# 1996–97 Providence Friars men's basketball team

The 1996–97 Providence Friars men's basketball team represented Providence College during the 1996–97 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Led by head coach Pete Gillen, the Friars finished the season 24–12 (10–8 Big East) and received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as the 10 seed in the Southeast region. The team made a run to the Elite Eight before losing to eventual National champion Arizona, 96–92 in OT.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site city, state |
| Regular season ||||||
| Nov 22, 1996 | | at Alaska-Fairbanks Top of the World Classic | W 98–73 | 1–0 | Carlson Center (4,920) Fairbanks, Alaska |
| Nov 23, 1996* | | vs. Middle Tennessee Top of the World Classic | L 75–77 | 1–1 | Carlson Center (3,412) Fairbanks, Alaska |
| Nov 24, 1996* | | vs. Southern Illinois Top of the World Classic | W 82–58 | 2–1 | Carlson Center (3,000) Fairbanks, Alaska |
| Nov 27, 1996* | | LIU Brooklyn | W 100–88 | 3–1 | Providence Civic Center Providence, Rhode Island |
| Nov 30, 1996* | | Columbia | W 74–61 | 4–1 | Providence Civic Center Providence, Rhode Island |
| Dec 4, 1996 | | at No. 5 Villanova | L 64–75 | 4–2 (0–1) | CoreStates Center Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Dec 7, 1996 | | Notre Dame | W 82–59 | 5–2 (1–1) | Providence Civic Center Providence, Rhode Island |
| Dec 10, 1996* | | Rhode Island | L 79–96 | 5–3 | Providence Civic Center Providence, Rhode Island |
| Dec 21, 1996* | | Brown | W 58–44 | 6–3 | Providence Civic Center Providence, Rhode Island |
| Dec 23, 1996* | | at Wisconsin | W 59–57 | 7–3 | Wisconsin Field House Madison, Wisconsin |
| Dec 28, 1996* | | at Loyola Marymount | W 83–76 | 8–3 | Gersten Pavilion Los Angeles, California |
| Dec 31, 1996* | | No. 18 Texas | W 74–66 | 9–3 | Providence Civic Center Providence, Rhode Island |
| Jan 2, 1997 | | St. John's | W 77–67 | 10–3 (2–1) | Providence Civic Center Providence, Rhode Island |
| Jan 6, 1997 | | No. 8 Villanova | W 91–68 | 11–3 (3–1) | Providence Civic Center Providence, Rhode Island |
| Jan 11, 1997 | | at Seton Hall | L 66–73 | 11–4 (3–2) | Continental Airlines Arena East Rutherford, New Jersey |
| Jan 15, 1997 | | at Miami (FL) | L 69–71 | 11–5 (3–3) | Miami Arena Miami, Florida |
| Jan 19, 1997 | | West Virginia | W 74–61 | 12–5 (4–3) | Providence Civic Center Providence, Rhode Island |
| Jan 25, 1997 | | at St. John's | W 72–59 | 13–5 (5–3) | Madison Square Garden New York, New York |
| Jan 27, 1997* | | Canisius | W 80–53 | 14–5 | Providence Civic Center Providence, Rhode Island |
| Jan 29, 1997 | | at Connecticut | W 62–47 | 15–5 (6–3) | Harry A. Gampel Pavilion Storrs, Connecticut |
| Feb 1, 1997 | | Boston College | W 83–71 | 16–5 (7–3) | Providence Civic Center Providence, Rhode Island |
| Feb 5, 1997 | | Rutgers | W 73–67 | 17–5 (8–3) | Providence Civic Center Providence, Rhode Island |
| Feb 8, 1997 | | at West Virginia | L 78–90 $^{OT}$ | 17–6 (8–4) | WVU Coliseum Morgantown, West Virginia |
| Feb 12, 1997 | | at Georgetown | L 69–75 | 17–7 (8–5) | Capital Centre Washington, D.C. |
| Feb 15, 1997 | | Pittsburgh | W 84–70 | 18–7 (9–5) | Providence Civic Center Providence, Rhode Island |
| Feb 18, 1997 | | at Rutgers | W 79–74 | 19–7 (10–5) | Louis Brown Athletic Center Piscataway, New Jersey |
| Feb 22, 1997 | | at Notre Dame | L 74–86 $^{OT}$ | 19–8 (10–6) | Joyce Center Notre Dame, Indiana |
| Feb 24, 1997 | | Syracuse | L 82–91 $^{OT}$ | 19–9 (10–7) | Providence Civic Center Providence, Rhode Island |
| Mar 2, 1997 | | Georgetown | L 56–67 | 19–10 (10–8) | Providence Civic Center Providence, Rhode Island |
| Big East Tournament ||||||
| Mar 5, 1997* | (4) | vs. (13) Rutgers First round | W 77–56 | 20–10 | Madison Square Garden New York, New York |
| Mar 6, 1997* | (4) | vs. (5) West Virginia Quarterfinals | W 76–69 | 21–10 | Madison Square Garden New York, New York |
| Mar 7, 1997* | (4) | vs. (1) No. 21 Villanova Semifinals | L 63–73 | 21–11 | Madison Square Garden New York, New York |
| NCAA Tournament ||||||
| Mar 14, 1997* CBS | (10 SE) | vs. (7 SE) Marquette First round | W 81–59 | 22–11 | Charlotte Coliseum Charlotte, North Carolina |
| Mar 16, 1997* CBS | (10 SE) | vs. (2 SE) No. 8 Duke Second Round | W 98–87 | 23–11 | Charlotte Coliseum Charlotte, North Carolina |
| Mar 21, 1997* CBS | (10 SE) | vs. (14 SE) Chattanooga Southeast Regional semifinal – Sweet Sixteen | W 71–65 | 24–11 | Birmingham-Jefferson Civic Center Birmingham, Alabama |
| Mar 23, 1997* CBS | (10 SE) | vs. (4 SE) No. 15 Arizona Southeast Regional final – Elite Eight | L 92–96 | 24–12 | Birmingham-Jefferson Civic Center Birmingham, Alabama |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. SE=Southeast. All times are in Eastern Time. ||||||

## NBA draft

| Round | Pick | Player | NBA Club |
| 1 | 12 | Austin Croshere | Indiana Pacers |