhunmwunse on the floor.
Providence would fall to 2-8 in the conference with a Tuesday defeat at UConn, and that would earn the Friars a spot in the basement. That would also put Providence at 11-27 in its last 38 games against league foes and 2-19 in its last 21 games against KenPom.com top-50 opponents.
Gampel Pavilion – like the rest of the upcoming road for the Friars – isn't looking so inviting.
On X: @BillKoch25
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Providence men's basketball reeling after Jan. 24 loss to Georgetown
Category: General Sports
