Wildcats ride three-point barrage to victory

The game of basketball can be a little crazy sometimes. Just ask Villanova.

When the Wildcats won at Creighton on Jan. 2, they were a middling 6 of 18 from three-point range but connected on an unheard of 28-of-32 attempts - or 87.5 percent - from inside the arc.

So when the Bluejays made the trip Wednesday night to the Pavilion, of course Villanova seemingly couldn't miss from long distance. The third-ranked Cats shot 55.2 percent from deep, finished with a season-high 16 three-balls, and ran away to an 83-58 Big East win.

The Wildcats (19-3, 9-1 Big East), who shot 40 percent on two-point tries this time, knocked down five threes for their first 15 points of the game, and swished their last seven field goals from beyond the three-point line. Their top three scorers - Kris Jenkins, Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart - combined for 11 treys.

It was a welcome sight for coach Jay Wright, who had talked in recent days about his team's not playing as smoothly as he would like at the offensive end.

"I think we've been out of sync a little bit," he said. "Usually if you're a good shooting team and not making shots, it's not just being off. It means you're not getting the right shots, you're just not in rhythm. I think we just moved the ball well, we took the right shots, we made the extra pass tonight."

Jenkins, who had a game-high 22 points, and Brunson (16 points) each made 4 of 6 from distance while Hart (13 points, nine rebounds) went 3 of 6. Phil Booth drilled two en route to a line of 10 points, six assists, and three steals.

With 6-foot-11 center Daniel Ochefu missing his second straight game with a concussion, backup Darryl Reynolds continued to fill in effectively. He pulled down a career-high 13 rebounds (six offensive) in 31 minutes after grabbing nine Sunday in a win over St. John's.

"The confidence is definitely growing with just being out there playing," said Reynolds, a 6-8 junior. "Getting to see different situations out on the floor, you get a little more comfortable in your decision-making and stuff like that."

Creighton (14-9, 5-5), the Big East leader in threes, averaging 8.3, entering the game, buried seven in the first half but only one after halftime. Maurice Watson Jr., a former star at Boys Latin, had three threes and scored 16 points with five assists.

Down to seven scholarship players because of the injury to Ochefu, the Wildcats trailed, 24-20, midway through the first half before outscoring Creighton, 25-8, in the closing eight minutes to take a 45-32 lead at the break.

They come out hot after halftime, connecting on six of their first seven attempts from the field for a 60-38 lead before showing off their three-point form once again. Villanova's last seven baskets all were three-pointers as the margin grew to 31, 83-52, with 2:49 to play on a three by Jenkins, the 16th and final one of the night for 'Nova.

"Josh Hart really hurt them the last game," Wright said. "I think they really focused on keeping him out of the lane, and that did open up some shots. But we drove the ball pretty well. Getting to the foul line in the first half was important, and I think that opened up some threes."

jjuliano@phillynews.com

@joejulesinq