Villanova vs Seton Hall

Final Score: Villanova 72, Seton Hall 70

Player of the Game: Dwayne Anderson 13 pts, 8 reb, 3 ast, 3 stl, 1 blk



Recap: Dwayne Anderson played the game of his life tonight, and capped it off by hitting the game winning 3-pointer with 13 seconds left. Anderson got the first start of his career, and he proved that he was worthy with his performance tonight. This snaps the Wildcats' 5 game losing streak. The score was a little closer than I would have hoped for, but I'll take the win. Villanova got out to a quick start to go up by 10 early, but Seton Hall came back midway through the first half and and it was a close game from thereon out. Jay Wright made less substitutions tonight, leaving Fisher, Cunningham, Anderson, and Reynolds in for most of the game. I think this helped them to develop a rhythm both offensively and defensively. Villanova had a good defensive effort holding the Pirates to 39.3% from the field and 31.3% for three.

Dante Cunningham tied his career high with 21 points. He was aggressive going to the basket, and was an impressive 13-16 from the free throw line. He also had 5 rebounds and 2 blocks. Anderson was 3-6 for three to score his 13 points. Scottie Reynolds struggled shooting the ball early, but hit two big threes late in the game to finish with 10 points on 2-9 shooting. Corey Fisher had a good game with 13 points (3-5 3-pt) and 3 assists, but was 0-3 from the free throw line. Casiem Drummond and Antonio Pena both got into foul trouble, which limited their minutes. Drummond was effective in his 17 minutes, scoring 8 points and grabbing 5 rebounds. Pena had 5 rebounds, but failed to score in 12 minutes off the bench. They both need to learn to play aggressive defense, without committing fouls. Corey Stokes made 1 of 2 3-pointers to score 3 points off the bench. Reggie Redding added four points. Shane Clark was scoreless in 12 minutes off the bench. Malcolm Grant did not play tonight. I am now convinced that Jay Wright is benching Grant for some kind of disciplinary reason. It's the only logical explanation. I just wished Jay Wright would share that with the fans.

Villanova will travel down to Washington D.C. to play the sixth ranked Georgetown Hoyas on Monday night. They will be playing at the Verizon Center where Villanova is 6-0 all-time against Georgetown. If they can pull it off, this would be a huge win for the Wildcats, and would re-open the door for a possible NCAA tournament bid. Drummond will need to stay in the game to help contain 7'2 center Roy Hibbert.

Next Game: Monday Feb. 11, 7:00 at Georgetown