Villanova rises in polls after Cincy win

Villanova used a furious second-half effort to soundly defeat Cincinnati on Sunday, and the Wildcats were rewarded with a boost in the national top-25 polls.

The new ESPN/USA Today coaches' poll rates Villanova at #16, and the updated AP poll ranks the 'Cats at #17.

Next up for Villanova is a road game with a hot Providence team on Wednesday.

Villanova faces Cincy in Super Sunday match

#21 Villanova (16-4) vs. Cincinnati (13-7)
12 p.m., 1 February 2009 at the Pavilion

TV: SNY (NY) / WPHL (Phila)

Line: Villanova -TBD

Villanova follows up its biggest win of the season on Wednesday with a home game against the Cincinnati Bearcats.

Cincinnati is 13-7, fresh off a victory over Georgetown. Prior to that upset, the Bearcats' best win was an early December victory over UAB.

While the Bearcats can put points on the board, Villanova should be the heavy favorite, especially at the Pavilion. Kenpom gives the Wildcats an 87 percent chance to win, predicting an 11-point margin.

Check out VBTN, IBBW, VUhoops, and Nova News for their previews.

Predict the final score in the comment section below for a chance to be mentioned in a future blog post!

Bearcats claw past 'Nova

Villanova 66
Cincinnati 69
(box score)
(ESPN video highlights)

Cincinnati: 8-8 (3-1 BE)
#17 Villanova: 11-3 (1-2 BE, 3-0 B5)

Next game: vs. DePaul, 01/16 at the Pavilion.

In a close game that looked like it would go Villanova's way like some other tight contests this season, Villanova could not defeat the dangerous Cincinnati Bearcats.

The Wildcats suffered their third loss of the season Saturday in Cincinnati to drop to 11-3 overall and a shocking 1-2 in the Big East.

Scottie Reynolds's season-high 32 points were not enough to contain a late Bearcats' surge.

A Reynolds three-pointer gave Villanova a three-point lead at the 2:15 mark, but the 'Cats would not score again. After Cincinnati's Rashad Bishop knocked down a three with 22 seconds on the clock, Villanova trailed by two.

With the Wildcats down two, the freshman Corey Fisher got to the foul line with six seconds remaining, but he missed the front end of the one-and-one. The Bearcats grabbed the rebound and made one of two free throws.

His team down three, Scottie Reynolds threw a desperation heave as time expired that actually found the rim, but it did not find the net, and the Wildcats dropped their second conference road game.

Villanova again seemed to suffer from the absence of Casiem Drummond, its starting center, who is out with a foot injury. Villanova was once again out-rebounded by a double-digit margin.

Drummond is scheduled to be medically evaluated on Monday to determine when he could possibly return to action.

Another problem for the Wildcats Saturday appeared to be the rotation. Jay Wright's management of minutes left a lot of Villanova fans scratching their heads with confusion. Why did Malcolm Grant, a hero of close games all year, only see two minutes in a second half that was as close as it gets?

Sure, Grant missed a few shots, but why not see if he could get it going given more time? At the very least, Grant should have been on the floor in the game's crucial closing minutes.

In all, Grant played just eight minutes in a game where his offensive firepower and energy were sorely needed. Meanwhile, Reggie Redding, who is usually a solid contributor, saw 24 minutes of action while shooting the same 0-3 from the field that Grant did in one-third of the playing time.

Even Corey Stokes, a complete non-factor, saw one minute more than Grant. Unless there was some sort of injury or disciplinary issue I am not aware of, keeping Grant on the pine seems like a mistake to me.

Congratulations to reader "Sports Fan" for most closely predicting the game's final score.

Next up for Villanova is a rematch with the DePaul Blue Demons Wednesday night in the Pavilion. Villanova lost to DePaul in Illinois on Jan. 3 to open conference play.

On to the player grades. "READ MORE" below for player performance grades and analysis.

• Scottie Reynolds (S, 37 min)

  Reynolds bounced back in tremendous fashion Saturday after struggling the previous week with minor injuries. Reynolds scored a season-high 32 points on 11-22 shooting, including 5-11 from the three. He was terrible from the foul-line, however, shooting 55.6 percent, 5 makes in 9 attempts. He grabbed 2 rebounds and dished out 2 assists, but led the team in turnovers with 5. Reynolds also led all Wildcats in the steals category, with 3. Scottie did seem a little fatigued out there toward the end, which could be attributed to his 37 minutes of playing time and the fact that Jay Wright called on Reynolds to handle point guard duties for most of the game. In my opinion, Wright is going a little bit overboard with the "hot hand" theory. Sure, Reynolds was on fire on offense for the whole game, but why not let Fisher or Grant run point duties as they have for much of the season? This seems to be the same philosophy that kept Grant on the bench after he missed his first few shots, as well. All in all, it was an excellent game for Reynolds, minus some mistakes.
  Grade: A-
  
  

• Dante Cunningham (S, 28 min)

  Cunningham notched 28 minutes but had a surprisingly small impact on the game overall. Dante scored just 1 point and did not even attempt a shot. He also looked weak on the boards, grabbing just 4 rebounds. Though he made a nice block, he committed 3 turnovers and did not get any steals. Cunningham also spent much of the game in foul trouble. Subpar game from Dante, who usually performs much better in the post.
  Grade: D
  
  

• Shane Clark (S, 27 min)

  Clark looked a little better on the offensive end. Though he only scored 6 points, at least he shot well, 3-4 from the field. He only had 2 rebounds, however. It wasn't a terrible game offensively, but Clark certainly did not do much in his 27 minutes. Clark notched 1 block and 1 steal and did not commit any turnovers. On defense, Clark struggled tremendously, giving up a few key open three-pointers and generally seeming out of place. He was slow both rotating on the perimeter and getting out to the three-point line on defense.
  Grade: D+
  
  

• Corey Fisher (S, 26 min)

  Fisher shot early and often, and while he shot well from inside the arc (4-6), he simply could not find the net from the three, where he went an brutal 1-8. He finished with 13 points when you include his 2-3 performance from the foul line. Fisher did not come through in the clutch, missing the front-end of an absolutely critical one-and-one with the 'Cats trailing by two points with six seconds remaining. Fisher had 2 assists, 1 turnover, and 1 steal.
  Grade: B-
  
  

• Reggie Redding (S, 24 min)

  Redding was terrible on the offensive end, missing all three of his shots badly. His two missed three-pointers were not even close. He did not grab any rebounds in 24 minutes, and had 2 each of assists, turnovers, and steals. Redding usually contributes solid play, but one has to wonder why he was relied upon for 24 minutes when he was providing zero offensive output.
  Grade: D
  
  
  

• Dwayne Anderson (21 min)

  Anderson seems to have earned a spot in the regular rotation. Dwayne played well considering the limitations in his offensive game. Anderson shot 2-3 from the field to score 4 points. Anderson seemed to lack confidence on the offensive end, passing up several open shots to defer to a covered teammate. Dwayne led the team in rebounds, with 9, and grabbed 2 steals while committing no turnovers. All in all, it was a solid game from Anderson, and I will not argue that he saw too much court time. Anderson easily out-performed Cunningham, Clark, Redding, and Stokes, so he is not to blame for Grant's lack of minutes.
  Grade: B
  
  

• Antonio Pena (20 min)

  Pena is now clearly the best weapon the Wildcats have in the offensive post. Pena scored 10 points on excellent 5-7 shooting, though four of his field goals came in the first half. Pena grabbed 4 rebounds and notched one each of assists, steals, and turnovers. Pena looks to be one of the most athletically gifted Wildcats to grace the blue-and-white uniform in some time, so look for him to continue to improve. At this point, I believe that Pena has earned a spot in the starting lineup, either at Clark's SF or Redding's swingman spot.
  Grade: B
  
  

• Corey Stokes (9 min)

  Stokes did not attempt a shot in his 9 minutes and did not score. The only impact he had on the box score whatsoever was a single rebound. It is fine that Stokes is going to be a longer-term project than expected, but why was he given more minutes in a close game than Malcolm Grant?
  Grade: D
  
  

• Malcolm Grant (8 min)

  It is hard to assign a grade for Grant, because while he did not score on 0-3 shooting, he was only in the game for 8 minutes. Had he been given the chance to get going, who knows what he could have done. The Wildcats may have even won the game if Grant had been out there in the closing minutes of the second half. Grant grabbed 1 rebound and dished out 1 assist in his brief stint of playing time.
  Grade: C
  
  

• Incomplete grades: None



• Did not play:
  Casiem Drummond (foot), Andrew Ott (CD), Frank Tchuisi (CD), Jason Colenda (CD).

'Nova keys to the game: Cincinnati

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#18 Villanova Wildcats (11-2, 1-1 BE) vs.
Cincinnati Bearcats (7-8, 2-1 BE)

Date: Saturday, January 11, 2008
Location: Fifth Third Arena (Cincinnati, OH)
Time: 7:00 p.m. EST (Changed from a noon start)
Television: ESPNU

Cincinnati Coverage: Bearcat News || Bearcat Blog

As stated earlier, VBTN runs a terrific preview of the Wildcats' opponent this weekend, the Cincinnati Bearcats, so I will refrain from repeating the information they have already provided.

Mick Cronin, in his second year as head coach, has lead his team to two Big East wins thus far, matching his team's conference win total of a year ago. Known for his strong recruiting, Cronin has brought in blue chips such as Newark's Rashad Bishop, who, as ESPN's Andy Glockner points out, has an impressive 1.11 Assist/TO ratio (unusually high for freshmen forwards).

While this seems to be another rebuilding year for Cincy, as with all Big East opponents, this team should not be taken lightly. Below, I will continue to offer the 'Keys to the Game' and X-factors for 'Nova.

Keys to the Game

Get Big : Like Pitt, the Bearcats have a strong frontcourt, highlighted by John Williamson (9.7 ppg, 6.3 rpg) and Adam Hrycanuik (9.1, 5.3). This means the 'Cats must once again step it up inside and limit the damage by Cincy's big men, both offensive and defensively. Look for Dante Cunningham and Antonio Pena to continue their trend of solid inside play.

The Trifecta: After shooting over 36% from behind the arc in six of their first nine games, Villanova has cooled off considerably as a team, connecting on just 29% in their last 86 shot attempts. Defensively, the problems continue for 'Nova, as they allowed Pitt to shoot 5-11 from three and are allowing opponents to shoot a staggering 40% from downtown. As with years past, 'Nova seems to live and die with the three pointer. While I believe defensively we will hold the Bearcats' guards in check, it will be interesting to see if Fisher and Reynolds can get out of their respective deep shooting funks.

Tempo: Run their big men off the floor, and 'Nova will run away with a victory

X-factor

Undeclassmen: Aside from the cries from 'Nova Nation wanting Malcolm Grant to start, another developing story has been the outstanding output of the rest of his underclassmen teammates. To date, 70.3% of 'Nova's scoring and 50.2% of their rebounding comes from freshmen and sophomores. The likes of Grant, Pena, Fisher, Reynolds, and Redding must continue to add to their average of 55.4 points and 19.1 rebounds per game for the Wildcats to remain competitive.

On an interesting sidenote, Antonio Pena, since being inserted into the lineup with more regularity after Drummond's injury, is averaging 9.3 points and 3.8 rebounds per game. I expect the rebounding totals to increase with more playing time, but Coach Wright must be pleased with Pena's offensive output off the bench.

Remember to weigh in on the "predict the score" contest in this thread, and offer your thoughts on what should be another exciting evening of Big East basketball. Let's Go 'Nova!

'Nova heads to Ohio for yet another battle of the 'Cats

Villanova takes on the Cincinnati Bearcats Saturday night in the third game of Big East play for the Wildcats. Fresh off a win against ranked Pittsburgh, Villanova will look to improve its conference record to 2-1.

Cincinnati is 7-8 overall, but 2-1 in conference play, with wins over Louisville and Syracuse.

GreyCat at VBTN runs an excellent preview of the game.

The game will air live at 7 p.m. Villanova time on the ESPNU network. For those without ESPNU television packages, a sports bar might be a good bet.

As always, if you would like to take part in our season-long prediction contest, leave your forecast for the game's final score in the comments section below.

'Nova freezes Cincinnati

Villanova 64
Cincinnati 48
(box score)

Cincinnati: 10-15 (1-10 BE)
Villanova: 17-7 (18-7, 6-5 BE, 4-0 B5)

Next game: vs #14 Georgetown, 02/17 @The Wachovia Center.

The wintry mix of snow, ice, sleet, and gale-force winds kept many would-be spectators away from the Pavilion last night, but those who did make the trip witnessed a solid Villanova win over a hopelessly poor Cincinnati team.

The spread for the game was 15.5, and it was clear very quickly that the game would never be close. Cincinnati simply could not score. With 6:08 remaining in the first half, Cincinnati had 10 turnovers and just 6 points. They needed 16 minutes just to reach double digits.

You know your team is terrible when the opposing student section starts mock-cheering for nearly all your baskets. That's exactly what happened at the Pavilion last night.

Some strong points for the Wildcats were their defense, long-ball shooting, and transition game. Villanova forced 16 turnovers, including 12 in the first half, and held the hapless Bearcats to 34.2 percent shooting. The Wildcats shot 8-20 from the three for 40 percent. Finally, Villanova managed an excellent 19 points off turnovers.

The game was never in question. The real test for Villanova will be Saturday's showdown downtown against the #14 Georgetown Hoyas. With a win at the Wachovia Center Saturday, Villanova will have all but stamped its NCAA ticket.

Onto the player grades. As always, click "READ MORE" below for player performance grades and analysis.

• Mike Nardi (S, 29 min)

  Mike Nardi seems to have gotten back into his rhythm these past few games. Nardi led the team in scoring with 16, and shot 5-9 from the field. He was on fire from the three, going 4-5. Nardi seems to hit shots when he is open, and Cincinnati gave him plenty of open looks. If he can stick his open shots and not force contested ones, Mike is going to be very valuable to the team in the post-season. Nardi added 3 assists, 3 rebounds a steal, and a turnover.
  Grade: B+




• Scottie Reynolds (S, 29 min)

  Reynolds got a chance to showcase his defensive skills last night. He co-led the team in steals, with 3, and was generally a nuisance to Cincinnati's offensive plans. Scottie continues to be cold from the floor. He shot 2-9 from the field, including 1-5 from the three, but was perfect again from the line at 4-4 to score 9 points total. I get the feeling that after suffering from the flu, Reynolds needs another offensive breakout game to regain his confidence. Let's hope that game is Saturday against Georgetown. Reynolds managed to run the point while committing just 1 turnover, and he also added 3 assists and 3 boards.
  Grade: B-




• Will Sheridan (S, 25 min)

  This is the first game in a while that Sheridan's minutes have cracked 20. Will played a solid game against the Bearcats. Cincinnati really has no inside presence to speak of on either end, so Sheridan was able to get into the offensive flow a little bit. He scored 8 points on 4-6 shooting. His defense was not that good, however. Sheridan committed 2 turnovers and had just 1 block against a Cincinnati team that was absolutely horrible in the paint. Will also pulled in 3 boards.
  Grade: C




• Shane Clark (S, 23 min)

  Clark was as cold as the weather from the floor last night, going 2-8 from the field and 1-5 behind the arc. He did have a positive impact everywhere else. Clark had 5 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 assist, and 1 turnover. His defense looked better. His handle still needs a lot of work.
  Grade: C+
  
  

• Bilal Benn (22 min)

  Benn earned some major minutes serving as the 3rd guard on the floor. He played very efficiently and handled the ball well, coughing up no turnovers. He scored 5 points on 2-2 shooting. He added 4 rebounds, an assist, a steal, and played his typically stingy defense.
  Grade: B-




• Reggie Redding (20 min)

  Redding may be the team's best pure passer. His court vision is definitely unmatched. He led the team in assists with 4, and co-led the team in steals with 3. Reggie is such a natural basketball player that he knows where to be and when most of the time. He was horrendous as a shooter, however. Redding shot 1-5 from the floor, and most of those shots had no chance whatsoever. He is a good shooter and needs to get his confidence going. He also needs to protect the ball a little more as he committed 3 turnovers. His defense against the Bearcats was outstanding, however.
  Grade: C+




• Dante Cunningham (20 min)

  Cunningham is still suffering from respiratory symptoms after his bout with influenza or bronchitis or both, depending on who you ask. As against Seton Hall, however, his game is showing no ill effects. Dante was 3-7 from the field and a perfect 5-5 from the stripe to get 11 points. He also led the team in rebounding with 9. He added 1 spectacular block, and had 1 turnover.
  Grade: B+





• Curtis Sumpter (S, 19 min)

  Sumpter was held scoreless for most of the game before hitting consecutive shots. He finished with 8 points on 3-7 shooting, including 2-3 from the three. He had 4 rebounds, 2 assists, a steal, a block, and a turnover. All in all, not bad for 19 minutes of work.
  Grade: B-




• Incomplete grades:
  Dwayne Anderson (5 min), Casiem Drummond (4 min), Frank Tchuisi (2 min), Ross Condon (2 min).



• Did not play:
  Andrew Ott (RS), Antonio Pena (RS).

Game will be played as scheduled

Despite the snow, ice, and sleet storm that has moved through the Villanova area, tonight's game against Cincinnati will be played as scheduled at 9 p.m. at the Pavilion.

The university did cancel all afternoon and evening classes today due to the storm. According to villanova.edu:

Villanova University will close at 1:30pm today. All afternoon and evening classes are cancelled. [...]
The mens' game at the Pavilion vs Cincinnatti will be held as scheduled this evening at 9pm.

Hope everyone makes it to the game safely.