Nova Report
Finally, the Villanova Wildcats take the floor to battle the St.Mary?s Gaels at 7:20 pm eastern in Hartford, Ct. Nova is -4/130 in this South Region tilt.
As every Nova and Gael fans know, St.Mary?s did a number on the third seeded Cats in 2009. The draw this year brought shivers down Wildcat fans spines. But, it?s 10 years later. The Gael?s claim to fame this year was knocking off then #1 Gonzaga in their Conference Tournament to get their ticket punched. They play at probably the slowest pace in the tournament, they defend the 3 with passion, make most of their shots inside the paint but shoot 41% when they do take 3?s. Their team is very smart. They have a guard and forward who get most of their points and a 6?10? big who has been a force lately. To sum it up, they are just like Nova.
They have a brilliant Coach so it will be interesting to see his game plan. My guess is he plays the same way they have all year...methodical with few turnovers. For the Wildcats, it will be the Paschall/Booth show. Hopefully, Bey, Gillespie and Samuels are all ?on? to make the Gaels go out and guard 5 players. Nova has an edge in experience and better athletes overall. St. Mary?s may be a better overall team. It will come down to who executes the best as these clubs are very close in talent.
Early money has poured in on the Gaels, we?ll see if that continues. Nova Nation is nervous about this matchup but so is the St.Mary?s contingent. Their Coach was NOT pleased with drawing Villanova. My POD will be Nova+1/Under 135. However, I will be taking the Cats-4, also. To me, this looks like a hard fought 7-9 point Villanova victory.