Tag Archives: Kadeem Batts

NCAA Tournament

Thoughts on the Week Leading to the Game

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For many of us, the shock of being the Big East Champions may not have worn off quite yet. For Ed Cooley, the whirlwind has just begun. It’s all good for the program and Cooley is so well liked in coaching and media circles that it makes total sense, but the media barrage that he has already begun has to be taking a toll. I’m exhausted and all I did was drink beer and cheer for 3 days/nights.

Yesterday, Cooley began the media frenzy early by appearing on the Tim Brando Show just after 10am. He followed that up by working with Nike to put together some clips for their Nike Pro Answers series. In the late afternoon, Cooley appeared on Katz Korner on ESPNU around 4:30pm with Andy Katz and former Friar HC, Tim Welsh, called in to “Bracket Busters” on CBS Sports Network and then capped off his media heavy day by appearing on WFAN in NYC with Mike Francesa just after 5pm (who will be moving to Fox Sports 1 simulcast on 3/24/14). He also apparently was over at his home to check on some last minute construction issues early this morning ahead of his family moving back in after the fire in January. There will also be countless calls from print reporters to get quotes for articles ahead of the first appearance by PC in the Big Dance since 2004.

For those who haven’t seen or heard much of what Cooley talks about on these national shows, get ready to hear a lot about the following all week:

  • Cooley’s inspirational weight loss – he’s down over 125 lbs since the summer
  • Cooley’s house fire that has caused his family to live in a hotel for the past 2+ months
  • Bryce Cotton’s amazing career and senior season and how he is still underappreciated.

We, as sports fans, tend to like to put together storylines and give everything a narrative to follow. Sometimes the narrative is accurate – like with Cooley and Cotton – and other times the narrative is just put on a situation to fit our hopes or to make sense of a situation. The narrative for this PC team is a very genuine one. They have had to overcome A LOT of adversity as a team and program over the last year and a half. They are led by a very humble and quiet kid in Cotton and they truly are all about “Heart & Soul” which appears to have been their motto for the Big East season.

Obviously I want them to win on Friday (and I think they have a legitimate chance to do just that) but at this point, they are playing with house money for me. I’m just so thrilled for Cotton, Batts and the rest of the seniors that they were the team that broke through and brought this program back onto that blue carpet. This is a team led by seniors who are playing to leave everything on the floor. This is a team who wasn’t even supposed to be in the NCAA Tournament. It’s a team that sounds pretty dangerous to me.

Game Previews & Recaps

Game Notes & Preview: PC vs Creighton 3/15/14 Big East Championship #pcbb

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Where: Madison Square Garden – New York, NY

When: 8:30PM

How: Fox Sports 1 (Gus Johnson, Bill Raftery and Erin Andrews) /WEEI 103.7 FM (John Rooke and Joe Hassett)

Game Notes

  • The Friars and the Blue Jays have obviously never met in the Big East Tournament since this is Creighton’s first year of Big East membership.
  • LaDontae Henton picked a great time for a season high of 26 points yesterday in the semifinal win over Seton Hall. In 4 career Big East Tournament games, Henton has averaged 16 ppg and 10 rpg.
  • Bryce Cotton’s 10 assists last night came up just 1 short of the PC record for assists in a Big East Tournament game.
  • The Friars are 1-3 all time in the Big East Tournament against 2 seeds.
  • Bryce Cotton joins Friar great Ryan Gomes as the only two Friars to ever be named to the First Team All-Big East more than once.
  • Providence will be looking for win number 23 tonight. They haven’t won 23 games since they went 24-12 in 1997.
  • Line opened at PC +7

Continue reading Game Notes & Preview: PC vs Creighton 3/15/14 Big East Championship #pcbb →

Game Previews & Recaps

Game Notes & Preview: PC vs Seton Hall 3/14/14 #pcbb

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Where: Madison Square Garden – New York, NY

When: 7:00PM

How: Fox Sports 1 (Gus Johnson, Bill Raftery and Erin Andrews) /WEEI 103.7 FM (John Rooke and Joe Hassett)

Game Notes

  • The Friars and the Pirates have met 7 times all time in the Big East Tournament. Seton Hall has the 5-2 edge in the series and have won the last 4 times with the last Friar victory coming March 6, 1985. The only other time they met in Big East Semifinals, SHU was the 1 seed and beat 5 seed PC 69-60 and then went on to blow Syracuse out of the gym to win the 1993 Big East Tournament Championship.
  • Bryce Cotton only played 34 minutes in the Big East Tournament Quarterfinal game against St. John’s which was the fewest minutes he has played since a 70-49 victory over Vermont on November 18, 2013.
  • Providence’s 49 total rebounds in yesterday’s game against St. John’s is the most rebounds they’ve ever had in a Big East Tournament game.
  • The Friars are 0-2 all time in the Big East Tournament against 8 seeds but both times they were playing the 8 seed as a 9 seed in the first round of the tournament (1992 vs. BC and 2005 vs. West Virginia).
  • Bryce Cotton joins Friar great Ryan Gomes as the only two Friars to ever be named to the First Team All-Big East more than once.
  • Providence will be looking for win number 22 tonight. They haven’t won 22 games since they went 24-12 in 1997.
  • Josh Fortune’s 24 points in yesterday’s game marked a new career high for points scored in a game. In his last 7 games, Fortune is averaging 16.5 ppg, which is double his season average.
  • Seton Hall’s 2 wins in the Big East Tournament have made them eligible for the NIT should they not go on to win the Big East Tournament and get the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
  • Line opened at PC -1.5

Continue reading Game Notes & Preview: PC vs Seton Hall 3/14/14 #pcbb →

Game Previews & Recaps

Game Notes & Preview: PC vs St. John’s 3/13/14 #pcbb

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Where: Madison Square Garden – New York, NY

When: 2:30PM

How: Fox Sports 1 (Justin Kutcher and Tarik Turner) /WEEI 103.7 FM (John Rooke and Joe Hassett)

Game Notes

  • The Friars and Red Storm have met 5 times all time in the Big East Tournament. PC has a 3-2 edge in the series but the two teams haven’t met in the Big East Tournament since March 6, 1996. The only other time they met in the 4 vs. 5 game, 4 seed PC took down the 5th seeded Redmen, 80-51, on March 5, 1987. I think 1987 was a pretty good year for PC.
  • Bryce Cotton leads the nation in minutes per game with 40.1. He is averaging a mind boggling 41.9 mpg in Big East contests. Cotton played a total of 754 minutes in the 18 league games this season which gives him 2,385 career Big East minutes played. That number is good for 5th all time in Big East history and 2nd all time for the Friars in the Big East behind Vincent Council’s 2,498 Big East minutes played which is good for 2nd all time in Big East history. Despite the Friars double digit defeat in Omaha on Saturday, Cotton was able to rack up a few more PC all-time records. Saturday’s game was his 126th career game as a Providence Friar. That passes Dickey Simpkins and his 125 career games for most games played all time at PC. He is now the sole owner of the single season minutes played record, passing Billy Donovan and his 1,234 career minutes played in his senior season. Additionally Cotton now owns the record for minutes played in a career, passing Donnie McGrath and his 4,128 minutes played. On the season, Cotton is 9th in the nation in points per game at 21.7, 11th in the nation in total points scored at 674, 21st in the nation in assists per game at 5.9 and 8th in the nation in Free Throws made at 198. Cotton remains in 5th place all time on the PC scoring list with 1,886 career points in a Friar uniform. He surpassed the great Marvin Barnes for 5th all time by hitting a pair of free throws early against Marquette last week.
  • Bryce Cotton is 2nd in the Big East in scoring (21.7 ppg) and D’Angelo Harrison is 3rd (17.6 ppg).
  • Bryce Cotton is 1st in the Big East in assists (5.9 apg) and Rysheed Jordan is 12th (3.1 apg).
  • Kadeem Batts is 3rd (7.7 rpg) and LaDontae Henton is 5th (7.3 rpg) in the Big East in rebounds while Jakarr Sampson is 8th (6.1 rpg).
  • Line opened at PC +5.5

Continue reading Game Notes & Preview: PC vs St. John’s 3/13/14 #pcbb →

Bryce Cotton, Kadeem Batts

All-Big East Teams Announced

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BigEast.com Announcement

ALL-BIG EAST FIRST TEAM
*Doug McDermott, Creighton, F, Sr., 6-8, 225, Ames, Iowa
Markel Starks, Georgetown, G, Sr., 6-2, 175, Accokeek, Md.
*Bryce Cotton, Providence, G, Sr., 6-1, 165, Tucson, Ariz.
D’Angelo Harrison, St. John’s, G, Jr., 6-4, 204, Missouri City, Texas
James Bell, Villanova, G, Sr., 6-6, 220, Orlando, Fla.
*Semaj Christon, Xavier, G, So., 6-3, 190, Cincinnati, Ohio

ALL-BIG EAST SECOND TEAM^
Kellen Dunham, Butler, G, So., 6-6, 185, Pendleton, Ind.
D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera, Georgetown, G, So., 6-3, 218, Indianapolis, Ind.
Davante Gardner, Marquette, F, Sr., 6-8, 290, Suffolk, Va.
Kadeem Batts, Providence, F, Sr., 6-9, 245, Boston, Mass.
Fuquan Edwin, Seton Hall, F/G, Sr., 6-6, 215, Paterson, N.J.
JayVaughn Pinkston, Villanova, F, Jr., 6-7, 240, Brooklyn, N.Y.

BIG EAST HONORABLE MENTION
Ethan Wragge, Creighton, F, Sr., 6-7, 225, Eden Prairie, Minn.
Ryan Arcidiacono, Villanova, G, So., 6-3, 195, Langhorne, Pa.
Darrun Hilliard, Villanova, G, Jr., 6-6, 215, Bethlehem, Pa.
Matt Stainbrook, Xavier, C, Jr., 6-10, 263, Bay Village, Ohio

BIG EAST ALL-ROOKIE TEAM^
Andrew Chrabascz, Butler, F, Fr., 6-7, 225, Portsmouth, R.I.
Billy Garrett, Jr., DePaul, G, Fr., 6-5, 194, Chicago, Ill.
Tommy Hamilton IV, DePaul, F, Fr., 6-10, 284, Chicago, Ill.
Deonte Burton, Marquette, F, Fr., 6-4, 230, Milwaukee, Wis.
Rysheed Jordan, St. John’s G, Fr., 6-4, 185, Philadelphia, Pa.
Jaren Sina, Seton Hall, G, Fr., 6-2, 180, Lake Hopatcong, N.J.
Josh Hart, Villanova, G, Fr., 6-5, 202, Silver Springs, Md.

*Denotes unanimous selection.
^Due to a tie in the voting, an additional position was named.

Game Previews & Recaps

Game Notes & Preview: PC at Creighton 3/8/14 #pcbb

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Where: CenturyLink Center – Omaha, NE

When: 8:00pm

How: CBS Sports Network (Brent Stover and Pete Gillen) /WEEI 103.7 FM (John Rooke and Joe Hassett)

Game Notes

  • The Friars and Blue Jays have met 11 times all time. PC has a 7-4 edge in the series but before this season, the two teams hadn’t played since November 25, 2000.
  • Bryce Cotton leads the nation in minutes per game with 40.2. He is averaging a mind boggling 42.2 mpg in Big East contests. Anything less than overtime games is now “hurting” his average. Cotton needs 28 minutes tomorrow to break Billy Donovan’s single season record of minutes played (which Cotton already tied once, 1,234 minutes) and only 6 minutes to break the career record for minutes played of 4,128 held by Donnie McGrath. He also has a really good shot at the single season record for minutes played/game held by Jimmy Walker (39.7 mpg during 1966-1967 season). He is 10th in the nation in points per game at 21.7, 11th in the nation in total points scored at 651, T-17th in the nation in assists per game at 5.9 and T-7th in the nation in Free Throws made at 192. Cotton is now in 5th place all time on the PC scoring list with 1,863 career points in a Friar uniform. He surpassed the great Marvin Barnes for 5th all time by hitting a pair of free throws early against Marquette on Tuesday. He also is playing in his 126th game tomorrow which will break Dickey Simpkins record of 125 career games played as a Providence Friar. There are more records he is close to or may break but there just isn’t enough time in the day to list them all here.
  • Bryce Cotton is 2nd in the Big East in scoring (21.7 ppg) and Doug McDermott is 1st (25.9 ppg).
  • Bryce Cotton is 1st in the Big East in assists (5.9 apg) and Austin Chapman is 3rd (4.3 apg).
  • Kadeem Batts is 4th (7.6 rpg) and LaDontae Henton is 5th (7.3 rpg) in the Big East in rebounds while Doug McDermott is 6th (7.2 rpg).

Continue reading Game Notes & Preview: PC at Creighton 3/8/14 #pcbb →

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Thoughts About Last Night #pcbb

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What can you say about the 2013-2014 Providence College basketball team? In September if you told people this team would be the team to win 20 games for the first time in 10 years, people probably would have thought that was reasonable. On December 11th, people would have told you 20 wins was a pipe dream. That was the day it was announced that Kris Dunn would need a second surgery and his season would be cut short again by a freak accident in the RIC exhibition game. The Friars’ record on that day was 8-2 but it might as well have been 2-8. Spirits were down. Expectations were adjusted. But then something started happening. The Friars went down to Queens after an overtime loss at UMass followed by a double overtime loss at home against Seton Hall then a road drubbing by Villanova by 30 and they fought. They fought and clawed their way to a double overtime road win. Those are the kinds of games PC fans are used to losing. But Bryce Cotton is on a mission. It’s clear now. He wants to be on that Blue Carpet in a couple weeks. That win at St. John’s began a 5 game winning streak, the kind of streak that hadn’t happened in, you guessed it, 10 years.

20 wins is an impressive accomplishment by this group. They have the smallest bench in the country and Cotton is now averaging 40.2 minutes per game, leading the world as Coach Cooley likes to say. They lost 3 players before the season even really began, including 2 who would have been key contributors in Dunn and Brandon Austin. And yet, here they are. 20 wins and knocking on the door of the NCAA tournament for the first time since Ryan Gomes’ junior season.

Cotton passed Marvin Barnes for 5th all time on PC’s scoring list by hitting a pair of free throws early. He has already cemented himself as one of the greatest Friars of all time. His jersey will hang in the rafters at the Dunk one day and his name will don the PC Hall of Fame in the near future. Whatever happens on Saturday in Omaha or next week at MSG, this has been my favorite season as a Friar fan. I’m so glad I was able to be there last night to see Cotton, Batts, Bancroft, Goldsbrough and Kofane on their Senior Night. This is a special group and I just hope the rest of the country gets to see how special they truly are by dancing on that Blue Carpet.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVMtt_atixw&sns=em