Providence will bring 3-game losing streak into matchup vs. Kentucky

Plenty of teams will come into the NCAA Tournament dealing with late-season struggles. No. 3 Baylor, No. 3 Kansas State, No. 8 Iowa, and No. 9 Illinois will all bring two-game losing streaks into the tourney. No. 7 Northwestern has lost four of its last five games while No. 6 Iowa State has dropped five of its last seven. No. 8 Maryland, No. 9 Auburn, No. 11 NC State, and No. 11 Pittsburgh have all lost three of its last four games.

But only two teams from the field of 68 will bring a three-game losing streak into this week’s NCAA Tournament. One is the No. 11 seed Nevada Wolfpack, which will have to earn its way into the Round of 64 with a First Four matchup against Arizona State on Wednesday. The other? Kentucky’s first-round matchup on Friday night: the No. 11 seed Providence Friars.

While the Bryce Hopkins factor will certainly control most of the narrative — will he drop 30 points or will he shoot 2-11? — the one we should also focus on is Providence entering the tournament with little momentum. Not only have the Friars lost three straight, but they’ve also dropped four of its last five with the lone win coming against Georgetown, which finished No. 224 overall in the KenPom rankings. In fact, since Feb. 1, Providence is just 4-6, with two of those victories coming against the now head coach-less Hoyas.

Entering the NCAA Tournament, Providence lost to Xavier, Seton Hall, and UConn all in a row, with the Huskies bouncing them out of the Big East Tournament quarterfinals. Xavier and UConn both made the field of 68 as top-four seeds while Seton Hall did not earn a bid. After a few slip-ups in November, Providence got red-hot to reach a 14-3 record in early January and a No. 19 overall ranking in the Week 10 AP Poll, mostly fueled by Hopkins’ stellar play. However, the Friars closed out the season with a 7-8 mark to finish 21-11 overall.

Kentucky certainly isn’t one of the “hottest” teams entering the tournament, considering the Wildcats have dropped two of its last three games, both losses coming against Vanderbilt, which just missed out on the NCAA Tournament. But injuries across the board killed Kentucky down the stretch of the regular season and into the SEC Tournament.

Meanwhile, eight of Providence’s top nine rotational pieces played all 20 games during Big East play. The only one who didn’t was redshirt senior Jared Bynum, who still played 16 conference outings and hasn’t missed a game since early January. Also, Providence’s season-long numbers haven’t fluctuated all that much, at least on offense. Ed Cooley’s squad has always been near the top of the country on offense, but around the middle of the pack on defense.

Per BartTorvik, the Friars ranked No. 25 in adjusted offensive efficiency and No. 158 in adjusted defensive efficiency since Jan. 14, which resulted in the 7-8 record to close out the schedule. Prior to that, when Providence was 14-3 to begin the season? The Friars ranked No. 22 in adjusted offensive efficiency and No. 98 in adjusted defensive efficiency. The defense slipped once Big East competition (which had five teams make the NCAA Tournament, tied for the fourth-most) kicked in, and so did Providence’s momentum.

The Friars allowed 75.0 points per game over its final 15. Kentucky scored 74.5 per game during the same span. There will be points to be had by the ‘Cats.

Providence earned an at-large bid for a reason though. Hopkins is a bonafide star who played consistently well all season long — well enough to earn a spot on the All-Big East First Team. Sophomore guard Devin Carter, who played at South Carolina last season, was tabbed as an All-Big East Honorable Mention. Cooley is a legitimately good coach. In the NCAA Tournament, it’s all about matchups, and the Friars have one of the toughest around in Hopkins. This is now a brand new season.