Providence and Butler come in hot for Friday’s Big East matchup in Rhode Island. The Friars have won four in a row and are coming off their best win of the year, on the road against Marquette. The Bulldogs are off to a 14-1 start to the season.
This game is going to be a battle of styles. Providence has been kicking up the pace recently, scoring 70 or more points in three out of four games during its winning streak. Butler will look to slow down the Friars. The Bulldogs rank sixth in the country in points per possession allowed on defense and are 349th out of 353 teams in possessions per game.
Providence is a slightly above-average team in terms of pace at 101st in the country in possessions per game, and does a good job of spreading the love with five players averaging between 13.6 and 8.5 points per game for balanced scoring.
The team that wins the battle on the glass can often control the tempo of the game, and Butler ranks 21st in the country in rebound rate while Providence is 111th. This should allow Butler to slow things down in a hostile environment to help add yet another win on what is already an impressive resume.
The play: Butler, -3.