As we roll into the second month of the year, it’s time to start talking about bubble teams for the NCAA Tournament. The Providence Friars are on that bubble and a win over the No. 1 ranked Villanova Wildcats will do plenty to strengthen their resume. A loss to St. John’s last week sure crippled their chances, but the Friars bounced back to knock off Marquette, a club that just posted an upset of Villanova, on Saturday. Providence has a shot at some big wins down the stretch, but this is the biggest of them all.
This war on the floor will go down Wednesday, February 1, 2017, at 7 p.m. ET at the Dunkin Donuts Center. The game will be televised live on FS1.
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Villanova proved why it’s one of the best teams in the country with a thrilling comeback win over No. 12 Virginia on Saturday. Nova played its worst half of the season in the first 20 minutes and battled back from a double-digit deficit with about 10 minutes to play to knock off the Cavaliers 61-59. Nova failed to cover as a 5.5-point favorite and is 0-3 ATS in its last three games, one of those a 10-point win at home over Providence as a 16-point favorite.
Snapping a two-game slide with a cover win at Marquette on Saturday, Providence overcame a bad loss the game before when the Friars allowed the final six points and lost 91-86 at home to St. John’s. It was just the second home loss of the season for Providence, but they’ve both come in the last three games. Overall the Friars are 11-2 SU and 7-6 ATS at the Dunkin Donuts Center. They did cover as a 16-point underdog when the teams met in Philadelphia last week.
Last Meeting
The teams met just last week in a game that was much closer than most anticipated. Providence stayed close throughout the first half and trailed by only four points at halftime. The game got away in the final 20 minutes as Villanova scored the first eight points of the second half and led by as many as 19 before coming away with the 78-68 victory.
It could have been a different outcome had Friars’ Kyron Cartwright not been ill. The point guard struggled with his shot and delivered 12 points in 29 minutes. “If he doesn’t play well, it’s hard for us to win,” coach Ed Cooley said of Cartwright.
Player to Watch
Cartwright was on his game in the upset of Marquette scoring all of his team-high 18 points in the second half while shooting 7 of 12 with six assists and six rebounds. He played 34 minutes and was clutch down the stretch. At 5-foot-11 Cartwright isn’t the biggest player, but his game looks like that of Boston Celtics Isaiah Thomas. Cartwright is fearless attacking the basket and has a potent mid- to long-range jumper.
The one thing that makes him special, according to Cooley, is his unselfishness. He passes up makeable shots to get his teammates better looks and he ranks fifth in the nation with 6.9 assists per game. The Friars need Cartwright to be on his game if they want a chance to pull the upset. But even if he plays well, the chances are slim that Providence can do that.
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The Wildcats are coming off a stirring comeback win over Virginia on Saturday and all that emotion could have drained them. It took a big second half and a tip-in at the buzzer to get the win, and that’s a lot of spent emotion for a team that uses just seven players in its rotation. Nova relies heavily on its starters and the group, led by player of the year candidate Josh Hart, is good. At some point the lack of depth will hurt Villanova, but they’ve done well so far this season and Providence just doesn’t have the horses to keep up.
The Friars will make it interesting by feeding off the home crowd, but beating Nova is a tall order even if they play well. Providence covered the spread on the road the last time these teams played and put forth a gutsy effort even when Cartwright was battling the flu. With him feeling better, the Friars have a good chance of at least covering. However, a straight up win is out of the question.
College Basketball Odds: Villanova 73, Providence 65
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