NEW YORK— Devin Carter officially joined the ranks of Providence College’s men’s basketball greats on Wednesday afternoon.
The junior guard was voted Big East Player of the Year, only the second member of the program to receive the distinction since the conference’s inception.
Carter was a finalist alongside Marquette player Tyler Kolek, Connecticut guard Tristen Newton, and Creighton guard Baylor Scheierman. All four were unanimously selected to the all-conference first team earlier this week. Kolek, a Cumberland native who played for the Clippers and attended St. George’s, won the award for the Golden Eagles last season.
More: Here’s what Providence basketball needs to do to make the NCAA Tournament.
“I feel blessed,” Carter said. “Not a lot of people get to say they’re Big East Player of the Year. There are a lot of great people around the league.”
Kris Dunn was the first Friar to win the award, splitting it with Villanova guard Ryan Arcidiacono in 2014-15 before earning it solo in 2015-16. The New York Post voted Eric Murdock the best player in the league in 1990-91. Both, like Carter, were impactful backcourt players on both ends of the court.
How good has Devin Carter been this season?
“He plays to win,” Providence coach Kim English explained. “His competitiveness, along with a high level of skill, is arguably his strongest quality. It indicates that he is concentrating on the proper issue.
Carter averaged 21.4 points in 20 league games, claiming the conference scoring title. In 31 regular-season games, he averaged 8.6 rebounds, 1.9 steals, and 38.5% 3-point shooting. Carter racked up 12 double-doubles to rank third in the league — his latest included 24 points and a career-high 15 rebounds in a 74-60 loss to the Huskies.
“We saw exactly who he was today when we watched film,” English said. “It was about convincing him to play this way that we wanted him to play.”
What’s Devin Carter’s back story?
Carter transferred from South Carolina after one season and helped power Providence to an NCAA Tournament berth in 2022-23. His improvements from that Friars debut have been considerable — up from 29.9% in 3-point shooting, up 8.5% in assist rate and up 10.2% in defensive rebounding rate. He topped Providence in each of those last two categories.
“I did a lot of work,” Carter stated. “I am not shocked by the results. I’m grateful to the coaches for voting for me.
Carter is a Miami native; it was his father, Anthony,’s first NBA home, and his game-winning shot in overtime helped the Heat defeat the New York Knicks in the playoffs at Madison Square Garden in 2000. He is currently an assistant coach for the Memphis Grizzlies and was at Amica Mutual Pavilion for the season finale against UConn. Carter attended New Hampshire powerhouse Brewster Academy and was a four-star prospect who chose the Gamecocks over offers from California, Georgia Tech, VCU, Richmond, DePaul, and others.
“He was excited,” Carter said. “He had a game-winner here. It was like a full life circle.”
Carter has helped the Friars maintain their chances of a March Madness berth into this week despite the long-term absence of Bryce Hopkins. The junior forward missed his 18th straight game Wednesday night against Georgetown as he continues a recovery from left knee surgery. It’s largely been Carter and Josh Oduro who have carried Providence to a 19-12 overall mark and a 10-10 record in conference play.
“It was actually his voice and his attitude in our practices,” English went on to say. “He attempted to pick up his teammates. He tried to adopt a more positive attitude, to accept coaching and the burden.
“We had some film sessions following losses this season, and I went right at Devin. It was not his fault we lost. If you are the leader, you must accept responsibility, which he did. “He took it.”
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