ORONO, Maine - After a non-conference, neutral site game in Portland against Quinnipiac, the Black Bears will go on the road for three straight games to end the calendar year, starting with a trip to Providence, Rhode Island, where Maine will face Providence College on Tuesday night live on Fox Sports 1 (FS1). On Thursday they'll travel a few blocks over to Brown University to face the Bears.
GAME COVERAGE:
ALL-TIME SERIES
Maine and Providence have faced off 12 times since 1978, their first meeting a 2-point overtime victory for the Friars on November 25th, 1978 (final score 75-73). The Black Bears have a 1-11 record against the Friars, their lone victory coming on November 21st, 2000, when they traveled to Providence and came out with a 80-71 victory.
This game will be the two teams' first meeting in three years; they most recently faced off in Providence on December 21st, 2013, a Providence victory by the score of 94-70. The majority of Maine's scoring came by way of Zarko Valjarevic's 16 points on 4-5 three-point shooting, and Xavier Pollard's 15 points; he also had 5 rebounds, 3 assists and steals, and a blocked shot. Providence saw four double digit scorers, including two players with 22 points; Bryce Cotton with 6 rebounds and 10 assists, and Kadeem Batts with 11 rebounds.
SCOUTING MAINE
Maine is coming off a 10-point loss to Quinnipiac, which saw Maine leading big in the first half, by as much as 10 points at times, only to have the Bobcats come out strong in the second, as they outscored Maine 57-39 in the second half. The Black Bears saw another 20 point game from
Wes Myers who had 21 points on 9-19 shooting from the floor.
Andrew Fleming got a warm reception in Portland, a city that saw him play in many high school tournament games for Oxford Hills; he dropped 11 points on 4-9 shooting, 3-4 from the free-throw line, and also tallied 8 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 3 assists.
Marko Pirovic tied his career high in 3-point makes with 2, as he tallied 10 points in the game, and
Jaquan McKennon also notched career highs in points (8), FG makes (4) and offensive and total rebounds (2,5).
Myers leads the team in points per game with 14.7, while also contributing 4 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game. Fleming follows close behind with 9.5 points per game, a team-high 5.7 rebounds per game, and 1.1 assists per game. He also leads the team in steals per game (0.9) and blocks per game (0.9), and FG% (49.4%).
Ilker Er has been the consistent deep threat for the Black Bears, he averages 2.6 3-point makes per game (ranked 4th in conference) on 40.6% 3-point shot percentage (ranked 3rd in conference, 86th nationally). He is averaging 10.1 points per game and 4 rebounds per game.
Ryan Bernstein has also been a consistent playmaker for Maine, averaging a team-high 2.6 assists per game. He also averages 4.1 points per game.
SCOUTING PROVIDENCE
The Friars are off to a strong start with a 9-2 record so far as they finish up their non-conference schedule. Their most previous matchup, a 76-54 victory over Wagner, saw two double-digit scorers for the Friars; Jalen Lindsey with 16 points on 4-5 shooting (3-4 from three) and went 5-6 at the free throw line, and Emmitt Holt with 11 points on 3-7 shooting (1-1 from three) and 4-4 at the free throw line. Lindsey also had 8 rebounds, and 2 steals and assists, Holt chipped in with 4 rebounds, 2 assists and a block.
The Friars' leading scorer, Rodney Bullock, is averaging 20.1 points per game, 7.0 rebounds per game and 1.6 assists per game. Bullock also has a team-high 13 steals on the season and 9 blocks. Emmitt Holt follows close behind with 13.7 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game. He leads the team with 11 blocks, and is shooting 51.6 from the field, which is the highest among Providence's core starters. Jalen Lindsey has been providing 9.5 points and 4.2 rebounds per game. Kyron Cartwright is providing 8 assists per game, which is the 4th highest average in the nation, 2nd in his own conference; he's also providing 8.5 points and 2.6 rebounds per game.
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