2014-15 Blue Ribbon: Providence

There was plenty of mourning before last season began over the supposed demise of the “old” Big East, but by the time the conference ended its annual March marquee party at Madison Square Garden, one school could not have enjoyed the new Big East any better.

Providence was one of those programs that never recovered when expansion bloated the Big East to a 16-team monster in 2005. That lineup paraded Top 25 teams into the Dunkin’ Donuts Center on a weekly basis, and the Friars never could gain much traction. The new, streamlined, football-be-damned conference could work quite well for Ed Cooley’s Friars, however.

Providence emerged as the first Big East tournament champ of the old/new league after an upset of Doug McDermott and Creighton in the title game. Scoring point guard Bryce Cotton then dropped 36 points and 8 assists on a stunned North Carolina team before the Tar Heels found a way to escape with a 79-77 second-round NCAA tournament victory. The Big East title was PC’s first in 20 years, and the NCAA trip the first in a decade.

Cooley’s next charge is to keep the success coming, and while some depth issues pose major questions marks, the Friars return 3 regulars—2 starters—from last year’s 23-12 team and add a class of recruits and redshirts that rivals any in the Big East.

“I’m not sure how this team will fit together or what our style of play will look like, but I like our talent,” Cooley said. “I think we’ve recruited well since we’ve come to Providence, and now we have a nice collection of talent. We’ll see how the pieces fit together once we get rolling.”

The cheers have returned at Providence under Cooley, but a large dose of the excitement over the last 2 seasons swirled under the sneakers of Cotton. In 2012-13, Cotton led the Big East in scoring and sparked the Friars to the NIT quarterfinals. A year ago, he was the Big East’s second-most prolific offensive player, poured in 21.8 points a game and led the conference with 5.9 assists a game. Basically, Cooley handed the ball to his senior guard, told him he’d never leave the floor (39.9 mpg) and watched him enjoy a season for the ages.

GONE AND DUNN

The funny thing is that was not the grand plan last October. The Friars really wanted Cotton to play off the ball and let rising star Kris Dunn (3.8 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 5.0 apg), a 6-3 sophomore, run the team. Over the first few weeks of practice, Cooley went so far as to say Dunn was the team’s most impressive player. During a closed scrimmage against Harvard, which Providence won, Dunn was the player who dominated the action.

But in an exhibition win over Rhode Island College on Nov. 1, Dunn lunged for a loose ball and an opponent rolled up on his right shoulder. After 3 weeks of rehab, Dunn returned and played in 4 games but the pain became too severe and led to season-ending surgery. It was his second surgery on the same shoulder in 18 months, after a torn labrum operation in July 2012 before he enrolled at Providence. That first injury kept him out of the lineup until late December of his freshman season.

Now, Friar fans are hoping the rest of the Big East finally sees the real Kris Dunn, the one who earned McDonald’s and Parade All-American honors coming out of high school in Connecticut. If healthy and on the court for 30-plus minutes a game, Dunn owns the potential for being the breakout player in college basketball this winter.

“Kris has had 2 unfortunate, bad breaks. He deserves some good luck in his career,” Cooley said. “The thing about Kris is he’s a fighter, and I’m glad he’s on my team. He’s a dynamic athlete and someone who can dominate a game with his all-around ability. We’re going to take it easy with Kris, but I expect him to have a big year for us.”

FORTUNE IS GONE

Providence fell victim to the wave of transfers that has washed over college hoops over the last several seasons when starting off-guard Josh Fortune (8.4 ppg, 56 of 160, .350 3PT) surprisingly announced a desire to transfer in May. The Virginia native started every game and saw 33 minutes a night, but he apparently wanted to expand his game to more than the spot-up shooter role he filled with Providence. He eventually landed at Colorado, and it’ll be interesting if he ever sees 30-plus minutes a night with the Buffs.

HERE COME MR HARRIS

Fortune’s departure came late in the recruiting game, and while Cooley doesn’t have a prototypical two-guard to fill the spot, he has players who can make 3s and guard the position. A host of Friars will fill the role, with 6-9, 223-pound junior Tyler Harris (11.6 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 1.4 apg, 1.0 spg) the likely leading contender. Harris started all 35 games as a sophomore, his first with Providence after a transfer from NC State. A long-limbed lefty, Harris scored in double figures 25 times and was a willing combatant on the glass. He turned the ball over too much and needs to shoot a better percentage (.322 3PT), but he’s the type of big, rangy scorer who pro scouts notice.

“Tyler had a very good year for really his first season as a college player,” Cooley said. “We’ve talked about what he needs to do to get better and become a player who can attract attention at the next level and one thing about Tyler is he’ll work. He loves the game.”

Harris, the younger brother of Orlando Magic forward Tobias Harris, may have issues guarding shooting guards, but Providence will certainly use him at the top of a long, active zone defense at times. Cooley has some interchangeable parts on the wings, with the most experienced being one of the more underrated players in America—6-6 senior LaDontae Henton (14 ppg, 7.9 rpg, .446 FG). Another southpaw, Henton has been a rock solid, tough, dependable performer ever since he arrived from Lansing, Mich. He’s already racked up 1,392 points and 832 rebounds as a collegian and spent all offseason working on his ball-handling and shooting skills to look more like a guard than a forward.

Henton hit 35.8 percent of his 3-pointers as a junior, many of them in key moments, and clearly will stay on the floor as long as Cooley wants. Even at an undersized 6-6, Henton may be the best pound-for-pound rebounder in the Big East.

“LaDontae has clearly been a special player for us at Providence, ever since we made him our first recruit,” Cooley said. “He’s been a leader for us since he got here, but now he’s a senior and we’ll ask him to do even more. Every coach in the country wants a player like LaDontae.”

Two newcomers will see time on the wing as well. One is sophomore Junior Lomomba, a native of Montreal who spent one season at Cleveland State and sat out last season in Providence. The 6-5 Lomomba (5.8 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 1.6 apg in 2012-13) will see time at both backcourt spots and looks the part of a fierce, strong defender. That clearly will be his chief role, as he’s much more of a dribble-drive scorer than a shooter. He shot just 32 percent in his lone season at Cleveland State.

Another option who can play either big guard or small forward is Jalen Lindsey, a highly touted 6-7 prospect from Tennessee. Lindsey crafted a historic prep career at Christ Presbyterian Academy in Nashville where he led his team to back-to-back state titles and earned all-state honors 3 times. That effort drew offers from the likes of Louisville, Florida, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, LSU and Mississippi State. However, a bond between Cooley and Lindsey—plus plus some family ties back in Woonsocket, R.I.—iced the deal for Providence.

Lindsey spent his final high school year at Huntington (W.Va.) Prep, where he averaged 10.2 points and 4.7 rebounds while shooting 52 percent from the field and 43 percent from 3. He ended up being ranked in the back half of every major Top 100 list but curiously slid backwards only after picking PC instead of a higher-brow program like Florida or Louisville.

Lindsey is one of 3 freshman forwards that form an exciting trio for Friar fans, alongside 6-7 Rodney Bullock and 6-8 freshman Ben Bentil. 

Bullock spent last season on campus as a redshirt after being suspended in November after an on-campus disciplinary incident. Bullock and fellow rookie Brandon Austin were investigated for an alleged sexual assault of a female student but in July 2014, a state grand jury “determined there was insufficient evidence to bring any charges.”

Austin transferred to Oregon amid the turmoil and found further trouble in another alleged sexual assault incident. Bullock remained at Providence and simply put his head down and became the most improved player in the program. The 220-pounder from Virginia used the year off to become a beast in practices, frequently torturing starters such as Henton and Harris with his mix of aggressive driving ability and a vastly improved jumper.

Known as Rajay, Bullock averaged 21.4 points, 16.1 rebounds and 2.0 blocks as a senior in high school. He also starred for the heralded Boo Williams AAU program and could be one of the surprise newcomers in the Big East.

Another candidate for that honor is Ben Bentil, a 6-8, 230-pound block of muscle who looks and plays a lot like graduated senior big man Kadeem Batts. 

Batts (12.3 ppg, 7.4 rpg) matured into a top-flight Big East frontcourt player in his five years at Providence. It won’t take Bentil as long to make his mark.

A native of Ghana, Bentil attended the prestigious St. Andrew’s School in Delaware, where he earned multiple all-state honors and drew the attention of recruiters from schools such as Florida and Georgetown. Providence hung with him the longest, however, and secured his services. Another Top 100 recruit, Bentil shoots the ball well for his size and owns a Big East-ready body.

Bentil is more suited to play at the power forward spot, but his strength and quick feet will make him a swing option on some opposing centers as well, especially when the Friars want to run and press. The good news is he’ll be able to grow into his forward role because the Friars own what is a rarity in college basketball these days—2 legitimate centers (Desrosiers & Chukwu).

The first center option is fifth-year senior Carson Desrosiers (3.6 ppg, 4.8 rpg), a 7-footer from New Hampshire who spent 2 years blocking shots at Wake Forest before coming to the Big East. Desrosiers, who owns NBA size at 250 pounds, often struggled with foul trouble last year, but in 20 minutes a game he averaged 2.4 blocked shots. In conference play, Desrosiers led the Big East in blocks with 38.

He spent the offseason improving his low-post power game and hopes to add some inside scoring to what is already a solid 12-foot jumper.

One of the more intriguing Big East freshmen will be Cooley’s second option at the five spot, 7-2 newcomer Paschal Chukwu. A native of Nigeria, Chukwu spent his high school years in the Stamford, Conn., area, first at Trinity Catholic and then Fairfield Prep. He led Fairfield Prep to the Connecticut state title game as a junior and senior, easily establishing himself as the most dominant big man in the state. His shot-blocking skills are what attracted scouts to tab him one of the top 85 recruits in the class of 2014, but he’s impressed the coaching staff with his ability to finish at the rim, catch in traffic and nail free throws.

“Paschal has an upside as large as a mountain,” Cooley said. “He’s a good player, period. He’s an excellent rim protector but he’ll help us on offense, too. He could be a very, very good player.”

With added depth, Cooley thinks he’ll press and extend the court at times and he’s excited about Desrosiers and/or Chukwu anchoring the back of the floor.

“Both of those guys are unique because they can run and protect the rim for your defense,” Cooley said.

The final scholarship player was a spring acquisition who fills a vital spot—5-11 point guard Kyron Cartwright. A left-hander who favors the pass over his scoring game, Cartwright starred at Compton (Calif.) High, where he played in the competitive L.A. Moore League for 4 years. As a senior, he helped 2 other Division I signees—Fresno State’s Isaiah Bailey and Iziahiah Sweeney of Portland State—shine. Cartwright signed with Loyola Marymount in the fall of 2013, but when that school had a coaching change, he was free to look at other schools and jumped at the chance to play in the Big East.

Cartwright will serve as Dunn’s backup. In a perfect world, he’ll see 8-10 minutes a game, because if Dunn is playing 30-plus, the Friars will be a very tough out once again in the Big East.

Through each of his first 3 seasons back home as the coach at Providence, Cooley thinks he worked with one hand tied behind his back. A numbing series of major injuries and eligibility issues always limited his bench and ability to expand the Friars’ capabilities. A thin backcourt will once again limit his options in 2014-15, but there are finally numbers—quality numbers—available.

This team has only 3 regulars returning, but if Dunn stays healthy and a few of the newcomers perform as expected, Providence will challenge again in the Big East. Villanova is deservedly slotted ahead of everyone else in the conference, but the Friars could play themselves into a second tier alongside Georgetown, St. John’s and Xavier, to name a few contenders.

Kevin McNamara, 2014-15 Blue Ribbon's Preview