Providence and Wisconsin will both be dealing with a difficult nonconference test Thursday when they meet in the opening round of the Rady Children’s Invitational in San Diego.
Providence (4-2) enters the matchup on a two-game winning streak. The Friars are averaging 93.2 points per game and lead the Big East in free-throw percentage at 78.9% (116 for 147).
Providence coach Kim English said his team is trending in the right direction, but still has a lot of room to improve.
“We haven’t shot it well from (3-point range) yet and we haven’t really guarded the way we can,” he said. “Our offense is in a solid place. Our defense is hopefully gonna make our offense even better. We’ve struggled with keeping teams out of the paint.”
Senior guard Jason Edwards has scored at least 20 points in three of Providence’s six games and leads the team in scoring (19.3 ppg). Oswin Erhunmwunse, a 6-foot-10 forward, shares the national lead in blocked shots with 24.
“I just have to do what I have to do to help the team win,” Erhunmwunse said. “That’s my identity.”
Wisconsin (4-1) spent the first three weeks in the AP Top 25 while stringing together four straight wins, but the Badgers dropped out after a 98-70 loss on Friday to No. 9 BYU. The Badgers shot 37.7% from the field and allowed the Cougars to make 14 of their 34 3-point attempts (41.2%).
“We’re gonna learn a lot from this,” said Wisconsin coach Greg Gard. “There’s technical things we have to fix, but how do we respond from a mental standpoint and grow? We have to get better. We have a lot more coming in terms of high-level games.”
Guards Nick Boyd (19.2 ppg) and John Blackwell (18.4 ppg) are Wisconsin’s leading scorers, while Nolan Winter (14.2 ppg, 10.2 rpg) has ramped up his numbers from last year.
The Providence/Wisconsin winner meets either No. 10 Florida or TCU in Friday’s championship game.
