Cats cruise past DePaul

It was a strong first half for Villanova. The Wildcats came at DePaul in waves and did a great job matching stops on defense with scores on offense. The ‘Cats had runs of 6-0, 8-0, 5-0, 11-0, 5-0 and 7-0. The 11-0 run stands out and allowed ‘Nova to open its biggest lead of the game at 16, but the final 5-0 and 7-0 pushes were arguably the most impressive/important. Those two runs sandwiched a single DePaul bucket, combining for a 12-2 push that came on the heels of a 7-0 DePaul run that had cut the ‘Nova lead to single digits. It was a great response by Villanova and set the ‘Cats up to take an 18-point lead into the break.

The defense continued to look good, holding DePaul to 35% shooting overall and 23% from three in the first half, but it was the offense that grabbed the headlines. The ‘Cats connected on 55% of their shots overall and a scorching 70% of their three-point attempts. Seven Wildcats scored in the period with Hakim Hart (12) and Eric Dixon (10) leading the way.

‘Nova kept its foot on the gas in the second half, and while the offense played well, it was the defense that allowed the ‘Cats to extend the lead and cruise to the win. DePaul shot just 25% overall in the second half and just 9% from three. A 16-0 run helped ‘Nova to blow the game wide-open, turning a 17-point lead into a 33-point advantage. After DePaul broke that ‘Nova onslaught, the ‘Cats ripped off another 9-0 run, pushing the lead to 40. It would get as large as 42 before DePaul scored the last six points of the game to set the final margin at 36.

Hart was fantastic for the ‘Cats, finishing with a game-high 20 points on 7-10 shooting, including 4-4 from three. He added four rebounds, two assists and a steal.

“Just being active on defense,” Hart said about his big game and getting going in the first half. “Got a few steals, a dunk, transition, getting to the free throw line. That’s what got me started. Got my shot up, teammate’s finding me open.”

Dixon finished with 12 points, while TJ Bamba had a solid all-around game with 11 points, eight rebounds and four assists. Tyler Burton scored eight and added nine rebounds. Mark Armstrong chipped in nine points, three rebounds and three assists and Jordan Longino added eight points, two assists and two steals. Brendan Hausen had six points, four rebounds and two assists and Lance Ware returned to the court with six points, two rebounds and a block. Nnanna Njoku had his best game as a Wildcat, tying a career-high with four points (all scored in five first-half minutes) and setting a new career-high with six rebounds. He added an assist in 11 minutes of action, and provided some strong defensive play as well.

For Villanova, it was a great follow up to Wednesday’s big win over Creighton, and ‘Nova fans were certainly happy to see the Wildcats not play down to their competition. The ‘Cats now get another extended break, not playing again until they host Xavier on January 3.