Jaylin Sellers (27 pts) and the Friars failed to close the door in a loss at Marquette
By KEVIN McNAMARA
Sometime this season, perhaps at the end, there should be a contest among Providence Friar fans to select which gut-wrenching loss made their stomach ache the most.
The list of contenders is both impressive and growing longer by the week.
The latest candidate is quite a doozy. The Friars gave away a game they seemingly had in their side pockets Monday night, losing in overtime at Marquette by a 105-104 score. This is the fourth overtime game this season the Friars have lost and the sixth defeat by six points or less.
This one never should have reached overtime. After playing awful defense for much of the game, the Friars flashed even better offense in a second half where they out-scored the Golden Eagles, 50-40, with Stefan Vaaks (19 points in the half) and Jaylin Sellers (16) leading the comeback. Leading 94-91 with nine seconds left, the Friars inbounded to Stefan Vaaks but he somehow had the ball poked away from him. Marquette threw the ball up the floor to star freshman Nigel James, Jr., and as he toed the 3-point line, Sellers inexplicably fouled him.
James made three free throws with 2.3 seconds left to force the overtime.
In the extra session the Friars could not check James, a New Yorker who poured in 38 points and dished for 8 assists. His last hoop came with 18 seconds left that tied the game at 104-104. PC inbounded and as Corey Floyd came across halfcourt Kim English said he thought about using his final timeout but resisted. That decision proved deadly. Floyd lost the ball (his third turnover) near the foul line and in a scramble for it he fouled Marquette’s Ben Gold.
The big man made a free throw with four seconds left and Marquette won to improve to 7-13 on the season. Shaka Smart’s team had lost nine of its previous 10 games.
“Disappointed,” English said afterwards. “Some fundamental, execution things down the stretch. Myself included. I really wish I would’ve just called the timeout late with the tie at the end, get the last shot. Thought we had a call in that our guys could execute. We obviously didn’t. I should have really just called the timeout and got organized.”
This was a game where second-guessing could go on for hours. Yet that’s been a season-long issue for a team that fell to 9-10 overall and 2-6 in the Big East. The Friars continue to be a group that can score with anyone but also one that’s not able to get much traction defensively. Marquette became the fifth team to score over 100 points against the Friars but this was a bit of a surprise since Smart’s team had eclipsed 73 points just once in the previous nine contests.
Marquette shot 60 percent for the opening half and 53 percent for the game. It also forced 17 Friar turnovers and turned them into 27 points. Guard Chase Ross grabbed seven of Marquette’s 16 steals.
“We’ve been taking care of the ball for moments this season,” English said, “but I don’t know. We have to do a better job in preparation getting the message across. Marquette is heavy, heavy in gaps and tries to get steals. You cannot try to break through their gaps. You have to pick the ball up and pass it.”
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With the Friars losing so many close games – many in excruciating fashion – the spotlight clearly goes to coaching. Like any staff, English and his assistant stress late-game situation in practice daily. Clearly that work must continue. The Friars are now 8-17 in games decided by five points or less in English’s three seasons at Providence.
“We actually spent time on some late-game inbound stuff, some late-game winners the other day and we did a good job getting the ball in against pressure,” English said. “It’s on me. I have to just call it, just bang it, just call the timeout. I thought we had the (play) call in. I tried to call it too late, I’ll take full responsibility for that.”
It certainly stings that PC’s three best players on this night all fell victim to late-game miscues. Jamier Jones (17 pts, 9 rebs) had a mental error late in regulation. After a Vaaks jumper missed with PC up 90-86, Jones grabbed the offensive board with 1:05 left but instead of pulling it out and running clock, the freshman forced up a quick shot that missed.
Fifty seconds later Vaaks had the ball poked out from behind by Damarius Owens with just four seconds left. The freshman from Estonia needed to simply hug the ball and wait for a foul in that instance. Marquette scooped the ball up and found James and how Sellers got close enough to him to commit a foul is anyone’s guess.
Sellers hit 10 free throws among his 27 points, while Vaaks made six 3-pointers and finished with 26 points.
“Love those guys, wouldn’t have been in the game without them,” English said. “Where we have to grow is in those moments. Knowing time and score but those guys (Jones, Vaaks) are freshmen, they’re babies. It was a ton of things earlier in the game. It’s a tough one. No different than Connecticut, Virginia Tech. I just feel awful for our guys. I have to be better in these moments to get us over the hump. It’s really, really tough. We had every opportunity to win that game.”
