To the untrained eye it may not seem like there is a rich college basketball tradition for the Providence Friars, but indeed it is. Providence basketball is the home to such hoops legends such as Lenny Wilkens and Dave Gavitt. The Friars have two Final Four appearances to their credit, but none since 1987. In the old Big East Conference, Providence would get caught up in the wash as they were one of the smaller schools which made it tough for them to retain their head basketball coaches when they were offered more money at bigger jobs. Rick Pitino, Rick Barnes, and Pete Gillen all enjoyed success during their respective runs as the head basketball coach at Providence, but an offer to coach the New York Knicks for Pitino and other head coaching gigs at bigger schools for both Barnes and Gillen lured them away. However Providence has now found a head coach that appears to be fully committed to the Friars.
In 2011, Ed Cooley was named as the head basketball coach at Providence. But unlike the other head basketball coaches before him at Providence, Cooley is native of the capital of Rhode Island.
Ed Cooley
In nearly four seasons at Providence, Cooley has turned the basketball program there around. Last year Providence won the Big East Tournament for the first time since 1994 which appears to be a springboard for them. The Friars are currently 9-5 in the Big East and with an overall record of 19-8, they appear to be on their way to consecutive appearances in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1990.
LaDontae Henton
Like Cooley, the majority of the current Friars squad went virtually unnoticed when they came to Providence. Cooley’s hire at Providence didn’t draw the interest of the national media and the same can be said about most of his players as that underdog mentality has worked in their favor. Providence senior forward LaDontae Henton was one of Cooley’s first recruits to join the Friars, and four years later he is a candidate to be the Big East Player of the Year. Henton is averaging 20.6 points per game and he has scored in double figures in all but two games this season. On November 23 against the Friars former Big East foe in the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Henton went for 38 points in a 75-74 win. In the Friars first conference game this season, Henten poured in 35 points and 8 rebounds as Providence took down the Creighton Blue Jays 65-53. Henton has gone for at least 22 points in the Friars last four games with two of those games resulting in Providence victories. Sophomore point guard Kris Dunn was a McDonald’s All-American in 2012 before injuries set him back, but he is now one of the top point guards in the Big East as he is averaging 7.4 assists this season. Last Saturday against the Seton Hall Pirates, Dunn tallied 19 points and 8 assists in the Friars 69-62 victory. And in two games versus the DePaul Blue Demons this season, Dunn averaged 24 points and 7.5 assists.
After nearly four years it is clearly evident that Cooley is building a program at Providence and he is not looking for an out. One of the biggest things previously for Providence was that they were competing for recruits in the former Big East Conference which was a powerhouse. But now in the condensed Big East that only consists of 10 catholic schools, Cooley is building something along with putting his stamp on a school that he grew up watching. It is just truly amazing to sit back and watch the process.
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