[9:30 PM] Providence v. Memphis

Who will WIN this matchup?

Providence Friars (3-1)

Memphis Tigers (4-0)

 

• Memphis will try to open 5-0 for the first time in six years when it takes on Providence in the third round of the Emerald Coast Classic on Friday in Niceville, Fla. The Tigers’ four straight wins to start the season have come by an average of 21.3 points, the largest of which came in Tuesday’s 104-65 rout of McNeese State.

• Providence’s Kyron Cartwright handed out nine helpers and Rodney Bullock scored 21 points and grabbed 12 boards in Monday’s 64-48 win over St Francis-Brooklyn.

• Forward Emmitt Holt (hamstring) – the Friars’ second-leading scorer with 16.7 points per game – was dressed but did not play Monday and guard Ryan Fazekas (ankle) was limited to 18 minutes. Freshman Kalif Young, who had two points on 1-of-8 shooting through his first three collegiate games, took advantage of the opportunity with 16 points and six rebounds in his first start. “I think my teammates found me and coach ran plays for me to kind of get into the flow of the game gradually,” Young told the Providence Journal. “I think before I was a little bit nervous trying to score and do different things.”

• Lawson’s older brother, guard K.J. Jawson, is also a double-double machine with three straight, including a 13-point, 10-assist effort in Tuesday’s triumph. The brothers are half of a quartet that averages at least 12.8 points for a team that puts up 91.3 per game. The impressive numbers would be even better if the squad could find a way to improve upon its woeful foul shooting (54 percent), which was 346th out of 347 Division I teams entering Wednesday’s action.

• Bullock leads the Friars with 21 points and 7.5 rebounds per game.

 

StreakSmarts Pick: Memphis Tigers

Confidence: 4/10

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