Providence University combo Forward Ben Bentil’s 20 point outing could not prevent his team from suffering a 60-72 loss at the Dunkin Donuts Center to Villanova University.
The 6 foot 8 inch Ghanaian started from the bench after sustaining an ankle sprain in the Friars previous match against DePaul which they also lost but checked in with the home team down 0-10.
However, he struggled initially as he scored just two points in the first half showing signs of his bothering ankle but recovered to put up 18 points in the final 20 minutes. He also recorded two rebounds, a steal and a block in 34 minutes on the floor.
Bentil, a second year Forward is enjoying a break out season as he leads the Big East Conference in scoring averaging 19.7 points per game; last season he averaged 6.4 per game.
Villanova’s front court duo of Darryl Reynolds and Kris Jenkins combined for 20 rebounds as they willed the Wildcats to a 46-29 dominance on the boards. Reynolds added a career-high 19 points with two blocks, steals and assists respectively to cap off a good night.
On the other hand, senior year Guard and team second top scorer Kris Dunn could only manage 11 points as he converted four out of 15 attempted field goals and turned the ball over six times.
“I think you need to have a simple message to your team. It’s a long season, but we’re still in good shape. It’s tough with the way we’ve played lately,” Providence coach Ed Cooley said when addressing the media on his team’s latest defeat.
Fourth placed Providence will be up against Marquette University on Thursday February 11. First in the Big East Conference, Villanova will play at DePaul on Wednesday February 10.
