Nova Hexes Drexel With Defense

Villanova played what Jay Wright considered the team's "best defensive game of the year" in a 77-58 win over the Drexel Dragons at the Pavilion, the team's thirty-second consecutive victory at the on-campus arena. Drexel did not score until the 10:19 mark in the first half, and their top two scorers, Jamie Harris and Gerald Colds, were held scoreless.

Antonio Pena led the Wildcats with 19 points and 11 rebounds for his fourth double-double of the season. Drexel could not stop him inside and resorted to the hack-a-Pena strategy. It failed to work, as he made 11 of 16 from the stripe.

Scottie Reynolds had his most balanced game of the season with 14 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, and a steal.

Taylor King had a big game off the bench with 16 points and 5 rebounds. He was feeling it from downtown, hitting 4 threes. He also had another Dwayne-Anderson-signature-dive-from-behind-steal, sending the crowd into a frenzy. Although, he made a curious statement after the game: "I heard the crowd a little bit and I like that. I don't feed off the crowd, though. I hear them but I am only playing for my coaches and teammates." I'd like to think he is playing for his fellow students and the fans as well.

Corey Fisher scored just 5 points, but he dished out 5 assists and had 4 steals.

Corey Stokes hit just 1 of 4 from behind the arc to score 7 points. He had another 5 rebounds, his season average, which is up from 3.4 last year.

Maurice Sutton did what he does best, blocking three more shots.

Maalik Wayns scored 7 points off the bench in 17 minutes.

Dominic Cheek had just 3 points in 20 minutes, but his defense has been very impressive. He had 4 rebounds, 2 blocks, and a steal, and with his long arms, he is a perfect fit at the top of Nova's full court press. High school stars usually step on campus ready to score, but they struggle to adjust to the college game defensively; however, Cheek has been an exception to that trend.

Isaiah Armwood and Russell Wooten chipped in 2 points each.

JayVaughn Pinkston has become the third 2010 recruit to commit to Villanova. He is a 6'6 forward from Bishop Loughlin in Brooklyn. He joins James Bell and Marcus Kennedy.