Balentine also knows the value of getting to the free-throw line, evident by his 216 attempts last season, fifth most in the nation.ABOUT PROVIDENCE (4-0): Ben Bentil has shown the most improvement among returning Friars this season, although the 6-9 sophomore forward just needs to string together a few good performances. Following his tournament-opening triple-double against Boston College, he followed up by shooting 8-for-15 from 3-point range in Friday’s semifinal win against Boise State to finish with a career-high 32 points to go with nine rebounds and six assists. “I’m confident it isn’t any long term”, said Miller, who wasn’t sure if Tarczewski would be available Sunday….
Advertisement
Evansville: Faves Arizona of Santa Clara in the second round of the Wooden Legacy.
“We feel fortunate to get a win”, Evansville coach Marty Simmons said.
At the 3:40 mark Dunn snagged a one-handed board, flew up the court and found Bentil once again for a dunk to push Providence ahead 59-58.
“That was an exhausting, exhausting game”, said Cooley, who was on his feet all game, swearing, berating and finally urging on his team.
That’s when Dunn started his scoring spree.
“Last year we had a really good team, but losing in the second round was devastating”, says Dunn.
Essentially, the point guard scenario between the combo guard in Kadeem Allen and the undersized Parker Jackson-Cartwright likely won’t help the assist to turnover ratio. At the end of the game, you’re kind of at his mercy. But the undefeated Friars (6-0) looked like the better team all night against the Wildcats.
Before we get into Kris Dunn’s heroics over the final five minutes of Providence’s thrilling 69-65 victory over #11 Arizona, let’s recognize that the Friars wouldn’t have been in a position to pull this one out late if not for Dunn’s teammates.
Valentine’s absence put the Spartans in a dogfight with a hungry Providence team looking to upset the No. 3 team in the country.
That was enough to keep Providence in front much of the night, but the Friars’ short bench hurt them late in their third game in four days. The Wildcats beat Kentucky to win the national title that year. “He’s been there and done it so many times of course we missed him”. Providence reached the NIT Quarterfinals in his second season before finally reaching the NCAA tournament in years three and four.
Only a couple of thousand folks opted to sit inside the Honda Center on a typically ideal Orange County fall afternoon Sunday, making the place seem markedly different than for all those big games the Wildcats have had here.
Advertisement
In the team’s final game of the week, Dunn had 21 points, seven assists, and five rebounds in a 77-64 loss to No. 3/4 Michigan State in the Wooden Legacy Championship game.
