Nova's DiVincenzo wins most outstanding player of Final Four
April 3, 2018
SAN ANTONIO (AP) When Villanova was struggling with its shots in the first half, Donte DiVincenzo provided a wake-up call for the Wildcats.
When Michigan tried to make a move on Villanova in the second half, DiVincenzo put down the uprising with 11 straight points and a wink toward the sideline.
The Wildcats' sixth-man scored a career-high 31 points and won most outstanding player of the Final Four as Villanova beat Michigan 79-62 on Monday night for its second NCAA Tournament championship in three seasons.
DiVincenzo, who was just a cheerleader for Villanova during that championship run in the 2015-16 season, had the first 30-point effort in a title game since Miles Simon did it for Arizona against Kentucky in 1997.
The redshirt sophomore from Delaware broke his foot early in his freshman season and was limited to eight games and a medical redshirt.
Against Michigan, DiVincenzo was the guy. He had 16 points on an assortment of drives and mid-range shots in the first half as Villanova started 1 for 8 from 3-point range.
The Wildcats' offense, the best in the country with shooters all over the floor, perked up late and surged to nine-point halftime lead. The advantage quickly bulged to double-digits in the second half. Michigan had whittled it down 12 with about nine minutes left when DiVincenzo hit 3 from up top. The next time down he let another one fly - why not? - and after it swished through he looked toward the sideline and gave a wink.
DiVincenzo finished 10-for-15 from the field, with five rebounds, three assists and two blocked shots. He had the highest scoring game for any single player against Michigan's stingy defense this season and became the sixth player in the last 40 years with a 30-point NCAA championship game.
******************
Michigan unable to counter Villanova in title game defeat
April 3, 2018
SAN ANTONIO (AP) One by one, Michigan's starters trudged to the bench in succession while the final minutes of the NCAA Tournament championship game ticked away.
The Wolverines had all tried to stop Donte DiVincenzo, and they had all failed as he delivered the highest scoring performance all season by a Michigan opponent in Villanova's 79-62 win.
Yet the Wolverines' inability to counter with points of their own was just as costly.
Charles Matthews, Michigan's second-leading scorer, managed only six points on 3-for-9 shooting. The Wolverines got no points in 22 minutes from Duncan Robinson, their fourth-leading scorer.
Zavier Simpson needed a few late buckets to finish with 10 total points in the two Final Four games, and the Wolverines' top playmaker had just two assists. Michigan had only six total assists on 24 field goals.
Even worse, the Wolverines' entire bench went a combined 3 for 12 while contributing only seven points - or 24 fewer than DiVincenzo, the Wildcats' extraordinary reserve.
Michigan went a paltry 3 for 23 on 3-pointers, with only Moe Wagner and Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman finding the net. The Wolverines missed 59 of their 73 3-point attempts over the final three games of the NCAA Tournament, and this time they couldn't make up for it.
For the second time under coach John Beilein, Michigan couldn't find a defensive answer for a reserve on college basketball's biggest stage. Luke Hancock scored 22 points for Louisville during its victory over the Wolverines in the 2013 title game.
The Wolverines were an underdog in this matchup at the Alamodome, but they got off to an encouraging start. For the first 10 minutes at the Alamodome, Michigan had an answer for everything Villanova had done so well on its roll through the season as likely the best team in the sport.
Michigan played smart, aggressive perimeter defense against Villanova's outside shooters, preventing the Wildcats from using a barrage of 3-pointers to jump ahead, as they did against Kansas two days earlier. The Wolverines' defense was athletic and flexible enough to get a hand in most shooters' faces, and the difference in Villanova's offensive flow was dramatic.
Moe Wagner's 25-point, 14-rebound performance against Loyola-Chicago two days earlier propelled the Wolverines into the championship game, and the German big man got off to another outstanding start against the Wildcats. Wagner slipped inside for a layup to put Michigan up 21-14 midway through the first half, and the Wolverines looked good.
And then it all fell apart.
Michigan didn't score again for the next 5:13, missing seven consecutive shots. DiVincenzo got rolling with a series of buckets, and his teammates leaped to a nine-point lead at halftime.
*********************
Villanova's Wright in select company with 2nd NCAA title
April 3, 2018
SAN ANTONIO (AP) Not all too long ago, Jay Wright was still one of those many standout coaches without a national championship despite repeated winning seasons and appearances in the NCAA Tournament.
Less than two years and a Texas two-step of titles later, the sharp-dressed Villanova coach is now in very select company.
With the Wildcats' 79-62 win over Michigan in the Alamodome on Monday night, Wright joined Duke's Mike Krzyzewski and North Carolina's Roy Williams as the only active coaches with multiple NCAA titles. He is the 14th coach overall with more than one championship, a list topped by John Wooden's 10 at UCLA.
Villanova waited 31 years to win another championship after getting its first with coach Rollie Massimino in 1985.
Wright and the Wildcats didn't have to wait very long at all to add to that total. Only two days shy of the second anniversary of the title they won about 200 miles away in Houston, they were cutting down the nets again.
''I never dreamt of this,'' Wright said.
The Wildcats wrapped up Wright's 17th season with 36 wins, a school record. It was his 422nd win at Villanova after 122 wins and back-to-back NCAA Tournaments in the last of his seven seasons at Hofstra.
After making it to the Final Four in 2009, the Wildcats had a six-season span when they made the NCAA Tournament five times - and never got past the first weekend.
That changed with their title run in 2016, before another loss in their second tournament game last season.
Then in this wild NCAA Tournament with AP Player of the Year Jalen Brunson and Final Four MVP Donte DiVencenzo, who scored 31 points in the finale, the Wildcats were never challenged late. They won all six of their tournament games by double figures.
April 3, 2018
SAN ANTONIO (AP) When Villanova was struggling with its shots in the first half, Donte DiVincenzo provided a wake-up call for the Wildcats.
When Michigan tried to make a move on Villanova in the second half, DiVincenzo put down the uprising with 11 straight points and a wink toward the sideline.
The Wildcats' sixth-man scored a career-high 31 points and won most outstanding player of the Final Four as Villanova beat Michigan 79-62 on Monday night for its second NCAA Tournament championship in three seasons.
DiVincenzo, who was just a cheerleader for Villanova during that championship run in the 2015-16 season, had the first 30-point effort in a title game since Miles Simon did it for Arizona against Kentucky in 1997.
The redshirt sophomore from Delaware broke his foot early in his freshman season and was limited to eight games and a medical redshirt.
Against Michigan, DiVincenzo was the guy. He had 16 points on an assortment of drives and mid-range shots in the first half as Villanova started 1 for 8 from 3-point range.
The Wildcats' offense, the best in the country with shooters all over the floor, perked up late and surged to nine-point halftime lead. The advantage quickly bulged to double-digits in the second half. Michigan had whittled it down 12 with about nine minutes left when DiVincenzo hit 3 from up top. The next time down he let another one fly - why not? - and after it swished through he looked toward the sideline and gave a wink.
DiVincenzo finished 10-for-15 from the field, with five rebounds, three assists and two blocked shots. He had the highest scoring game for any single player against Michigan's stingy defense this season and became the sixth player in the last 40 years with a 30-point NCAA championship game.
******************
Michigan unable to counter Villanova in title game defeat
April 3, 2018
SAN ANTONIO (AP) One by one, Michigan's starters trudged to the bench in succession while the final minutes of the NCAA Tournament championship game ticked away.
The Wolverines had all tried to stop Donte DiVincenzo, and they had all failed as he delivered the highest scoring performance all season by a Michigan opponent in Villanova's 79-62 win.
Yet the Wolverines' inability to counter with points of their own was just as costly.
Charles Matthews, Michigan's second-leading scorer, managed only six points on 3-for-9 shooting. The Wolverines got no points in 22 minutes from Duncan Robinson, their fourth-leading scorer.
Zavier Simpson needed a few late buckets to finish with 10 total points in the two Final Four games, and the Wolverines' top playmaker had just two assists. Michigan had only six total assists on 24 field goals.
Even worse, the Wolverines' entire bench went a combined 3 for 12 while contributing only seven points - or 24 fewer than DiVincenzo, the Wildcats' extraordinary reserve.
Michigan went a paltry 3 for 23 on 3-pointers, with only Moe Wagner and Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman finding the net. The Wolverines missed 59 of their 73 3-point attempts over the final three games of the NCAA Tournament, and this time they couldn't make up for it.
For the second time under coach John Beilein, Michigan couldn't find a defensive answer for a reserve on college basketball's biggest stage. Luke Hancock scored 22 points for Louisville during its victory over the Wolverines in the 2013 title game.
The Wolverines were an underdog in this matchup at the Alamodome, but they got off to an encouraging start. For the first 10 minutes at the Alamodome, Michigan had an answer for everything Villanova had done so well on its roll through the season as likely the best team in the sport.
Michigan played smart, aggressive perimeter defense against Villanova's outside shooters, preventing the Wildcats from using a barrage of 3-pointers to jump ahead, as they did against Kansas two days earlier. The Wolverines' defense was athletic and flexible enough to get a hand in most shooters' faces, and the difference in Villanova's offensive flow was dramatic.
Moe Wagner's 25-point, 14-rebound performance against Loyola-Chicago two days earlier propelled the Wolverines into the championship game, and the German big man got off to another outstanding start against the Wildcats. Wagner slipped inside for a layup to put Michigan up 21-14 midway through the first half, and the Wolverines looked good.
And then it all fell apart.
Michigan didn't score again for the next 5:13, missing seven consecutive shots. DiVincenzo got rolling with a series of buckets, and his teammates leaped to a nine-point lead at halftime.
*********************
Villanova's Wright in select company with 2nd NCAA title
April 3, 2018
SAN ANTONIO (AP) Not all too long ago, Jay Wright was still one of those many standout coaches without a national championship despite repeated winning seasons and appearances in the NCAA Tournament.
Less than two years and a Texas two-step of titles later, the sharp-dressed Villanova coach is now in very select company.
With the Wildcats' 79-62 win over Michigan in the Alamodome on Monday night, Wright joined Duke's Mike Krzyzewski and North Carolina's Roy Williams as the only active coaches with multiple NCAA titles. He is the 14th coach overall with more than one championship, a list topped by John Wooden's 10 at UCLA.
Villanova waited 31 years to win another championship after getting its first with coach Rollie Massimino in 1985.
Wright and the Wildcats didn't have to wait very long at all to add to that total. Only two days shy of the second anniversary of the title they won about 200 miles away in Houston, they were cutting down the nets again.
''I never dreamt of this,'' Wright said.
The Wildcats wrapped up Wright's 17th season with 36 wins, a school record. It was his 422nd win at Villanova after 122 wins and back-to-back NCAA Tournaments in the last of his seven seasons at Hofstra.
After making it to the Final Four in 2009, the Wildcats had a six-season span when they made the NCAA Tournament five times - and never got past the first weekend.
That changed with their title run in 2016, before another loss in their second tournament game last season.
Then in this wild NCAA Tournament with AP Player of the Year Jalen Brunson and Final Four MVP Donte DiVencenzo, who scored 31 points in the finale, the Wildcats were never challenged late. They won all six of their tournament games by double figures.
