Friar Basketball Newsletter: Schedule updates, a big man visit, recruiting updates, news and notes, Ed Croswell highlights, Josh Oduro going off vs. Georgia, and the Providence/Memphis Connection
The Friar Basketball newsletter this week contains a variety of recruiting and scheduling updates, as well as new video content and feature articles.
Subscribers can read all of our News and Notes column, which includes details on the Wisconsin team Providence will play in next year’s Gavitt Games, key matchups on next year’s out of conference slate, a look at shot charts from Kim English’s first team at George Mason, a player English is particularly high on, and more.
News and Notes: Wisconsin is coming to town, George Mason letting it rip from deep under Kim English, and what English told Jayden Pierre when re-recruiting him to Providence
1. When word broke that Providence would host Wisconsin in this year’s Gavitt Games, it was hard not to feel a level of disappointment after the Friars had just played Wisconsin in 2021. PC picked up a 63-58 victory at Wisconsin on Nov. 15, 2021 behind a monster game from Nate Watson on that night.
Mississippi State graduate transfer Will McNair Jr. is reportedly on Providence’s campus this weekend. Could he fill the final roster spot? McNair is a 6’11, 265 pound center who spent three years at New Mexico State before transferring to Mississippi State last year.
Could Will McNair Jr. be the answer as the backup big?
It’s no secret that Providence has been looking to fill its final scholarship with a big man to back up George Mason transfer Josh Oduro over the latter part of the spring. The search began with Wyoming transfer Graham Ike, who saw greater opportunity at Gonzaga, and later included Kansas transfer Zach Clemence and Overtime Elite shot blocker Somto Cyri…
We have a pair of videos to include this week, including Ed Croswell’s senior year highlights, as well as Josh Oduro and George Mason taking home a convincing win over Georgia during the 2021-22 season. The victory came during English’s first season at Mason, and marked the program’s first win over an SEC team since 2016. Oduro went for 20 points, 11 rebounds, and six blocks, while Davonte Gaines scored the team’s first eight points and finished with 13 points on 5-7 shooting.
Watch: Josh Oduro Goes for 20/11/6 in a Commanding Win Over Georgia
Watch now (5 min) | First-year head coach Kim English and his George Mason team had little trouble taking home a road win at Georgia during the 2021-22 season. The 80-67 victory marked Mason’s first over an SEC club since 2016, as center Josh Oduro was simply too much for the Bulldogs on the interior.
Additionally, we were fortunate enough to receive an article from Chris Armentano, who wrote a really insightful piece on what Providence’s and Memphis’ runs to the Final Four meant to not only their programs, but their cities at the time. I hope everyone takes the time to read this one.
Lastly, we also have an article on Providence rounding out its coaching staff. This article takes a deeper look at Tim Fuller, who comes to PC after bringing in high level talent to Overtime Elite.
If you missed our email on Thursday, we also have a recruiting update on a number of high level 2024 and 2025 prospects.
We hope you enjoy this week’s newsletter. Later this month, we are planning to release all four episodes of our podcast documenting the 2014 Big East Championship season, as well as an interview with one of the winningest players of the Ed Cooley era. June and July should also be filled with recruiting news.
Thank you for reading!