Someone must have dumped ice water on the men's basketball players' heads during a media timeout with 7:28 left in the first half Monday night.
For the opening 12:32, the Golden Eagles were puzzled by picks. Villanova punished them, taking an early nine-point lead thanks to four three-pointers from freshman Scottie Reynolds.,”
Someone must have dumped ice water on the men's basketball players' heads during a media timeout with 7:28 left in the first half Monday night.
For the opening 12:32, the Golden Eagles were puzzled by picks. Villanova punished them, taking an early nine-point lead thanks to four three-pointers from freshman Scottie Reynolds.
Then, Marquette snapped out of its confused state, made an adjustment on Reynolds and hounded the Wildcats offense until game's end. The Golden Eagles won 80-67, ending their three-game skid.
Early on, Villanova took three after three with impunity, grabbing seven offensive rebounds before the media timeout. Reynolds, who finished with a game-high 25 points, dominated with the help of superior team rebounding and subpar Marquette defense.
With 9:28 remaining in the first half, Reynolds buried an open three on a kick out from senior Curtis Sumpter to give him 16 points and Villanova a nine-point lead.
Less than one minute later, Reynolds went to the bench for a spell. When he returned, Marquette coach Tom Crean put freshman David Cubillan on him instead of sophomore Jerel McNeal.
The decision worked, and Reynolds shot 1-of-7 from the field after the fateful media break.
"We made some mistakes in the first half," Crean said. "We were doing a lot of switching on screens tonight and when you switch you can't play with your hands down. Reynolds has great range. You have to be prepared for that."
Shortly after Reynolds re-entered, Marquette began a 15-5 run to tie the score 33-33 at halftime. The Wildcats made only one field goal in the last seven minutes of the half.
Halftime did not disrupt the Golden Eagles' momentum. Sophomore Dominic James excelled defensively, denying senior Mike Nardi touches throughout. Nardi, who averages 6.4 three-point field goal attempts per game, was held to 10 points and just three tries from downtown.
Ball denial frustrated Villanova, which drove to the hoop recklessly throughout the second half. The Wildcats, whose offense seemed flawless early, became disoriented late.
Head coach Jay Wright reeled them in when he called a timeout with 6:59 remaining. Thirty-five seconds later, Villanova lapsed mentally by failing even to attempt a shot, committing perhaps the most crucial of its 18 turnovers. On the ensuing possession, Marquette took a 10-point lead.
"We weren't talking on defense," James said. "We didn't do the things we practiced, and we made the adjustment in the second half, and it paid off for us."
The adjustment actually came before the second half. After torrid shooting to start, the Wildcats finished 37.5 percent from the field.
Even freshman Lazar Hayward joined in on the fun.
He guarded Sumpter and outscored him to 18 to 14. When asked about Sumpter, a self-satisfied grin popped onto his face.
"When he was running up the court I tried to bump him a little bit," Hayward said. "You know, talk a little junk, try to get in his head and make him try to shoot bad shots."
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