A trip to Providence means exchanging Know! Your! Foe! messages with David “Bruno” Wise (pictured above), the number one lone Brown basketball fan I know. There isn't anyone else I'd want to be discussing Friday's game with and David provides great, detailed insight into the Bears, who are 7-14 this season, 1-3 in the Ivy League.

A Yale edition of K!Y!F! will run tomorrow on the site.

If you cover a team the Tigers will face down the line, let us know. We'd love to talk with you.

Hello again, my Internet friend. For those who haven't had their eyes on Providence much this season, tell me about the 2011-12 Brown Bears.

“Friend” is a probably little strong, but it’s probably no surprise that it’s been something of a subdued year in Providence. We got off to a really rough start with the losses of (a) our prized preseason ROY candidate center Rafael Maia to an eligibility issue, (b) our returning leading big man scorer and All-Ivy player Tucker Halpern to mono, and (c) our promising rookie backup PG / SG Joe Sharkey. A few games in, we lost freshman Christian Gore to homesickness. We had to borrow two guys from the football team (who are not very good at basketball) to round out a roster. Once that all happened, those of us who root for the Bears started looking to next year, making this year mostly about watching guys develop. Makes it hard to get up for watching games, but at least it keeps the expectations nice and low.

For the guys that are actually playing, this is a team that’s still very young, and has a talented point guard who doesn’t have too many options to pass to. It yields a guard-led team that lives off of the three point shot, shoots poorly overall (particularly from inside the arc and the FT line), and rebounds atrociously. They manage to play reasonable defense, with the exception of guarding the three. The one area where they seem to outpace the competition is in assist rate – a reflection of the lack of one-on-one players we have, and of our talented PG. Add it all up, and this is not a team to fear on most nights in this Ivy League.

How much have the myriad off-court issues hindered progress in Jesse Agel's fourth season

I am no fan of Agel, but I do give him something of a mulligan this year. He lost two projected starters and his first bench guy before the season began. Next year – when all are healthy and when there really will be some good talent on the squad – will be the big test for him.

When I mentioned Andrew McCarthy in last year's Q&A, you told me to shut up. What say you now?

What YOU say now? He has been the biggest bright spot in an otherwise dim season. McCarthy is deceptive: not real athletic-looking, moves as awkward left-handers do, etc. But he put on a lot of muscle in the offseason, he’s very active and he plays very hard. He’s a talented shot-blocker and otherwise solid position defender, but this year has added a nice jump shot to his game. He’s the only Brown starter shooting over 50%, and he’s both scoring and rebounding effectively. Dare I say it – he’s an All-Ivy candidate. (As originally predicted.)

Can you add a few sentences about the progress of Stephen Albrecht?

In my view, Albrecht is Brown’s most dangerous player. He can turn a loss into a win with his quick release and remarkable three point range. Some players can be indefensible from three, and he can get into grooves where he’s unguardable. In some of Brown’s wins, he turned games around with some of that kind of shooting. His presence is what can give Brown a chance in just about every Ivy game this year.

How worried should Princeton followers be that Sean McGonagill will cause the same problems Friday that Zack Rosen did Monday? At the least, that dude scares me.

McGonagill can take over a game any given night. You never know. We all know how he facemasked Columbia for 39 last year at home, and he’s had a few of those stretches this year too. But, with few other weapons, he’s been keyed on by just about every other team, leading to some really bad nights for him. He’s played a wonderful all-around season at 14 points, six assists and four rebounds this year, but his shooting – particularly from inside the arc – has really suffered. Don’t let him hit two shots in a row though, because once he feels it, he’s the other guy who can take over a game.

Brown's 11th in the nation in percentage of their points coming from three point range and 340th in offensive rebound percentage. Is this the result of only having one trusted big man at both ends?

Yep. Brown’s talent is in the backcourt. It’s where most of their shots come from. (Brown takes, like, 40 pct of its shots from behind the arc). Nobody in the frontcourt has back-to-the-basket abilities, and with the exception of McCarthy, our big man production has been disappointing. Dockery Walker hasn’t developed like we’d hoped he would after a promising Ivy season last year; Tyler Ponticelli has a nice enough skillset but plays soft and without much presence; and the freshman Jon Schmidt isn’t caught up to the college game yet. Again, they’re down Maia and Halpern, so this isn’t a surprise, nor an indictment.

It is hard to tell from looking at the numbers. Are the Bears a stronger offensive team or defensive team 21 games in?

I think this question kind of hits the nail on the head – it’s an indication of this team’s lack of an identity. Overall they’re a reasonable defensive team, capable of good team defense in stretches. But they’re not dangerous there – they’re not going to shut you down. Where they can beat you is with a hot streak of outside shooting, which they really are capable of. (Now’s probably a good time to mention their other three point bombers: Jean Harris – their first player off the bench, who can really heat up from three; and Matt Sullivan – who has been Brown’s most disappointing player this year, but can still get hot from outside.)

Are you familiar with the concept of "blanks"? Brown keeps a bitter taste in Princeton's mouth that even repeated trips to East Side Pockets can't satisfy if...

They get hot from three, which opens it all up for Brown.

The Tigers get back on track in Providence if...

McGonagill + Albrecht < 40 points.

Anything else to add? The floor is yours.

I really am pretty optimistic about next year’s team. The starting five of McGonacgill, Albrecht, Sullivan, Maia and Halpern – with McCarthy, Walker and Sharkey off the bench – feels like it can make noise in next year’s Ivy. As we (always) say in Providence, we’ll be better next year. Just you watch.

Other than that, I yield back the balance of my time.