That was a much needed win for the Friars against a very good Seton Hall team at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center.  Facing the possibility of going to 1-5 in conference play, the Friars started out hot against the Pirates but a 10-0 run to close out the first half put Seton Hall right back in the thick of things.

The 2nd half went back and forth between the two clubs until a clutch turnaround jumper from Kyron Cartwright (and And-1 no less) sealed the win for Providence.

Rodney Bullock (22 points) and Cartwright (20 points) led the way for the Friars team who improved their home record to 11-1 on the season.  They’re a tough team to beat at home, especially when they’re at full strength.

This was the 100th matchup between the two basketball teams and Providence now leads the all-time series by a nose, 52-48.

Quick Hits:

• Kyron Cartwright was phenomenal in this game.
• Cartwright’s knee looked like it was all the way back as he was able to run the floor like a madman, once again being the engine that pushes the Friars to that next level. Kyron handed out 8 assists to just 1 turnover, marking the 9th time this year that he has recorded 8 or more assists in a game.
• His passion and intensity are not only awesome to see from your team leader, but they’re contagious as hell too.
• Of course, the biggest points of Cartwright’s 20 was this turnaround jumper to put the Friars up for good.  Oh, and it was an And-1, just to make it even a little sweeter.
• I think that PC Friars sideline reporter Nick Rojas said it best.

Kyron Clutchwright.

— Nick Rojas (@ROJO36) January 14, 2017

• Rodney Bullock had his second consecutive game where he looked good offensively. Bullock had a game-high 22 points on 6-12 shooting from the floor.  He still, at times, looked a little uncomfortable, contributing to 6 turnovers but it looks like he’s finally found his groove from three point land again, draining 4 of 6 shots from deep. Splashing threes can make up for a lot of other things.
• After starting 3-18 (16.7%) on three pointers in Big East play, Bullock is now 7-24 (29.2%).  Still not great, but heading in the right direction.  
• Bullock looked to be over-thinking some of his moves and passes instead of going with his first instinct.  If he keeps getting buckets, I’m sure he’ll regain that confidence he displayed during the non-conference slate.
• The 6 turnovers were a season high.
• This was Bullock’s 6th game this season with 20+ points.
• The guy can still finish at the rim with the best of them though.
• Jalen Lindsey returned to the starting lineup after sitting out the last game against DePaul with a wrist injury to his off-hand.  It was huge to have Lindsey back, not just for the threat of his shooting (1-2 from three) but for his defense as well.
• He only shot the ball 5 times but had success in slashing to the hoop and making some nifty passes.
• With how well Jalen has been shooting the three ball this year, I would love to see him try and incorporate these shot fake and drive moves into his repertoire more often.  He could be very effective at making this a part of his overall game.
• Emmitt Holt would have had the play of the game if it wasn’t for Cartwright’s game winner.  I continue to be impressed by his unexpected athleticism.  Also, don’t sleep on how sick of a pass this was from Jalen Lindsey.
• Holt was one of three players to finish in double-digit points for the Friars, scoring 10 points.  This was the 4th straight game he has reached double-digit points and the 9th time in the last 11 games.
• Even with Lindsey returning to the lineup, Alpha Diallo started his second straight game for the Friars, this time sliding into Isaiah Jackson’s starting spot.
• Diallo once again played 33 minutes and looks like that might be his starting spot to lose from here on out.
• I love watching Kalif Young run the floor.  Just love it.  His hands are always ready to catch a pass from Cartwright and they seem to have a feel for where each other are going to be when running at full speed down the court.
• Young made this hilarious face after he dunked it but it was so quick that it was blurry on the TV.  Such a shame because I want to post that about 10,000 times during the rest of the season.
• Ryan Fazekas (7 mins), Isaiah Jackson (6 mins), and Maliek White (2 mins) were the other Friars to see the floor off the bench.
• I don’t like Desi Rodriguez.  It’s really nothing he does, it’s just that he’s really good and I don’t like playing against him.  If PC plays a team enough times, I’m going to start to heavily dislike at least one player on your team, that’s a fact.
• It should be more of a compliment than anything else because fans don’t hate nobodies.
• Every single time that Seton Hall needed a big bucket, Rodriguez seemed to be able to be able to provide it.
• Angel Delgado is a double-double machine.
• Delgado recorded his 11th straight double-double (a Seton Hall record) with 12 points and 16 rebounds.  He is an NBA-level force on the boards and gets most of his points off his ability to pull down offensive rebounds and receive dishes from teammates around the rim.  His offensive game isn’t that scary on a standalone one-on-one post up basis, but he creates opportunities for himself with hustle, positioning, and being a grown ass man.
• Seton Hall was able to haul in 14 offensive rebounds compared to the Friars’ 4.
• Khadeen Carrington is good too.
• I finally found the coach I don’t like in the Big East…Kevin Willard.  After literally every single call he did one of those gestures like “get out of here, that’s not a foul” towards the ref.  Seriously, like every single time.  So thank you Kevin Willard, because most of these coaches in the Big East are too likeable.