The Villanova ship is suddenly in very stormy waters following an 85-73 defeat against Georgetown in which the ‘Cats were basically dominated. After winning 11-straight games and jumping out to a 10-0 start in Big East play, ‘Nova has now lost three out of four and has lost consecutive games for the third time this season.

The hope was that the Wildcats would bounce back from Sunday’s collapse at St. John’s. Instead, we witnessed a worst-case scenario in which the problems from Sunday continued, leaving Villanova with more questions than answers as they enter the stretch run of the season.

A Phil Booth jumper gave the ‘Cats an 8-7 lead at the 16:18 mark of the first half, and that would be the last time Villanova led. Georgetown would carry a 10-point lead into halftime. The deficit would get as large as 19 in the second half, allowing the Hoyas to coast to a comfortable 12-point win.

It’s hard to find anything positive to take away from this game.

The defense was beyond poor, as Georgetown shot 50.9 percent from the floor and 39.3 percent from 3. The Hoyas assisted on 23 of 29 made field goals and generated a parade of open looks.

The Wildcats were even worse on offense, shooting an atrocious 23.7 percent from 3. Villanova shot 59.2 percent from 2-point range, but just 27 of its 65 field goal attempts were from inside the arc and the ‘Cats struggled mightily to generate offense without the 3-ball falling. They looked hesitant to shoot at times and showed no semblance of the confident, comfortable offensive unit we’ve come to expect. For all the poise the team has shown through adversity this season, they looked frustrated and flustered for long stretches Wednesday night.

Villanova was dominated on the glass for much of the game, with the final rebounding margin of 39-33 being skewed by some late offensive rebounds as the ‘Cats were in desperation mode.

Speaking of desperation, ‘Nova didn’t show any until it was far too late. They cranked up the defensive intensity late but offered little in the way of resistance or intensity as Georgetown built its lead.

The ‘Cats were unable to replicate their defense of Jessie Govan from the first meeting between the teams, as the big man recorded a double-double with 21 points and 11 rebounds. Mac McClung was also a thorn in Villanova’s side, pouring in 21 points of his own to go with five rebounds and four assists. The Georgetown bench outscored Villanova’s 22-9.

Phil Booth tried his best to keep the ‘Cats in the game, scoring a game-high 26 to go with five rebounds and three assists. But he shot just 3-10 from deep and committed three turnovers.

Eric Paschall scored 16 but was 2-8 from 3.

Saddiq Bey had nine points, 10 rebounds, and five assists but he too was plagued by poor outside shooting, going 1-6 from beyond the arc.

Same goes for Collin Gillespie, who was 2-6 from deep en route to 13 points.

Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree chipped in four off the bench, and Jahvon Quinerly added five.

Jermaine Samuels didn’t attempt a single shot.

In the last two games, we’ve now seen the Wildcats squander a 19-point lead and then get outplayed basically wire-to-wire. With Wednesday’s loss, they’ve fallen out of the top spot in the Big East, pending the result of Marquette-Butler, and are no longer in complete control of their destiny in the Big East title race. The ‘Cats have four games to right the ship before the Big East tournament and will look to start that process on Sunday when they travel to Xavier.