For the first time in three seasons, the Providence Friars are not going to be part of March Madness. And first-year Providence head coach Kim English is not happy about it. He believes, of course, that the Friars should have gotten in, but that simply did not turn out to be the case when everything was said and done on Selection Sunday.
Providence Friars Head Coach Kim English Gets Real About What He Thinks About Analytics
English did not hold back when he spoke in front of reporters, as he showed his true feelings for the NET rankings, where his team finished No. 58th overall.
Via ESPN:
“I think the analytics are bulls—,” English told reporters. “I think you could schedule bad teams in your nonleague and beat the snot out of them, beat them by 50 or 60. Coaching for so long has been a gentleman’s agreement: You have a large lead at the end of the game, for health reasons you take guys out. To get some other guys the opportunity to play, you take guys out. But right now might be a change in college basketball. Scheduling to beat teams by 40 and 50 might be a thing to do.
The Providence Friars, who parted ways with Ed Cooley in 2023, finished the 2023-24 college basketball season with a 21-13 record overall and a 10-10 slate against Big East opponents.
They also had six Quadrant 1 victories, including wins against the likes of the Marquette Golden Eagles and the Creighton Bluejays (Providence beat the Bluejays twice). At the end of the day, the Friars’ resume was not impressive enough for the committee to open the door for them to March Madness.
For what it’s worth, Providence ranked 54th on KenPom.
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