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Season summary: The Friars became the inaugural champions of the new-look Big East tournament Saturday with an upset victory against Doug McDermott and Creighton. Providence shook off a pair of three-game skids during the course of the season to win six of its last seven games, playing its way into the tournament bubble with an automatic bid. The Friars look to Bryce Cotton as their do-it-all player, and the senior guard has delivered, posting a stat line of 21.4 points, 5.8 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game. Providence complements Cotton nicely down low with the forward trio of LaDontae Henton, Kadeem Batts and Tyler Harris, all of whom average more than 11 points per game. Head coach Ed Cooley lost his home in a fire earlier in the season, making Providence potentially one of the feel-good stories of this year’s tournament.
How they make a run: The Friars are accustomed to playing close games. Providence posted a 3-3 overtime record in the regular season, and four of those games went to double-overtime, so they won’t be nervous down the stretch of a tight tournament game.
How they falter: The 6-foot-1 Cotton struggles to get his shot off against the larger teams he’ll have to face in his region, North Carolina and potentially Iowa State.
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