On Friday, Jan. 30, Villanova men’s basketball (15-5, 6-3 Big East) will face Providence (9-11, 2-7 Big East) at home.
Villanova is coming off two losses in three games. It lost to St. John’s, 86-79, then defeated Georgetown at home, 66-51, before falling to the University of Connecticut, 75-67, in overtime.
This season, junior guard Bryce Lindsay averages a team-high 14.1 points per game. The Baltimore native has averaged only 8.3 points in his last three games, a significant drop from the beginning of the season. Against UConn, Lindsay only scored three points.
Senior forward Duke Brennan leads the Wildcats in rebounds. The Arizona native currently averages 10.7 per game, putting him in seventh place nationally.
Freshman guard Acaden Lewis leads the team in assists. He currertly averages 5.2 assists per game.
The Friars are led in points by senior guard Jason Edwards, who averages 17.2 points per game and 2.9 rebounds per game. Sophomore forward Oswin Erhunmwunse leads the team with 7.9 rebounds per game.
This will be Villanova’s second meeting with the Friars this season. On Jan. 13, the ‘Cats defeated them on the road, 88-82. In the game, Villanova shot 32-for-64 (50.0%) from the field, 10-for-28 (35.7%) from three and 14-for-18 (77.8%) from the free-throw line.
Devin Askew added 20 points off the bench. Ty;er Perkins was next, with 15.
The Friars were 31-for-56 (55.4%) from the field, 8-for-25 (32.0%) from three and 12-for-17 (70.6%) from the free-throw line. They had three players score over 20 points.
Providence fell to Xavier, 97-84, in its most recent matchup.
Villanova holds the upper hand in the all-time series, 32-18. Last season, the two teams split the series..
Villanova has dropped to fourth in the Big East rankings, behind UConn, St. John’s and Creighton. The Friars are ahead in 10th place, ahead of only Marquette.
The Wildcats will be looking to improve their chances of contending in the Big East Tournament come March. The Friars will hope to move up in the rankings and slowly chip away at their losing record.
Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. at the Finneran Pavilion. The game will be streamed on Fox Sports.
