Nova Report
The 20-5 Villanova Wildcats are in Cincinnati to battle the Xavier Musketeers (13-12) at the Cintas Center. Tip is 6:30 pm eastern on FS1. Villanova is -4.5/151.5.
Xavier has a 11-4 record at the Cintas Center and has played competitively in their last 5 games. Last out they made 16 3’s on their way to a 96-88 win over Marquette. The Musketeers built their lead to 21 before collapsing defensively allowing Marquette to score 53 in the second half. However, they never let the lead get below 8.
They are lead by Tre Carroll, leading scorer in the Big East, at 18 ppg, 33.3% from 3, Jovan Milicevic 11.7 ppg, 42.6% from 3, Filip Borovicanin 10.1 ppg, Messina-Moore 10.7 ppg, 35% from 3, All Wright 8 ppg, 45% from 3 and Roddie Anderson 10.6 ppg 37.6% from 3. They have size but not much depth and love shooting the 3. Defense has been challenging at times. Amazingly, they had narrow losses to both UCONN and St John’s. So, you just never know what you’ll get with this team.
For the ‘Cats, they took down Creighton in Omaha 80-69 on Saturday. Duke Brennan and Tyler Perkins had stellar games offensively and defensively. Acaden Lewis ran the team from the point effortlessly. Lindsay continued his shooting slump. Askew’s shooting was off and he took too many shots. Hodge was off from 3 but took the ball to the rim strong. Palmer came off the bench and didn’t miss a shot. Their defense continues to improve. They still have work to do offensively. With UCONN up next, Nova must stay focused tonight as it will take at least two more wins to secure an NCAA bid. This is a game they should win. However, life on the road in the Big East isn’t easy.
Coach Pitino Jr. for Xavier will focus on both transition and interior defense. He’ll probably let his players shoot from 3 and see who has the hot hand. Carroll was just 3-10 vs Marquette so he is due to shoot better. For Nova, getting Xavier in foul trouble, shadowing Carroll and defending the perimeter will be key. Offensively, they’ll see if the pick and roll with Brennan is working and continue to crash the boards. And, as usual, they’ll take whatever open looks they get.
My belief is Xavier will come out confident and firing from deep. After making 16 3’s last game you can’t blame them. Repeating that performance is tough. Misses will allow Nova to get out in transition and have open shots. The Wildcats will emphasize rebounding and defense. I wouldn’t be surprised if they press a little to wear down Xavier. Just like in the Marquette game, the Musketeers will be a little lax on defense in the second half which should allow Villanova to take it to the rim and draw fouls. If the refs are fair and don’t pile fouls up predominantly on the ‘Cats, this will be a Villanova win.
Nova Pick: Villanova-4 (bought 1/2 point)
Nova Pick Record: 13-11-1