Villanova out to fix turnover problem
As Villanova enters the final month of the regular season, Jay Wright still is trying to check off items on his to-do list for his team, such as cutting down on turnovers, playing 40 minutes, and showing consistency on both ends of the court.
As Villanova enters the final month of the regular season, Jay Wright still is trying to check off items on his to-do list for his team, such as cutting down on turnovers, playing 40 minutes, and showing consistency on both ends of the court.
The Wildcats (22-2, 9-2 Big East), who are likely to move up from No. 4 when the Associated Press poll is released Monday afternoon, surrendered big hunks of leads in each half Saturday night before defeating St. John's, 92-79, at the Wells Fargo Center.
The Cats, who play their next game Tuesday night at the Pavilion against Georgetown, turned the ball over 23 times, leading to 33 points for the Red Storm. The numbers were 20 turnovers and 20 points off them in the teams' first meeting on Jan. 14.
In Big East play, 'Nova is minus-7 in turnovers, having committed 146 while turning over the opponent 139 times.
"There are going to be other teams that can do it to us, too," Wright said.
The coach said the Red Storm sped his team up and forced it to make sloppy passes.
"I think it's different with different guys," he said. "I think some guys are young and they get a lead and they think this pass isn't that big of a deal. I think older guys get too aggressive to go make a play on their own. I think we've got a lot of individual things going on there.
"That's why we're not a complete team yet. We've still got a lot of work to do."
The Wildcats led by 26 points in the first half and by 23 with just under three minutes to go, but the Red Storm cut the deficit to nine each time. After being held scoreless and missing their first 12 shots over the first 71/2 minutes, the Johnnies drained 52.7 percent of their attempts the rest of the game.
"We've just got to play 40 minutes," said Josh Hart, who scored a game-high 26 points for 'Nova. "It starts with me. It starts with Kris [Jenkins] and Darryl [Reynolds]. We've got to keep working and string together 40 minutes . . . being tougher and just playing harder."
After going 4 of 29 in his previous three games, Jenkins shot 4 of 10 and scored 15 points against St. John's. Wright brought Jenkins off the bench, starting Eric Paschall in his place, and said he wanted to "get his head clear and get him going."
"I thought he was great," Wright said. "That's exactly how we want him to play."
Redshirt freshman Donte DiVincenzo established his career high for points against St. John's for the second time this season, scoring 20.
After Tuesday's contest against Georgetown, the Hoyas' first visit to the Pavilion since Feb. 15, 2006, the Wildcats play four of their final six games on the road. Three will come in succession - Saturday at Xavier, next Monday at DePaul and Feb. 18 at Seton Hall.
The Musketeers and the Pirates certainly will have a score to settle. The Cats defeated both teams last month at the Pavilion by a combined 55 points. Forty minutes of focus at each venue is a must.
@joejulesinq