Nova Report
The 0-1 Villanova Wildcats are on their campus to battle 1-1 Queens University (Charlotte) at 7:00 pm. TV is only on ESPN+. Nova is-17.5/151.5.
Queens beat D-3 Lynchburg 87-76 at home after losing a road game to Winthrop 81-74. They were picked to win the Atlantic Sun Conference and are led by their first team All Conference pick: 6’2” Chris Ashby. They excel on the offensive boards but are a bit sloppy with the ball. To date, they have shot an incredible 64% from 2 but just 20% from 3. They also have made 88% of their free throws. Ashby is averaging 16 ppg while Yoav Berman has tossed in 17 ppg. The rest of their starters illustrate a pretty well rounded scoring team: Mann 10 ppg, Watford 10 ppg and Parker 8.5 ppg. They are pretty much similar size wise to Villanova. They are stepping up in class and face a vocal Wildcat crowd tonight.
Villanova lost a gritty game to #8 BYU 71-66. Despite being down by 14, they fought back and took the lead by 1 with just over 6 minutes left. Unfortunately, a few bad turnovers and some cold shooting down the stretch hurt them. They didn’t shoot particularly well but outrebounded the taller and more athletic BYU Cougars. Coach Willard made some excellent moves but also a few head scratchers. Matt Hodge who hadn’t played a competitive game in 19 months was guarding a likely #1 NBA pick in AJ Dysbanta. Askew who hasn’t even practiced in 6 weeks due to a knee injury started and was in at the critical end of the game. However, his game plan dictated the pace and he actually benched a future pro player in Acaden Lewis who wasn’t performing. He went to his bench and put in Bryce Lindsay who knocked down 5 of 10 3’s on his way to 22 points. He also put in Jeffreys who put in 11 points. Duke Brennan proved to be an animal on the boards which was a pleasant surprise. However, Nova shot just 53% from the FT line.
Tonight, the Cats should have a much easier time scoring and rebounding vs. Queens. Acaden Lewis should show marked improvement and, hopefully, Askew sits on the bench. Hodge who is a 3 point specialist could have a big day now that he has a game under his belt. If they can turnover Queens, they should roll to an easy victory. HOWEVER, Nova in the past 3 years have started slow vs teams like this and struggled putting them away. Think Portland, Columbia and Drexel. New coach, new team. Let’s hope they play like an NCAA caliber team.
Nova Pick: Villanova-17 (buying hook)
Nova Pick Record:1-0