'Cats survive Navy scare

Well, it shouldn't have been this exciting, but Villanova escaped with a win over a Navy team audacious enough to make 14 (mostly open) three-pointers. The Wildcats eked out a 78-68 victory that was much closer than the final score indicates.

The game was not televised, and I was only able to follow along on the radio, so no player grades this time. Villanova's official PR machine was all over this one, though, with the box score, the recap, the post-game "notes," the post-game "quotes," and even a special 'Nova Notebook feature story.

A highlight video of the game from YouTube is embedded in the bottom part of this post.

Nova News also runs a nice recap with pictures.

Sometimes good teams have off nights, and hopefully this was one of them for the Wildcats. If Villanova plays with the same kind of lax defense and lack of urgency in the Big East, the 'Cats could well be NIT-bound.

Congratulations to reader "SleasFest," who most closely predicted the game's final score.

Next up for Villanova is coach Jay Wright's birthday on Dec. 24. He turns 47. After the holiday, The Wildcats have a home date with Temple on Dec. 29 in their Big 5 finale.