Villanova bounced back on Saturday with a 78-54 win over the Ohio Bobcats, avoiding the fate that befell them last season of a blowout loss to a Big Ten team was followed by a loss to a mid-major. Instead, the ‘Cats took care of business and got back on track.
There was some early trepidation as do-it-all sophomore Jason Preston scored four quick points for the Bobcats, but that was replaced by some relief when the ‘Cats knocked down a pair of early three’s to take their first lead.
The teams traded blows for much of the first half before a 16-0 run over the course of about four minutes put ‘Nova firmly in control. By the end of the half, the run had turned into a 27-4 spurt and the Wildcats took a 22-point lead into the break.
‘Nova shot 44.8 percent from the field and 50 percent from three in the first half, which was a welcome outcome after the performance at Ohio State. Justin Moore scored 15 first-half points while Saddiq Bey chipped in 11.
The Wildcats maintained their lead throughout the second half, building the margin to as much as 28 before walking away with the 24-point victory.
Saddiq Bey bounced back from a rough night in Columbus in a big way, leading the ‘Cats with 19 points. He connected on 7-10 from the field and 4-5 from three and added five rebounds and an assist.
Justin Moore finished with 18 points, two rebounds, an assist, and a block, hitting 3-5 from beyond the arc.
Jeremiah Robinson-Earl continued to have a big impact, contributing 11 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, and four steals.
Collin Gillespie still couldn’t find his shot, but chipped in 10 points, four assists, three rebounds, and three steals.
Jermaine Samuels also struggled shooting the ball but did a great job getting to the line and converting on his way to nine points. He grabbed eight rebounds and continued to show off his improved passing skills by dishing out five assists.
Off the bench, ‘Nova got six points, a rebound, and an assist from Cole Swider, three points, two assists, and a rebound from Brandon Slater, and two points and two rebounds from Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree.
There was a lot to like about the performance. ‘Nova knocked down 14 three-pointers at a 45.2 percent clip against a team that had defended the perimeter well this season. The ‘Cats had just five turnovers and conceded just two steals despite Ohio averaging over eight steals per game.
Perhaps most encouraging was the improved defense, both at the point of attack and off the ball. Despite entering the game with some solid offensive numbers, Ohio shot just 39.7 percent from the floor and 15 percent from three.
If we want to nitpick and look for an area of concern, it would be that ‘Nova was outrebounded 42-36 and gave up 10 offensive rebounds, an area Ohio has been poor in this season. Still, with the ‘Cats doing such a good job everywhere else, it hardly mattered.
It was good to see ‘Nova bounce back and quickly put the Ohio State performance behind it. The ‘Cats will look to build on Saturday’s performance when they return to action on Thursday against Middle Tennessee State. Note the unusual start time of 11:30 AM for that one, which will air on ESPN2.
