Villanova has momentum heading into tourney play

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After the promise of its regular season had been spoiled by injuries and player suspensions last year, Villanova made a surprising run in the Big East tournament and gave notice that it was a team on the rise.

If the No. 19 Wildcats win the whole thing this season, nobody will be wondering where they came from.

Riding a seven-game winning streak, Villanova will open the Big East tourney today against No. 22 Pittsburgh in a 2:30 p.m. quarterfinal game at Madison Square Garden in New York. The tournament final is Saturday.

"It's going to be really exciting," said 6-foot-8 sophomore forward Will Sheridan, who has stepped up as a starter after coming into the season expecting to play a backup role. "We're just going to be ready. We're a more mature team, and we have momentum."

The Wildcats ended the regular season 21-6 overall and 11-5 in the Big East. Tournament-tested Pittsburgh, which has played in four straight Big East title games, is 20-7 and 10-6.

On Feb. 20 at the Pavilion, Villanova handed the Panthers an 80-72 loss.

This is the first season since 1996-97 that Villanova has earned a first-round bye in the tournament.

"It's all fun, and it's always a challenge," said coach Jay Wright, whose team has been in every game except for a 15-point loss to Syracuse. "We have goals to be playing the best basketball we can play by the end of the season. We're going through a lot of uncharted territory together. We aren't going to act like we've been there before. But, having been in that many games, where you've been in different situations, where you find a way to win, it definitely helps your confidence."

It was in the Big East tournament last year that the Wildcats showed they were capable of having the kind of season they are enjoying now.

With all of their pieces in place (most notably 6-10 center Jason Fraser), they finally came together as a team and knocked off a pair of NCAA tournament-bound squads: Seton Hall and Providence.

The Wildcats, who lost a hard-fought game to eventual national champion Connecticut in the semifinals, 84-67, went on to win two outings in the NIT before finishing the season 18-17 overall (6-10 in the Big East).

All of Villanova's key players returned this season, and Wright added freshman guard Kyle Lowry. Lowry has been a spark off the bench after making a remarkable recovery from knee surgery in September. He is a hard-nosed player who has played in 17 of the last 18 games, missing one to serve a suspension after he threw a punch at a Kansas player.

Leading scorer Allan Ray (17.3 points per game), fellow guard Randy Foye and swingman Curtis Sumpter returned to establish themselves as perhaps the best threesome in the Big East. And with Sheridan and point guard Mike Nardi no longer first-year Wildcats, Villanova knew it had the pieces to have a big year.

In addition to defeating Pittsburgh, Villanova has registered impressive wins over other ranked teams, including West Virginia, Kansas and Boston College.

"We saw how if we play hard on defense every possession, we can play with anybody, and that's what happened last Big East tournament," said Sumpter, who is the team's second-leading scorer with 16.2 points per game and its leading rebounder with 7.4.

"When we were there last year, I think we shocked a lot of people," said Foye, who is averaging 14.5 points per game and can do it all. "One thing I can say is, we didn't shock ourselves."

Fraser, who was limited to 10 games before January last season after suffering a stress fracture in his left heel, also has had to deal with some injury problems this year.

He had been experiencing knee discomfort when he missed four games with a broken right hand. He returned on Jan. 29 and has been averaging about 19 minutes a game since then.

By the time of the Big East tournament last year, Fraser had played himself into game shape, and he opened some eyes by totaling 34 points and 16 rebounds against Providence and Connecticut.

Despite having to work through another injury ordeal, he said he is further ahead now than he was last March.

"I feel I'm better, actually," said Fraser, who has played in Villanova's last 12 games. "Last year, I didn't know how I would come through until the first game [of the Big East tournament]. Now I have a better feel for my body, and what I can and can't do. I'm confident, and I feel good about the Big East tournament coming up."

 

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Pitt wants revenge
Gets another shot at Villanova

The Big East just completed one of its most competitive regular seasons in its 26-year history. Five teams ranked in The Associated Press Top 25 will play today at Madison Square Garden in four Big East tournament quarterfinal games.










Two of them meet in one of the best early round matchups in the tournament's history at 2 p.m. today when No. 19 Villanova plays No. 22 Pitt.

"This league is incredible," Villanova coach Jay Wright said. "You get in the 4-5 game and you get Pittsburgh."

No. 7 Boston College, No. 12 Connecticut and No. 16 Syracuse also play quarterfinal games today. The five ranked teams competing in the Big East tournament are two more than any other conference can boast. If things break right this week, as many as seven Big East teams could make the NCAA tournament. Only once in the history of the conference has seven teams made the field. That was in 1991.

Pitt and Villanova are in, but NCAA seeding and pride are on the line today. The Panthers are trying to become just the second team in the history of the Big East to make it to five consecutive championship games. Syracuse did it from 1986-90.

Villanova is vying for its first championship game appearance since 1997.

"Our goal is to win it," Pitt senior forward Chevon Troutman said. "We want to show the league we're the best. We feel like we're the best team, but we just haven't been playing as well as we could have. I feel like we're going to go far. I feel like we're going to win the championship."

If the Panthers are going to match Syracuse's historic run, they'll have to play better than they did 18 days ago in Philadelphia, when Villanova beat them, 80-72. It's a game Pitt players remember with disdain for their failure to limit Villanova's offense. The 80 points allowed were the most by an opponent in regulation this season. West Virginia scored 83 in an overtime game.

"It's payback time," Pitt sophomore Antonio Graves said.

"We owe them," junior John DeGroat said.

Villanova is the archetypal team that has given Pitt loads of trouble this season. The Wildcats have a stable of outside shooters who can rain 3-pointers down on opponents. Allan Ray made five in the first meeting against Pitt, Mike Nardi and Curtis Sumpter had three apiece. Villanova was one of six Big East opponents to make 10 or more 3-pointers in a game against Pitt. The Wildcats were 12 for 23 from behind the 3-point arc.

"They're going to shoot 3s and make some," Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said. "They made some tough shots against us. They're going to shoot them from 25 feet. They have really good range. They had four guys who were shooting well that game. They're very hard to guard when they have four guys who are shooting well from the perimeter."

Sumpter, a 6-foot-7, 223-pound junior who can play inside and outside, poses some matchup problems for the Panthers. Troutman guarded him the last time without much success and got in foul trouble.

Troutman, Pitt's best defender, said he is confident he will have more success this time.

"I just have to guard him better than I did the last game," Troutman said. "I didn't see too much tape on him before the first game. I feel like I'll be better this game. I never really thought he was a hard person to guard until last time. I just feel like I was overplaying possessions and trying to make something happen."

Villanova, which hasn't lost since Feb. 12 to Syracuse, has won seven consecutive games. In addition to Pitt, Villanova beat Boston College and Georgetown during its streak.

The Panthers won their final two games on the road, and by their own and Wright's estimation, are playing some of their best basketball of the season.

"Pitt is playing great," Wright said. "They're playing much better than when they came here. They're sharing the ball. [Chris] Taft has it going. They looked great against Notre Dame. They're getting it in gear. They know it's getting down to crunch time. They see the prize in front of them and they're stepping up."