Providence College Athletics
Providence College
Boston College
Women's Hoops Game Notes vs. Boston College
11/19/2022 11:28:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Friars travel to Chestnut Hill, Mass. to take on the Eagle at Noon on Sunday.
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FRIARS CLOSE THREE-GAME ROAD SWING AT BOSTON COLLEGE... Providence College will travel to Chestnut Hill, Mass. to take on Boston College in non-conference action on Sunday, Nov. 20. Tip-off is slated for 12:00 p.m. at Conte Forum.
FRIARS AND EAGLES ALL-TIME... Providence and Boston College have met 58 times during the history of the two women's basketball programs. The Friars lead the all-time series, 33-25.Â
FRIARS AND EAGLES AT CONTE FORUM... Providence and Boston College have met 26 times at Conte Forum, with the Friars holding a 15-11 record vs. the Eagles on their home court.Â
LAST FRIAR WIN AT CONTE FORUM... Providence last won at Conte Forum on Nov. 27, 2018. On that day, Providence claimed a 61-57 victory. It marked the Friars' first win at Conte Forum since Feb. 17, 1996 (83-56).
LAST FIVE MEETINGS... Boston College has earned victories in each of the last two meetings, but prior to that, the Friars had claimed three-straight victories over the Eagles (2017-19). The last time Providence reeled off three-straight wins over BC dates back to the early 90s (1991-93).
WHAT HAPPENED LAST YEAR... The Eagles defeated the Friars, 85-73, on Nov. 20, 2021 at Alumni Hall in Providence, R.I. Providence led 31-27 at halftime, but the used a 30-18 scoring advantage in the third quarter to take a 57-49 edge into the fourth. Providence cut the deficit to 65-60 on a three-point bucket by Kylee Sheppard, but BC managed to pull away with the help of a 10-3 run. Sheppard paced the Friars with 18 points, while Janai Crooms nearly recorded the first triple double in program history with 17 points, 10 boards and nine assists. Five Eagles recorded double figures in the scoring column, led by Marnelle Garraud's 17 points. Maria Gakdeng (15), Cameron Swartz (15), Makayla Dickens (14) and Taylor Soule (11) also reached double digits.
FRIARS SURVIVE FURIOUS FOURTH QUARTER RALLY AT IONA... Providence College defeated Iona, 53-50, in its most recent game on Nov. 17 in New Rochelle, N.Y. The Friars had a 23-point lead (48-25) with 7:30 remaining in regulation, but Iona exploded on a 25-3 run to cut the deficit to one (51-50) with 36.5-seconds left. Janai Crooms' layup with 10-seconds remaining gave Providence and three-point cushion and Iona's final look at a three to tie was off line, leading to a 53-50 win. Crooms finished with a game-high 18 points and added a team-best nine rebounds. Grace Efosa added eight points, nine boards, three assists and one steal in the winning effort. Iona used a 17-2 advantage on the scoreboard in the fourth quarter on points off of turnovers, as PC committed nine of its season-high 23 miscues in the final frame.
PLAYER MAKER ON OFFENSE... Janai Crooms leads the team in scoring (17.8 ppg) and assists (2.5 apg) through four games. As a team, Providence has made 91 field goals this season and Crooms has scored or assisted 44-percent of Providence's buckets (40).
1,000-POINT MILESTONE... Janai Crooms scored her 1,000th point in the Friars' season opener vs. Dayton on Nov. 7. She entered the game 14 points shy of the milestone and hit the mark with 7:41 left in the third quarter. Crooms heads into Sunday's game against BC ranked 30th all-time in career scoring at Providence with 1,057 points.Â
CLIMBING THE LADDER... Janai Crooms ranks 11th place on the Friars' all-time career assist list (348). Crooms dished 171 of her 343 assists during her two seasons at Ohio State (2018-20), added 65 at Michigan State (2020-21) and has registered 112 dimes with the Friars (2021-present). Through 116 career games, Crooms has averaged 3.0 assists per contest.
ALL GROWN UP... Last season, the Friars featured one of the youngest rosters in the BIG EAST Conference with six freshmen. Those six players entered the 2022-23 season having earned a wealth of experience, with each player seeing action in 20-or-more games as a rookie. Audrey Koch and Olivia Olsen were two of just three players on the roster to compete in all 30 games last season. Additionally, Emily Archibald, Kylee Sheppard and Koch each started 15-or-more games.
NEWCOMERS... The Friars added two transfers and one freshman to the roster in 2022-23. Graduate student Logan Cook played four seasons at Iowa, during which time the Hawkeyes won two Big Ten titles (2019, 2022) and advanced to the Elite 8 of the NCAA Tournament (2022) and Sweet 16 (2019). She played 53 career games and averaged 1.5 points and 1.5 rebounds per game. Junior Brynn Farrell played two seasons at Florida, where she played 28 games for the Gators after being slowed by an injury. She averaged 2.9 points and 1.0 rebound per game and connected on 22-28 free throw attempts in two seasons (.786). Kammie Ludwig is the lone true freshman on the squad and attended Geneseo High School prior to arriving on campus. The 3A All-State selection and IBCA All-State honoree averaged 24.6 points per game as a senior and finished her career as Geneseo's all-time leading scorer (1,881 points).
THREE-POINT THREATS... Meghan Huerter and Brynn Farrell are leading the Friars from deep this season. Huerter currently ranks 15th in the BIG EAST in three-point field goal percentage (.438, 7-16). All 16 of Huerter's shot attempts this season, overall, have come from behind the arc. Additionally, over the course of the last two games, Huerter has hit 5-9 attempts from deep (.556). Farrell is second on the team in three-point percentage, (.429, 6-14). The duo have combined to hit 13 of the Friars' 16 three-point buckets this season.
ONLY SCRATCHING THE SURFACE... Grace Efosa is expected to play a big role for the Friars this season, after battling injury and adjusting to the college game each of her first two years. Efosa has been making her presence felt in every facet of the game this season. She is averaging 8.8 points per game, 5.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.0 steal per game. She has reached double digits in the scoring column in two of four games, including a career-best 13 points against Rhode Island.Â
DEFENSE... The Friars have held three of their four opponents below 40-percent shooting from the field this season and the Friars are 3-0 in those games.
EFFICIENCY ON OFFENSE... Janai Crooms ranks fifth among BIG EAST players in scoring (17.8 ppg) and is doing so at an efficient rate. The senior guard ranks fourth in field-goal percentage (0.638) having converted 30-47 attempts from the field.
PROVIDENCE DROPS 74-72 DECISION AT RHODE ISLAND... The Friars dropped their first game of the season on Nov. 14 to Rhode Island, 74-72, at the Ryan Center in Kingston, R.I. The Friars led by as many as 13 midway through the second quarter and carried a 10-point advantage into halftime (50-40). With 5:41 remaining in the fourth quarter, URI used a 9-0 run to gain a 72-68 lead. The Friars responded with four-straight points to tie the game, 72-72, with 1:46 on the clock. The Rams' Maye Toure scored the go-ahead bucket with just under a minute to play and the Friars were unable to convert on the offensive end to tie or go ahead. The Friars got the ball back with three-seconds left after a defensive stop and called a timeout. Janai Crooms received the inbounds pass and had to put up a running three-point attempt as the clock expired, but the effort was off the mark and URI held on for the two-point victory. Providence shot a season-best 58-percent from the field (29-50), including a 7-10 performance from beyond the arc (.700). The Friars gave away nine points at the free throw line after going 7-16 in the game (.438). The Rams also benefited from a 24-14 advantage in points off of turnovers.
FRIARS' DEFENSE STIFLES STONEHILL IN 56-32 WIN... Providence defeated Stonehill, 56-32, on Nov. 11 in Providence, R.I. After a competitive battle in the first quarter, the Friars' defense kicked in to hold the Skyhawks to 17 points over the course of the final three quarter, including just eight points in the second half. Providence held Stonehill to 23.5-percent from the field (12-51). The Skyhawks showed signs of life in the first quarter, shooting 4-8 from three-point territory, but Providence held them to 1-21 shooting from three-point land the rest of the game.
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PROVIDENCE CLAIMS WIN IN SEASON OPENER... The Friars defeated Dayton, 69-60, it its season opener at Alumni Hall on Nov. 7. The Friars improved to 29-20 all-time in season openers and 33-16 all-time in home openers.
LOOKING BACK AT THE WIN OVER DAYTON... Providence opened the season with a 69-60 victory over Dayton. The Friars led wire-to-wire in the victory and held a its biggest margin of the night (14 points) with 4:01 remaining in the third quarter. Providence outscored Dayton 20-6 in points off of turnovers and 9-2 in fast-break points. Janai Crooms paced four Friars in double figures with 20 points and also added a team-high nine rebounds. Olivia Olsen scored 11 of her 15 points in the second half and completed the night with seven boards. Grace Efosa and Brynn Farrell each recorded 10 points in the victory. Efosa matched her career-high in scoring, while Farrell made her debut with the Friars hit double digits for just the second time in her career.Â
FOUR FRIARS IN DOUBLE FIGURES... Four Friars reached double figures in the scoring column vs. Dayton on Nov. 7, including Janai Crooms (20), Olivia Olsen (15), Brynn Farrell (10) and Grace Efosa (10). The last time Providence had four or more players in double figures dates back to the 2020-21 season (Jan. 7, 2021 vs. Butler). On that day Chanell Williams (16), Mary Baskerville (13), Alyssa Geary (10) and Kyra Spiwak (10) all tallied double-digits in the scoring column.
JANAI CROOMS NAMED TO PRESEASON ALL-BIG EAST TEAM... Senior guard Janai Crooms was among the list of 11 student-athletes named to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team, released at the league's annual media day on Oct. 18 at Madison Square Garden in New York, N.Y. Crooms is entering her second season with the Friars and her final season of NCAA Division I basketball. In addition to her time at Providence (2021-present), she also played two seasons at Ohio State (2018-20) and one season at Michigan State (2020-21). A year ago, Crooms was named All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention after leading the Friars in scoring (13.8 ppg), rebounding (7.2 rpg) and assists (3.5 apg).
2021-22 UNANIMOUS BIG EAST ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM HONOREE KYLEE SHEPPARD RETURNS FOR SOPHOMORE CAMPAIGN... Kylee Sheppard missed a third of her rookie season with injuries, but still found a way to make a significant impact during her time on the court. She appeared in 20 of the Friars' 30 games and averaged 9.6 points, 3.2 rebounds. 2.1 assists and 1.5 steals per game. Sheppard finished the year ranked third on the team in scoring and second in assists and steals. She shot 40.2-percent from the field (68-169), including 24-68 from three-point territory (.353), and recorded eight double-digit scoring games. Sheppard notched 20+ points in two games as a rookie, and both came during BIG EAST regular-season play, including a career-best 22 points against DePaul (Jan. 7) on 9-12 shooting from the field.
BIG EAST PRESEASON COACHES' POLL... The Friars were picked to finish eighth in the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll, with 34 points. Connecticut is picked to win the league, having collected 10 first place votes and 100 points overall. Creighton (89 points) and Villanova (83 points; 1 first-place votes) round out the top three spots. Last season, the Friars finished eighth in the 2022 regular-season standings with an 11-19 overall record and a 6-14 mark in the BIG EAST.
FRIARS IN THE POSTSEASON... The Friars' last appeared in the postseason during the 2018-19 campaign. Providence's 2019 WNIT selection marked the program's 15th post-season appearance overall and first since 2010. In 2019-20, NCAA and WNIT Championships were canceled to the COVID-19 pandemic, and Friars did not qualify for postseason during the abbreviated 2020-21 campaign. Complete post-season breakdown follows (records in parentheses):
2018-19 WNIT Round of 16 (2-1)
2009-10 WNIT Quarterfinal Round (3-1)
1991-92 NCAA Tournament First Round (0-1)
1990-91 NCAA Tournament Second Round (1-1)
1989-90 NCAA Tournament East Regional (1-1)
1988-89 NCAA Tournament First Round (0-1)
1986-87 National Women's Invitational Tournament (1-2)
1985-86 NCAA Tournament First Round (0-1)
1981-82 EAIAW Regional Tournament (0-1)
1980-81 EAIAW Regional Tournament (0-1)
1979-80 EAIAW National Tournament (3-1)
1978-79 EAIAW Regional Tournament (0-1)
1977-78 EAIAW Regional Tournament (1-1)
1976-77 EAIAW Regional Tournament (2-2)
1975-76 EAIAW Regional Tournament (1-2)
WHAT'S NEXT... Providence will host the Friar Thanksgiving Classic at Alumni Hall on Nov. 25-27. Providence welcomes Hartford, Weber State and Bryant to compete in the tournament, which will consist of two games each day. The Friars will kick off the schedule on Nov. 25 at 1:00 p.m. against Hartford. Weber State and Bryant will play at 3:00 p.m. For a full schedule, visit Friars.com.
