#21 Villanova vs. DePaul

Score: Villanova 76, DePaul 69

Player of the Game: Antonio Pena, 17 points, 9 rebounds


Recap: Jay Wright switched up the starting lineup in tonight's game opting for Malcolm Grant and Antonio Pena instead of Reggie Redding and Corey Fisher. It didn't seem to work at first, as the Wildcats struggled immensely in the first half, trailing by 16 at one point. DePaul was hitting 3 pointer after 3 pointer and the calls weren't going Nova's way either. The Wildcats were able to cut the deficit to 9 at halftime. The second half was a completely different story. Nova came out energized and used a late 15-0 run to pull away and secure the victory. The comeback was fueled in a large part to Antonio Pena who had 14 second half points and 17 total. He may be Villanova's best offensive post player in years. He proved that he deserves that spot in the starting lineup and Jay Wright might leave him there after this performance. Scottie Reynolds had another great performance scoring 21 points, including a game clinching 3-pointer. He also dished out 3 assists. Dante Cunningham had his fourth double-double of the season with 14 points and 13 rebounds. The Wildcats out-rebounded DePaul 43-20. Malcolm Grant had a decent game in his first start with 7 points and 4 assists, but picked up quick fouls, limiting his playing time. Shane Clark had 7 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, but he had a rough night shooting the ball going 1-7 from the field and 0-3 from behind the arc. Corey Fisher and Reggie Redding only played 4 and 5 minutes each, and had virtually no impact on the game. Freshman Corey Stokes had one of his best games of the season with 7 points, 4 rebounds, and an assist. He played 25 minutes, and you could see that he was a lot more confident out there. He may start to play a larger factor the rest of the season. Dwayne Anderson had 1 point in 12 minutes. In his short time he pick up 3 personal fouls. Casiem Drummond made a brief appearance for 3 minutes in the first half, but he is not 100% healthy yet.

Next Game: Sat. Jan. 19, Noon at Syracuse on ESPN