Calm Before the Storm

Villanova had a nice two game breather in-between Big 5 games and before the start of the Big East schedule. The opponents were Delaware and Monmouth, and Nova won the games by a combined 59 points. The final game of 2010 will be against Temple, then Nova opens the new year and Big East season against Rutgers.

• Fisher Price delivered some early Christmas presents. He had back-to-back games with at least 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists.

• Maalik Wayns has gotten back on track from downtown, hitting 3 of 7 triples in his past two games, after shooting 0 for 11 in the previous four.

• Corey Stokes, on the other hand, has been on track from downtown all year long. Stokes drained five 3-pointers in a game for the third time this season against Monmouth, en route to 19 points.

• Following his recovery from injury, James Bell has had to play himself into game shape, and it looks like he is just about there. He scored 10 points against Delaware, then played a season-high 21 minutes against Monmouth. Now he just needs to hit a game-winning buzzer-beater so I can use the headline “Saved by the Bell”.

• Dallas Ouano recorded his first personal stat of his career; one steal against Monmouth. (We’ll ignore the turnover.)

• Monmouth’s individual scoring in the game against the Wildcats went as follows: 0, 0, 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. By that pattern, Monmouth would have needed just four more players to beat Villanova.

Nova Owns Monmouth

Final Score: #22 Villanova 71, Monmouth 48

Player of the Game: Corey Stokes: 18 pts, 7 reb, 3 ast

Recap: This one was over before it started. Villanova completely dominated the first half, jumping out to a 32 point lead (45-13). Monmouth actually won the second half by 9 points, but that was a result of Jay Wright showing class by stopping the pressing and sitting Reynolds and Cunningham for most of the second half.

I'm Stoked

Every time Corey Stokes shoots a three, the entire building expects it to go in. That's because it usually does. Allan Ray was the same way, but the scary thing is that Stokes is an even better shooter. Corey was red-hot early, but cooled off later in the game. He hit five longballs tonight to finish with 18 points.

Livin' at the Line

All great players get the free throw line consistently, and that's exactly what Scottie Reynolds has been doing. Scottie's shot wasn't falling, but he was 7-8 from the line to finish with 9 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals. He has made an impressive 23 of 25 free throws through four games this season.

Five on One

Dante Cunningham might as well have been playing by himself because no one on Monmouth could stop him. He had 19 and 7, including 6 offensive boards. He scored inside and also hit a few mid-range jumpers.

Mr. Perfect

Shane Clark was perfect from the field (4-4 Fg, 2-2 3pt) to score 10 points. This is his first game of the season in double figure scoring.

Bringing the Pena

Antonio Pena fouled out for the second straight game, once again versus an undersized, less talented team. It was a non-factor in tonight's game, but his foul trouble could come back to haunt Nova later in the season.

You Lack Discipline

Casiem Drummond was suspended for the game because of a minor disciplinary issue, but he will be at practice on Wednesday. It shouldn't be anything to worry about.

Links: Box Score, ESPN

Monmouth vs. Villanova

Villanova (#22 Coaches, #20 AP) will play the Monmouth Hawks tonight at 7:30 in the Pavilion. This is Villanova's second game of the Philly Hoop Group Classic, and will most likely be their easiest. Monmouth is 0-4 to start the season. Nova last played Monmouth in the first round of the 2006 NCAA Tounament. The game will not be televised, but Nova Nation All-Access will have the radio broadcast.

Links: VUhoops, VBTN, IBBW, Villanova, Monmouth, Let's Go Nova, ESPN