WHERE: Dunkin’ Donuts Center

WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday

WATCH IT ON: FS1

SERIES HISTORY: Texas Tech and Providence have played only once before. The Friars beat the Red Raiders, 53-52, on December 29, 1977, in a neutral site game in Honolulu, Hawaii.

CURRENT DRAFTKINGS SPORTSBOOK ODDS: Texas Tech -3 (OVER/UNDER): 136.5

Providence is 6-1 this season and has four of their five starters back from last year. The Friars have wins over Fairfield, 80-73, Sacred Heart, 92-62, Wisconsin, 63-58, New Hampshire, 69-58, Northwestern, 77-72, and Saint Peters, 85-71. Their only loss this season came against the Virginia Cavaliers, 58-40, in the Roman Legends Classic. Providence is averaging 72.3 points on 47.7 percent shooting and are shooting 34.5 percent from the three-point line.

The Friars were picked to finish seventh in the Big East Preseason Coaches’ Poll and sixth in the Sports Illustrated Preseason Poll. Providence has won its last four home games, scoring an average of 81.5 points while allowing 66.5.

Friars head coach Ed Cooley is in his 11th season at the helm for Providence and has a record of, 200-136, and is, 92-89, in Big East play. He led the Friars to five consecutive NCAA tournament appearances from 2013-18, but hasn’t made the tournament since. Cooley has won 19-plus games in seven of his 11 seasons as head coach and has a, 71-5, record in non-conference home games.

Providence is, 18-28, all-time versus Big 12 opponents but are, 3-0, in their last three games. The Friars most recent win against a Big 12 team came in December 2020 when they beat TCU, 79-70, in Fort Worth. Providence beat Texas in back-to-back seasons in 2018 and 2019. Their most recent loss to a Big 12 school was in the NIT Quarterfinals against Baylor in 2013.

The super senior was named to the preseason All-Big East First Team this year and was given second team All-Big East honors for his performance a season ago. Watson leads the Friars in scoring this year with 17.7 points per game, shooting an efficient 66.7 percent from the field. He’s currently fourth in the Big East conference in points per game and second in field goal percentage. Watson scored double digit points in 23 of 26 games a season ago, while also leading the team with seven games of 20 points or more and scored a career high 30 points against Saint John’s. He finished third in the Big East in scoring in 2020. Watson has one three-point attempt in his career, so he's not a threat to shoot from deep. He provides solid rim protection for Providence with 101 career blocks.

Another super senior on the Friars’ frontcourt, Horchler is third on the team with 11.9 points per game and leads the team in rebounding with 8.7 boards per game. He’s currently fourth in the Big East Conference in rebounds per game. Horchler can spread the floor, averaging 1.7 threes per game and shooting 48 percent from behind the arc this season. He’s currently second in the Big East in three-point percentage. Horchler made 26 threes in 26 games in 2020, his first season at Providence after transferring from North Florida. He has solid court vision for a big man, averaging 2.6 assists per game and is coming off a 25-point, 11 rebound, and 5 assist performance in the Friars last contest.

Providence features a lot of experienced talent on their roster and Durham, a super senior, adds an additional veteran presence to the Friars starting lineup. He started in all 26 games and averaged 32.5 minutes per contest a season ago. Durham is second on the Providence roster in points per game this year with 13.4 and is second on the team in assists, averaging 3.6 per game. Jared Bynum, who leads the Friars in assists this season, is expected to miss the game with a foot/ankle injury. Durham will be more involved in running the offense against Texas Tech to make up for the loss of Bynum. Durham averages 1.14 threes per game for the Friars this season.

The Red Raiders frontcourt, led by Bryson Williams, Kevin Obanor, and Marcos Santos-Silva will face their toughest test of the season to date. The strength of Providence is in their frontcourt, with Nate Watson and Noah Horchler creating a dynamic duo downlow for the Friars. Wednesday’s contest will be a barometer to see how the Texas Tech frontcourt will stack up against the tougher matchups ahead on the schedule. Horchler has been responsible for 44 percent of all Providence field goals over the last three contests, so finding a way to slow him down on the offensive end will be key.

Something’s got to give:

The Red Raider defense is averaging 19.83 forced turnovers per game, 8.23 more than the 11.6 turnovers the Friars have committed per game.

Providence is averaging 72.3 points per game, 15 more than the 57.3 points the Texas Tech defense has allowed opponents.

The Red Raiders are averaging 88.3 points per game, 23.4 more than the 64.9 points the Friars have given up.

Providence is shooting 47.7 percent from the field, 7.1 percentage points higher than the 40.6 percent shooting Texas Tech has allowed opponents.

The Red Raiders are shooting 50.9 percent from the field, 9 percentage points higher than the 41.9 percent shooting the Friars have allowed.