By CHUCKIE MAGGIO
BUFFALO – Noah Horchler calmly deposited Jacob Gilyard’s 3-point try into the scorer’s table, unable to contain a smile as he fixed his hair and returned to his defensive stance. The play resembled a big brother swatting his younger brother in a game of one-on-one in the driveway, only the stakes attached to this performance were far greater.
The Richmond Spiders erased two 15-point deficits this March but did not muster a comeback on Saturday. Providence proved to be far more imposing, extending its 15-point halftime lead to 20 in just 68 seconds and pushing the advantage to 30 with 7:38 to play.
Providence rolled 79-51 at KeyBank Center to advance to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 1997, before Horchler, Al Durham, A.J. Reeves or any of the players were even born. Richmond outscored the Friars 32-24 in the paint, but Ed Cooley’s team scored 14 points on second chance opportunities while drilling 12 3-pointers and bullying the Spiders defensively.
Richmond stars Tyler Burton and Jacob Gilyard managed just nine points, missing 15 of their 18 shot attempts. The Spiders sank just one of their 22 3-point looks, the lowest success rate by a team that attempted 20 or more 3s in an NCAA Tournament game since at least 2010. Providence opened the game on a 21-8 run and never trailed by fewer than 10 points for the remainder of the contest.
The Friars bristled against the “lucky” stigma bestowed upon them throughout their Big East championship run, confident in their skill and optimistic about their chances in the NCAA Tournament. A deep dish pizza awaits Cooley upon arrival in Chicago for the Midwest Regional next weekend, where he will meet Bill Self and the Kansas Jayhawks.
“This was literally our best game of the season,” Cooley assessed.
“When we play like this,” Reeves added, “I feel like we’re the best team in the country.”
Horchler collected 11 points and nine rebounds in the first half, exceeding his season average in both categories. He finished with 16 points on the strength of a 4-for-6 3-point clip along with a season-high 14 rebounds. The Friars, who outrebounded Richmond 38-27, improved to 9-0 when Horchler records a double-double.
Providence shot over 50 percent from 3-point range for just the second time all season. Durham made three deep shots, tying his season high, while Reeves and Justin Minaya each hit a pair. Only George Mason (in an overtime contest) and Davidson amassed more 3s against the Spiders this year.
Richmond lost nine of its 10 games this season when its opponent reached the 75-point threshold. Nathan Cayo powered the offense, making nine of his 11 field goal attempts, but the rest of the team shot 28.5 percent.
The Spiders also connected on just eight of their 21 free throws, their worst percentage (38 percent) since March 2019.
Mooney did not sense a lack of energy from his group in its sixth game in 10 days, but many Burton and Gilyard shots fell short, while Providence never lost steam as the game proceeded.
“I don’t think we were great defensively,” Gilyard said. “Realistically, I don’t know if they would go 12 for 22 if we’d have played zone, if they could do that again. But hats off to them; they shot 12 for 22 and we shot 1 for 22. … It was one of those days and I don’t think our defense was quite good enough.”
Five Friars scored in double figures, with center Nate Watson producing eight of his 10 points in the second half to join Horchler, Durham, Reeves and Jared Bynum. Bynum proudly wore a boxing-inspired title belt for amassing a team-high six assists, part of an 18-assist night for the unselfish squad.
Providence’s largest margin of victory in an NCAA Tournament game was previously 24, in a 1965 rout of West Virginia at Philadelphia’s Palestra. Its last double-digit tourney win occurred in the 1997 second round against Duke, the last time the Friars advanced past the first weekend.
Hearing the program’s supporters chant his name as a landmark victory became apparent was an emotional moment for Cooley. The Providence native grew up rooting for his hometown team and fulfilled a dream when he accepted the school’s head coaching job in 2011. He is attaining more accomplishments the deeper he dances.
“I just can’t tell you how grateful I feel for our players, our college, our city,” Cooley remarked. “It’s hard to get to this point. We’re just the little school that everybody says, ‘Ah, it’s Providence.’
“Well Providence is in the damn building.”
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