PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Last year, anytime “Providence” and “defense” were used in the same sentence, it was almost never good for the Friars. We won’t go through last year’s numbers again, but they weren’t pretty. And they certainly weren’t like the ones they have posted through the first three games of the season, ones that led head coach Keno Davis to mention something thought impossible after the Friars’ 77-55 win over Morgan State on Thursday night.
“After three games, we’re leading the Big East in field goal percentage defense, so if the season were to end today, we would win that title,” Davis said with a smile indicating there was some humor intended.
As he went on to note, it’s a bit early to anoint the Friars a shutdown defensive team. But thus far the numbers are nice to see if you’re a Friars fan, as opponents are averaging 54 points per game and shooting 29.7 percent from the field. For the first time since late in the 2003-04 season, the Friars have held three straight opponents under 60 points.
Clearly, this is not the same team as last year. That may be obvious for many reasons just by looking at the roster and seeing the nine freshmen, but it’s clear that the change is deeper than on the surface.
“We’re not the best defensive team in the Big East, and I don’t want our fans to think that I’m saying that,” Davis added. “But we are much-improved. I think the intensity, the effort, is something we were lacking last year.”
Indeed, talk to anyone in the program and that’s what you hear. Marshon Brooks, the team’s top player, admitted that even he didn’t play as hard as he could have played last year at the defensive end. That effort was certainly lacking in the halfcourt set, as the Friars had their share of success with the press. This year’s team isn’t loaded with players who are physically at their best for defending given the youth, but there’s a toughness element that was lacking last year.
“We’re playing harder,” said Brooks, who led the Friars with a game-high 22 points and 12 rebounds. “I don’t think we played as hard as possible last year, but this team is playing really hard.”
Davis’ attempt to measure his words is understandable, and not just because someone would surely run with it otherwise. The sample size is obviously very small, and the Friars have played all three games on their home floor. Additionally, they haven’t exactly shut down the most dynamic offenses known to mankind. They did this against a Dartmouth team that didn’t have a double-digit scorer last year, a Yale team that lost its best scorer and recently lost a veteran post scorer, and a Morgan State team that has some newcomers to integrate in the lineup.
In all, it came against two Ivy League teams, neither of which is likely to be a contender, and a MEAC team that is a two-time defending champ and favorite again, but in a conference that’s not exactly loaded with great teams.
So one shouldn’t get too excited yet. But there’s still a lot of room to be positive because of how this has happened. Besides, the Friars could have simply dropped all three games or won them solely by out-scoring the opponent in a shootout. Instead, the defense is clearly better, which will bode well for them later.
Although Thursday night’s game was a blowout, it’s the kind of game the Friars likely would not have won last year. If they ever shot below 40 percent from the field, including a 1-16 showing from deep, the Friars would surely have lost. But they held Morgan State down in every major defensive metric: 30.6 percent from the field, 18 turnovers and a 51-40 edge on the glass.
“This year, we’ve got a team that can find other ways to win,” Davis said. “We’re not where we need to be in any facet of the game except for team effort, and our effort from each and every player on the court – they make the wrong decision sometimes or miss some three-point shots, as they did tonight – but I can’t fault their effort and I think they’ll improve very rapidly this season.”
The effort is the big reason for optimism and the new identity of this team. It’s translating into better defense, and this time around the idea that the team will improve as the season goes along may not be simply theory.
