LAST-MINUTE LAMENT
Xavier ends game on 8-0 run to beat PC by one
Another Big East game, another heartbreaking result for Ed Cooley and his Providence Friars.
Up seven points with 73 seconds remaining in Sunday’s game at Xavier, PC failed to close out and paid a costly price as the Musketeers scored a 74-73 win that was sealed when freshman Colby Jones splashed in a three with one-tenth of a second left. Xavier closed the game on an 8-0 run that left Cooley stunned and blaming himself for his team’s latest bitter loss.
“It’s back-to-back games where we lost at the buzzer.
I’m speechless in these situations here,” said Cooley, referring to the Friars’ onepoint loss to Creighton that predated the stinger at the hands of Xavier. “I have to do a better job with my group with under a minute to play. It’s on me, not on them.”
One area that figures to be stressed in the quick turnaround leading up to Tuesday’s 9 p.m. game at Marquette is making sure the Friars don’t take their foot off the gas pedal. PC led 7366 after Noah Horchler came off the bench and drilled what at the time was viewed as a backbreaking hoop if you’re Xavier.
Showing off his range, Xavier’s Nate Johnson splashed in a deep three with David Duke in his face. The pressure shifted back to the PC camp after Johnson cut the lead to 73-69 with one mi-nute remaining.
“We were alert and pushed them out. Give them credit. They executed when they needed to execute,” said Cooley.
The Friars clearly missed point guard Jared Bynum (groin strain) when freshman Alyn Breed found himself in a bit of trouble near midcourt. What appeared to be an offensive foul was deemed a travel on Breed with 51.7 seconds left. Perhaps having a sturdy, battle-tested ball-handler in that sequence would have made world of difference.
Providence’s advantage was cut to two with 45 ticks remaining after Zach Freemantle splashed in two of his Xavier-leading 17 points. That was followed by another empty possession by the Friars, who melted away 29 seconds of game clock before Jimmy Nichols was whistled for step-ping out of bounds while attempting to make a move along the baseline. PC’s 15th and final turnover came with one second on the shot clock and 16.2 seconds remaining.
The turnover committed by Nichols was a sequence that Cooley regretted where he admitted afterwards that he wished he had used a timeout at that particular moment. The Friars in-bounded the ball in front of their bench with neither Duke (game-high 30 points) nor Nate Wat-son (18 points, 14 rebounds) touching it.
“I’m sure there are people who are frustrated and angry, but there’s no one more frustrated than myself at myself,” said Cooley. “I can’t take it back. It’s a learning experience for me. Kids make mistakes. I make mistakes. No one is perfect.”
The Musketeers put a bow on their third Big East win – same amount as the Friars – with a clin-ic of a final possession. The ball was in the hands of Paul Scruggs in the corner before Xavier’s chief playmaker zipped a pass to the right elbow where Jones was stationed.
Nichols flew out to Jones, hoping that his wingspan could cause enough of a distraction for Jones to toss up a clunker. Jones let Nichols fly by before unleashing a shot that was right on the money in terms of accuracy and leaving the Friars with barely any time to attempt a counter move.
“That was a fly drill. We covered their first three options. Now it’s just a scramble drill,” said Cooley. “It’s a tough way to go down, particularly in backto-back games.”
The only three-point shot attempted by Jones resulted in the 24th lead change in a game that ultimately saw the close-butno-cigar Friars come up a play short. All three of Providence’s de-feats in Big East action have come by a total of nine points.
“Obviously, they’re going to look at the leader. I’ve got to do a good job of picking myself up and make sure the staff is connected,” said Cooley. “I’ve been coaching long enough. They’re fun when you win. It [stinks] when you lose.”
PC’s offense was humming along right before the tide turned in Xavier’s favor for good. The
Friars trailed 64-59 with 3:51 remaining before Duke splashed in two of his seven 3-pointers as part of an 11-0 run. The hot stretch helped to rub out the cold 4-of-14 shooting display that marked the opening of the second half as Providence trailed 49-44 with 11:56 remaining.
The two teams kept going back-and-forth before Xavier ripped off an 11-3 run that featured a steady diet of Freemantle. PC was able to battle back, yet the Friars ultimately proved to be in a giving mood en route to a frustrating finish.
“We’ve played 39 minutes, 59 seconds in back-to-back games. We did the right things to win the game. We just couldn’t complete the mission,” said Cooley. “We’ve got to try and get a 40-minute game in there.”
RIM RATTLERS: Without Bynum, the Friars committed a season-high-tying 15 turnovers. Breed drew the start and committed just two turnovers in 22 minutes, though the freshman didn’t record an assist. “He made some mistakes but he also had some good plays,” said Cooley. “I’m proud of his toughness.” … The absence of Bynum forced even more onto Duke’s plate. The junior passed for six assists but also committed five turnovers. … Xavier won the rebounding battle (3531) and outscored the Friars by a wide margin in the paint (40-22). Also, the Musketeers attempted 16 free throws compared to six for the Friars. … PC sank 13 threes and shot 59.1 percent from downtown.