Aggies overpower Providence, advance to NCAA second round, 73-69

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Society now frowns upon blanket statements.We distance ourselves from outdated ideologies. Stereotypes are unacceptable.

Therefore, let’s categorically reject that infamous and passe’ cliche’ regarding our beloved Lone Star State.

Everything is not — repeat, NOT — bigger in Texas.

But try convincing the Providence Friars (21-14) of that fact. That’s a stereotype they seem more than willing to accept after Texas A&M (21-12) overpowered them, 73-69, on Friday in an NCAA basketball tournament first round game that really wasn’t that close.

The Aggies next face second-seed North Carolina on Sunday with a trip to the Sweet Sixteen on the line.

A&M held an 11-point lead with less than 90 seconds left, but Providence hit three harmless three-pointers and added a meaningless layup at the buzzer to make the final score at least appear more competitive.

“I thought we played through our post guys and did a good job of getting it inside and did a good job of rebounding for the most part,” A&M coach Billy Kennedy said.

Junior guard Admon Gilder scored a team-high 18 points and freshman point guard T.J. Starks had 15, but the difference was the 6-foot-10 trio of Tyler Davis, D.J. Hogg and Robert Williams (hey, Louisiana is close enough).

They worked over the small fries, err…. smaller Friars on the boards, rejected shots and generally wrecked havoc inside.

“We just played defense. Man we played hard,” Davis said. “You know it’s going to be stretches where they make their runs offensively. We hang our hat on defense. That’s what we’ve done all year.”

Jeremy Brevard/USA Today Sports

Center Tyler Davis (pictured) combined with forward Robert Williams to post 29 rebounds – more than Providence's entire team (26).

Davis and Williams posted double-doubles and combined for more rebounds (29) than Providence’s entire team (26). Hogg had six boards and blocked two shots. He had just one fewer rebound than Providence’s leading rebounder, Alpha Diallo.

Diallo scored 21 points, Rodney Bullock had 22 and point guard Kyron Cartwright had 11 for Providence.

But the Friars shot just 43.5 percent (27 of 62) and managed only five offensive boards.

“Their length really bothered us inside,” said Diallo. “They would throw the ball in almost every possession and when doubled they would get tough layups We tried to limit their second shot opportunities, but as good as a team they was, they got some crucial ones.”

On Thursday, Providence coach Ed Cooley admitted A&M’s size caused him a certain measure of anxiety. He hoped to counter with Diallo, Cartwright and Bullock slashing to the basket. But the slashes often led to crashes.

“We figured Providence is a slashing team,” Williams said. "They play small, try to take advantage of the bigs. So, me and Tyler had to move our feet and get dirty with the guards.”

They got dirty and nasty. Hell, A&M had more blocked shots (8) than Providence had fast break points (six). That was alarming to the Friars, who had beaten one-seed Xavier and gone into overtime with one-seed Villanova in the Big East Tournament last week.

“Their length was very impressive," Cooley said. “(It) definitely bothered us around the rim. They blocked four, five jump shots that I haven’t seen anybody in our league do."

The last block was by Williams, who rejected Bullock’s tree-point attempt at the top-of-the-key. The rebound went to Davis, who deflected the basketball to Gilder as Williams raced down court.

“I tipped the ball up because I saw them both,” Davis said. “I knew something was going to come. I didn’t know what is was going to be. It was nasty, though."

Gilder then found Williams alone under the basket for a spectacular windmill dunk.

“Actually, I wanted to go through my legs, but I thought coach (Billy Kennedy) would take me out," Williams said. "(It was a) highlight moment to create memories.”

Providence coach Ed Cooley could only shrug. It was bad enough that Davis and Williams were against him. He seemed to think The Almighty was, too.

“There’s really nothing you can do,” Cooley said. “That’s God’s gift to them. It’s really nothing you can do about it. You keep encouraging your kids but — you know — they got 7-6 wing length and 7-5 wing length. That’s genetics. You’re short. I’m tall. That’s your problem. That was our problem today.”

However, that was by no means the Friars’ only problem. Indeed, Cooley must have known he had a problem at halftime.

The Aggies missed their first 10 shots and committed five turnovers in the first seven minutes, yet managed to take a 28-27 lead at the break.

A&M then shot 68 percent (17 of 25) in the second half to pull away.

However, the Aggies trailed 37-35 after a Diallo layup with 15:34 left in the half. But D.J. Hogg and T.J. Starks hit three-pointers in a 10-0 run that provided 45-37 lead.

Providence fought back behind a barrage of three-pointers to forge a 50-50 tie. However, Gilder hit a three-pointer and Tyler Davis scored a three-point play to highlight a 12-2 run that gave the Aggies a 65-54 cushion with 2:06 remaining.

By then there was no big surprise. The big guys had gotten a big win and were taking the next big step in the Big Dance.