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PROVIDENCE — Rhode Island has plenty of ties to its NCAA Tournament men’s basketball visitors.
From the lesser-known McNeese State to Rick Pitino’s return, most of the teams arriving for March Madness have connections to the state. Everyone who follows college basketball knows Pitino's history with the region. But what about Omaha’s relations to Providence?
This isn’t an exhaustive list — college basketball is a city more than it is a town — and its residents often cross paths. But we still went through the eight rosters and detailed some of the ties to Rhode Island.
John Calipari’s Kentucky squad beat Ed Cooley's Providence College squad in the first round of the 2023 NCAA Tournament. It was Cooley’s last game with the Friars before he departed for Georgetown. Calipari, now with the Razorbacks, also took UMass to Providence in 1996 for first- and second-round games at the Civic Center.
Alan Huss knows Providence well. The Panthers’ bench boss was an assistant for Greg McDermott at Creighton for six seasons before taking over High Point in 2023.
Panthers’ guard Bobby Pettiford was a freshman at Kansas when the Jayhawks toppled Providence in the Sweet 16 in 2022. He’s currently a senior on the Panthers and averages 8.9 points per game.
Will Wade is in his second season in charge of the Cowboys. But before that, Wade led Virginia Commonwealth University to a 51-20 record and NCAA Tournament appearances in 2016 and 2017. VCU and the University of Rhode Island both play in the Atlantic 10 conference. Wade coached at LSU before McNeese State, but was fired in 2022 for rules violations. He was suspended for 10 games last year.
Alyn Breed is also on the Cowboys’ roster. Breed played for Providence from 2020-23, but was suspended from the program after he was arrested for an off-campus incident in which he was accused of brandishing a firearm in a domestic incident. All charges were eventually dismissed but Breed transferred out of the program.
Omaha doesn’t have much history with Providence. But 2015 will bring back fond memories for Friar hockey fans. Providence handed Omaha a 4-1 defeat in the Frozen Four, the Friars then beat Boston University for the national championship.
The Jayhawks beat Providence, 66-61, in the aforementioned Sweet 16 game in 2022. Dajuan Harris Jr. played 20 minutes vs. the Friars in that game. He’s currently in his grad year with Kansas and has made 32 starts for the Jayhawks.
After topping the Friars, Kansas enjoyed a national championship run that ended with a 72-69 victory over North Carolina.
Pitino coached Providence for two seasons. The second year included PC’s run to the Final Four as a sixth seed. Pitino then used the postseason success to land the head coaching job with the New York Knicks.
Pitino has led St. John's to a Big East conference championship win and a two seed in the NCAA Tournament this winter.
Bob Walsh, the former Rhode Island College head coach, is on Pitino’s staff as a Special Assistant. Walsh served on Ed Cooley’s staff at Providence from 2019-22 as Associate Director of Player Development, Scouting and Recruiting Coordination. And he was also an assistant coach for the Friars from 1998-2005.
No. 4. Purdue (22-11) vs. No. 13 High Point (29-5) - 12:40 pm (TRU TV)
No. 5 Clemson (27-6) vs. No. 12 McNeese (27-6) - 3:15 pm (TRU TV)
No. 7 Kansas (21-12) vs. No. 10 Arkansas (20-13) - 7:10 pm (CBS)
No. 2. St. John's (30-4) vs. No. 15 Omaha (22-8) - 9:45 pm (CBS)
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Here are Rhode Island's ties to its NCAA Tournament visitors
Continue reading...
From the lesser-known McNeese State to Rick Pitino’s return, most of the teams arriving for March Madness have connections to the state. Everyone who follows college basketball knows Pitino's history with the region. But what about Omaha’s relations to Providence?
This isn’t an exhaustive list — college basketball is a city more than it is a town — and its residents often cross paths. But we still went through the eight rosters and detailed some of the ties to Rhode Island.
Arkansas
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John Calipari’s Kentucky squad beat Ed Cooley's Providence College squad in the first round of the 2023 NCAA Tournament. It was Cooley’s last game with the Friars before he departed for Georgetown. Calipari, now with the Razorbacks, also took UMass to Providence in 1996 for first- and second-round games at the Civic Center.
High Point
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Alan Huss knows Providence well. The Panthers’ bench boss was an assistant for Greg McDermott at Creighton for six seasons before taking over High Point in 2023.
Panthers’ guard Bobby Pettiford was a freshman at Kansas when the Jayhawks toppled Providence in the Sweet 16 in 2022. He’s currently a senior on the Panthers and averages 8.9 points per game.
McNeese State
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Will Wade is in his second season in charge of the Cowboys. But before that, Wade led Virginia Commonwealth University to a 51-20 record and NCAA Tournament appearances in 2016 and 2017. VCU and the University of Rhode Island both play in the Atlantic 10 conference. Wade coached at LSU before McNeese State, but was fired in 2022 for rules violations. He was suspended for 10 games last year.
Alyn Breed is also on the Cowboys’ roster. Breed played for Providence from 2020-23, but was suspended from the program after he was arrested for an off-campus incident in which he was accused of brandishing a firearm in a domestic incident. All charges were eventually dismissed but Breed transferred out of the program.
Omaha
Omaha doesn’t have much history with Providence. But 2015 will bring back fond memories for Friar hockey fans. Providence handed Omaha a 4-1 defeat in the Frozen Four, the Friars then beat Boston University for the national championship.
Kansas
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The Jayhawks beat Providence, 66-61, in the aforementioned Sweet 16 game in 2022. Dajuan Harris Jr. played 20 minutes vs. the Friars in that game. He’s currently in his grad year with Kansas and has made 32 starts for the Jayhawks.
After topping the Friars, Kansas enjoyed a national championship run that ended with a 72-69 victory over North Carolina.
St. John’s
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Pitino coached Providence for two seasons. The second year included PC’s run to the Final Four as a sixth seed. Pitino then used the postseason success to land the head coaching job with the New York Knicks.
Pitino has led St. John's to a Big East conference championship win and a two seed in the NCAA Tournament this winter.
Bob Walsh, the former Rhode Island College head coach, is on Pitino’s staff as a Special Assistant. Walsh served on Ed Cooley’s staff at Providence from 2019-22 as Associate Director of Player Development, Scouting and Recruiting Coordination. And he was also an assistant coach for the Friars from 1998-2005.
Schedule, TV times for NCAA games in Providence
No. 4. Purdue (22-11) vs. No. 13 High Point (29-5) - 12:40 pm (TRU TV)
No. 5 Clemson (27-6) vs. No. 12 McNeese (27-6) - 3:15 pm (TRU TV)
No. 7 Kansas (21-12) vs. No. 10 Arkansas (20-13) - 7:10 pm (CBS)
No. 2. St. John's (30-4) vs. No. 15 Omaha (22-8) - 9:45 pm (CBS)
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Here are Rhode Island's ties to its NCAA Tournament visitors
Continue reading...
