On Wednesday, we saw exactly why Saturday’s loss to Creighton was so frustrating. The Wildcats went into Hinkle Fieldhouse and suffered a heartbreaking defeat on a buzzer-beating three despite a valiant effort. Now, the ‘Cats have lost two in a row with two more incredibly difficult games looming next week, and suddenly pressure is building.
One piece of good news is that there was no drastic slow start. Villanova opened the scoring and kept pace with Butler over the first five minutes, scoring nine points. It set the stage for a back and forth first half in which Butler would lead by as many as seven and ‘Nova would lead by as many as five before the Bulldogs took a four-point advantage into the break.
Butler would push the lead to 10 early in the second half and Hinkle was rocking. It appeared that the ‘Cats could be in serious trouble.
Unsurprisingly, Villanova was unphased and would come back to tie the game with just over 10 minutes left. Butler responded and would re-establish a 10-point advantage with 5:45 to go, and once again it appeared ‘Nova was dead in the water. Once again, the Wildcats refused to quit, getting within one with 1:01 left, and they would tie the game with 30 seconds to go on a Saddiq Bey three.
Then Kamar Baldwin happened. The Bulldogs dribbled down the clock and the guard drilled a difficult step-back three as time expired to sink the ‘Cats.
Bey was fantastic for ‘Nova. He poured in 29 points on 11-of-20 shooting, including 5-of-8 from three. He added six rebounds and made huge shot after huge shot for the ‘Cats.
Collin Gillespie was great as well with 28 points and six assists.
Unfortunately, the ‘Cats didn’t get a whole lot from anybody else. Jeremiah Robinson-Earl chipped in nine points and four rebounds, Justin Moore returned to the starting lineup but managed just five points and two rebounds, while Jermaine Samuels added just two points on two shot attempts, grabbing seven rebounds.
Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree had three points and three rebounds off the bench, while Cole Swider and Brandon Slater failed to record a stat.
Adding to the frustration of how the game ended is the fact the final stats paint a picture that was favorable for a ‘Nova win. The ‘Cats scored over 70 points, were +9 from beyond the arc, were +2 from the free-throw line, and committed just three turnovers while forcing six. If you would have told me those numbers and not the score, I would have been almost certain that Villanova won the game.
The problem was at the defensive end. Butler shot 57.7 percent from the field. Four Bulldogs reached double figures and ‘Nova simply couldn’t get enough stops. After a stretch of much-improved defense, the Wildcats have regressed on that end the last two games, and it’s hurt them.
Villanova has put itself in a tough spot. With the loss, the ‘Cats fell back to the pack in the Big East in a big way, as not only did Butler pull within a game, but Creighton, Marquette, and Providence are also just a game back. Pending the result of Seton Hall-Georgetown (69-65 Hall at the time of this writing), ‘Nova could also find itself two games off the pace at the top of the conference.
Further complicating matters is a difficult week coming. Villanova has Seton Hall and Marquette looming, and have put an undue amount of pressure on themselves to win at least one, if not both, of those games. That task will not be easy.
It’s been a disappointing week for the ‘Cats, and Wednesday night, in particular, felt like a missed opportunity. They’ll need to get back on track quickly if they hope to be in the Big East title mix. The good news is that the strength of the conference offers an opportunity to change the narrative quickly. For now, ‘Nova fans are left to stew on Wednesday’s loss until Sunday when the ‘Cats take on Seton Hall.
