PROVIDENCE – Shaka Smart saw it. So did Ed Cooley and anyone choosing to pay attention in the crowd of 9,800 fans at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center.
For the first time in weeks, the Providence College Friars owned the locked-in look that a seasoned, focused team should carry to the basketball court. The result was the first convincing win of the season over an upper-level team, a 70-48 thrashing of the Texas Longhorns that sent the Friars home for Christmas happy.
“I was really happy for our kids, happy for our program,” Cooley said, “because that’s a win that we definitely needed.