Providence Bests Pitino, Louisville 72-67

Batts' emotional response to PC's upset of Louisville

Providence needed this.  After opening the Big East schedule with six straight losses, each seemingly worse than the one prior, the Friars stopped a hot Louisville team in front of a packed Dunkin Donuts Center.  They also put a halt to a three streaks that had loomed over the program.

Gone is the six game Big East losing streak to open this season, as is the run of 17 conference losses dating back to January of last year.  Also gone is the losing skid to the head coach who led the Friars to the Final Four in 1987.

Rick Pitino returned to Providence for the seventh time since leaving in the summer of 1987, in the midst of perhaps the best coaching performance in the Big East this season.  Even after losing four starters from a year ago and a slew of others to injury, the 15-3 Cardinals came to Providence riding high, ranked 15th in the country.

PC picked a fine time to put together their most complete effort of the season, holding Louisville to 24  second half points.  The Cardinals entered the game as the best three point shooting team in the conference and were held without a three point field goal in the second half (0-12), while Providence forced 13 second half turnovers.

Offensively, the Friars were carried by Marshon Brooks' 20 second half points and a career-high 19 from Gerard Coleman.  While Brooks and Coleman were the pace-setters for much of the night, both Kadeem Batts and Vincent Council made huge baskets in the final five minutes to complete a well-rounded Friar attack.

Batts' difficult layup in traffic gave the Friars a 60-59 lead with 5:15 to play, while Council connected on  two huge jumpers in the final two minutes to push a 64-63 lead to a 68-63 edge the Friars would not relinquish.

In many ways, there was a lot on the line for the Providence program on Saturday night.  While a single win doesn't erase the memory of the longest conference losing streak in school history, for one night Friar fans can feel good about besting the coach that left them all of those years ago and reportedly came close to returning in the spring of 2007 before spurning their overtures once again.

For the coach that took the job that Pitino didn't want, the win caps a hectic week in Providence, one in which his job stability was questioned publicly in The Providence Journal and across PC fan sites.

A single win doesn't erase a trying calendar year, but it does stop the bleeding.

Three Key Sequences:

1. Providence went scoreless for four minutes late in the second half (11:51-7:50 mark).  The Friars led by a point at the beginning of this sequence, and typically a scoring drought that long would inevitably lead to a 8-12 point swing in the score.  Yet on this night, the Friars played with increased defensive intensity and held Louisville to only four points during this time.  They turned Louisville over four times and only gave up one field goal as well.  Two Brooks free throws snapped the PC cold spell and pulled PC to within one.  PC survived.  Defense wins ballgames.

2. After playing to a virtual standstill for the first 17 minutes of the game, Louisville went on an 8-0 run near the end of the first half to pull ahead 43-35.  Providence closed the half with a Coleman layup and a dunk by Brooks to stay within fighting distance at the half, 43-39.  When Brooks led an 8-1 charge out of the locker room, Providence suddenly had a 47-44 lead and it was game on.  The 12-1 run was subtle, as it was sandwiched around halftime, but it positioned Providence to win this game late.

3. Up 64-63 with under two minutes to play, Vincent Council made the plays PC couldn't against Pittsburgh.  The sophomore point guard, who had played an up and down game, banked in a ten footer with 1:46 left and then hit a tough 12 footer with 39 seconds left to push the lead to five points, all but clinching it for the Friars.

Digging Deeper:

• Louisville shot 8-24 in the second half.  0-12 from three, 8-12 from inside the arc.
• Who would have guessed Providence would be the team to outshoot Louisville, 40% to 17%, from three in this one?  
• Brooks was a monster in the second half of this game, and while the Friars have struggled through the early portion of the Big East schedule, Friar fans should take note of just how well Brooks is playing.  The senior put this team on his back when they needed him most, scoring 20 second half points on four three point field goals, on his way to yet another huge scoring night.  Brooks has scored 27 points or more in five of PC's seven Big East games.  He got to the line 13 more times today.
• I had written recently that Bilal Dixon's frustration might be stemming from being ignored offensively inside, while the team hoisted away unsuccessfully from deep during the losing streak.  It was surprising and disappointing to see Dixon looking disinterested during what was a big win for both his team and his coach.  I'm never one to read much into body language, but he made it impossible to ignore in the second half today.  I'm having a tough time remembering a kid who has done such a 180 demeanor-wise from one year to the next.  
• Once every four or five games we see stretches of what Gerard Coleman can become.  The freshman sparked the Friars offensively, scoring 14 points in the first half.  Thirty seconds into the game Council found him out in front of the defense and Coleman scored, while getting fouled, leading to a traditional three point play.  Coleman hit on five more field goals over the final 11 minutes of the first half to not just spark the offense, but lead it.  
• Kadeem Batts continues to emerge.  His late layup was both difficult and timely, and he once again flashed his jumper, nailing an early three with confidence.  He was 3-6 on the night, but I'd like to see him get even more looks.  He's finishing better around the basket, has a knack for drawing fouls, and the jump shot is coming around.
• PC won despite only getting six points total from their bench.