Texas A&M Basketball: 3 Things to know about Providence

2. Rich basketball history

Making their 20th appearance in the Big Dance, Providence has found a great deal of success under currently head coach Ed Cooley. Cooley leads the Friars into their fifth straight NCAA Tournament, yet Providence has only earned one victory which was in 2016 over USC.

Along with Cooley, Rick Barnes, current head of Tennessee, and Rick Pitino have both been the head coach of the Friars. Led by current Oklahoma City Thunder head coach, Billy Donovan, Pitino led the Friars all the way to the Final Four in 1987. This was the second Final Four appearance by Providence, the first coming in 1973.

Most recently in 2016, point guard Chris Dunn was named an NCAA All-American, drafted fifth overall in the NBA Draft and is currently a member of the Chicago Bulls. This time has a strong recent history of playing in big games and this is arguably their strongest team of the past five years, all of which made the tournament.