Providence roots unite rivals

David Duke Jr has fond memories of watching Bryce Cotton play for the Providence Friars.

He was thrilled to find himself in the middle of the action on Sunday, when the new Adelaide 36ers superstar faced the Perth Wildcats for the first time.

Duke Jr spent three years at Providence College starting in 2018, following in the footsteps of Cotton, who graduated from the same school in 2014.

Growing up in Rhode Island, he was also a devoted Friars fan, spending his early teenage years watching Cotton shine, before eventually stepping into his shoes as the next Providence guard to join the Wildcats.

He’s kept a close eye on Cotton’s career ever since and knew exactly what kind of challenge he was in for when he was tasked with guarding him in just his second NBL game at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre.

"I grew up watching Providence College just because I'm born and raised in Providence," Duke Jr said after the game.

"So I was definitely familiar with Bryce, and kept up with his career post-college."

It was a big challenge for Duke Jr to make his first NBL start and be given the matchup on five-time MVP Bryce Cotton, but it was one he was ready to throw himself into.

He finished with 16 points, 4 assists and 3 rebounds, but all eyes were always going to be on what Cotton did to his former team with the ball in his hands.

In the end, Duke Jr was happy with the job everyone did to limit Cotton to just 1-of-11 shooting inside the arc and no free throws, even though he still made his mark with 7 three-pointers and 7 assists.

Duke Jr knew it was never going to be a one-man job and was thankful for the effort of all his teammates at the Wildcats for doing their best to limit what Cotton was able to do.

"It's a tough task for sure, but it's what you're asked to do and you can't really make excuses for it," Duke Jr said.

"I think it was tough, but it wasn’t only me that guarded him. It takes a group effort from all five guys.

"It's the guys on the ball and who's in the gaps, and he draws so much attention, so it was on all of us. But if those guys weren’t there, it would have been even harder for me.

"Them being locked into the scout and making the right calls, sealing hedges and getting the ball out of his hands definitely helped eliminate a lot of the iso and putting me on an island."

"It definitely was a tough matchup, but I think we did a phenomenal job and we won the game during practice this week when we were locked in."