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Ochefu leads top-ranked Villanova past St. John's, 73-63

After Villanova's Daniel Ochefu suffered a concussion in practice on Jan. 29, he didn't do anything on a basketball court for nine days and missed three games during that time. He returned to the lineup last Tuesday night following one practice after being cleared by doctors.

Villanova's Daniel Ochefu and teammates salute the student section after their 73-63 win over St. John's.
Villanova's Daniel Ochefu and teammates salute the student section after their 73-63 win over St. John's.Read moreCHARLES FOX / Staff Photographer

After Villanova's Daniel Ochefu suffered a concussion in practice on Jan. 29, he didn't do anything on a basketball court for nine days and missed three games during that time. He returned to the lineup last Tuesday night following one practice after being cleared by doctors.

But in his initial two games back, it's as if Ochefu never missed any time at all. On Saturday night, he established a career high with 25 points and pulled down nine rebounds to lift the top-ranked Wildcats to a 73-63 victory over pesky St. John's before a crowd of 18,052 at the Wells Fargo Center.

The Wildcats, with their fifth straight win, improved to 22-3 and 12-1 in the Big East.

Ochefu, a 6-foot-11 center, connected on 11 of 14 shots from the field in topping his previous high of 21 points, set twice, including last year at the same venue against the same opponent. That came on the heels of an 11-point, six-rebound, four-assist effort in his first game back, Tuesday at DePaul.

"I've been surprised, not by his play but by his stamina," Villanova coach Jay Wright said. "Going into the DePaul game, he literally didn't do anything for however long it was. He was literally laying in bed, practiced one day. The first day he was at practice, he looked fine. He looked like he never missed. That's pretty impressive."

Ochefu's highlight play of the night came early in the second half, when he stole the ball at the mid-court line, then dribbled all the way to the hoop and dunked.

He credited his teammates for his shooting.

"My teammates have done an extremely good job of finding me for layups and dunks, so it's not really a concern for us offensively," he said. "We have to work on our defense and rebounding. Myself, Arch [guard Ryan Arcidiacono] have to make sure our young guys know that's the key to our success."

For the second time in 14 days, the Wildcats struggled to put away the Red Storm (7-19, 0-13), who lost their 16th straight game. St. John's did not look like a team that had lost its previous two games by a total of 48 points.

"They had a good game plan, a little different than when they played us the last time," Wright said. "They pressed us more last time, this time they kept us more in front of them. They really worked their three-point shots, made the extra passes. Last time they drove the ball on us more."

St. John's knocked down 10 three-point baskets, the most by a Big East opponent against Villanova all season. The Wildcats missed all 11 of their shots from beyond the arc in the first half and finished 4 of 19, with Arcidiacono swishing three en route to 13 points. The Cats made up for it at the free-throw line, outscoring the visitors, 23-5.

Villanova, which led by 28-27 at the half, opened up some daylight with an 11-3 run in which it held the Red Storm to one field goal in a 61/2-minute stretch. Ochefu touched off the spurt with a layup and ended it with a free throw for a 52-40 lead with just under 12 minutes to play.

Arcidiacono's layup off a steal extended the 'Nova advantage to 15, 64-49, with 5 minutes, 36 seconds remaining. The Red Storm closed the gap to eight twice, including at 66-58 on Malik Ellison's three-pointer with 2:55 left, but the Wildcats closed out the win.

Amar Alibegovic led St. John's with 18 points.

jjuliano@phillynews.com

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