Friars Play a Solid 40 Minutes in 45-Minute OT Heartbreaker vs. Virginia Tech

The Providence Friars fell just short in an electric, back-and-forth game against Virginia Tech at the obviously-cursed Mohegan Sun 107-101. Several returners and transfers alike proved to be worth every penny on the offensive end, with Jason Edwards and Jaylin Sellers putting up 28 and 26, respectively, in north of 30 minutes of playing time. Oswin even proved to be a grown man on both ends, with 11 points (nailed ALL FIVE OF HIS FREE THROWS!!) and 11 rebounds. The Friars altogether shot 11/33 from 3 and 34/76 overall, while capitalizing on the physicality of the matchup making 22/25 free throw attempts. 

There’s good news and bad news for Friar fans regarding the roster for the Virginia Tech Hokies. The bad news is, at the front of their 50% overall shooting night, they have a potential lottery pick in Neoklis Avdalas, who had 33 points and six assists on 13/23 (5 of 8 from 3). The good news, simply put, is the Friars will never have to play against him again. Amani Hansberry had a notable performance at the forward spot as well, tacking a 17pt-11reb double double, his second of the year. If you’re into all things ACC basketball, 1) bless your heart, and 2) this should be a team to watch with these two players and a well-meshed, rowdy supporting cast.

One of the most important things in any piece of media, including articles like this or videos you see on the internet, is context. For those of you who look for the context of this game going to overtime, there is a simple answer: it should not have. The Friars, after calling a timeout to get a set play in action, get the ball to the UN’s future Estonian ambassador in Stefan Vaaks, who ripped a 26-footer to ice the game, only to have it rim around the entire basket and plop out after the regulation buzzer had already rang. Hokies head coach Mike Young even mentioned that the shot “basically went in” in his postgame presser.

The nicest thing I can say about this game was that, from start to finish, everyone at Mohegan Sun for the most ethical reason available got to watch incredible basketball. The meanest thing I can say is about a group in black and white, but not the group I already wrote about. A barrage of questionable “let the kids play” moments and otherwise soft make-up calls plagued some of the shooting numbers for both sides, most notably a select few attempts by the aforementioned Edwards and Vaaks. The defensive end of the ball was dominated by the bigger bodies of the floor; one can use deductive reasoning here by knowing size has been a fair issue for the Friars backcourt.

I have a number of questions that, without a provided media pass and more time than postgame interviews permit, I can’t ask the coaching staff about the final five minutes of both the second half and overtime. However, one hangs over both the fan bases’ heads and what I hope is the entire team: How do you respond to this? A positive answer needs to come out of the Friars’ next home game vs. Penn on November 11, of which Matt Debes and Kellen Frangione will be on the call for WDOMsports.

If there is no cinder block holding down the gas pedal for the friars now, there needs to be one before game three. We move.