Ford: Jenkins and 'Nova are hottest of shots
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - There was just about a minute remaining in a hot-shooting first half of Thursday's Sweet 16 game between Villanova and Miami, and there was still some doubt as to which team's offense was going to stay hotter when Kris Jenkins settled the question.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - There was just about a minute remaining in a hot-shooting first half of Thursday's Sweet 16 game between Villanova and Miami, and there was still some doubt as to which team's offense was going to stay hotter when Kris Jenkins settled the question.
The Villanova junior had already made two three-pointers on three attempts in the half, but this next try - and for anyone else, that is what it was, a try - was from way beyond the three-point arc, way beyond the NBA three-point arc if there had been one, and way beyond what Jay Wright wants to see his players take.
The shot clock was almost gone, though, and Jenkins, his feet still within the large blue logo that surrounded midcourt, rose up with the same smooth stroke as usual. Miami, which had been down by 15 earlier in the half before cutting the margin to a single point, was desperately hoping for some momentum going into halftime. Jenkins took care of that.
"Strokes come and go, but when you're a shooter and have a shooter's mentality, every time you get the ball, you think it's going in," Jenkins said. "So, I think they're going in, but that comes from having confidence and being tough on defense. That's what fuels our offense."
The offense had plenty of fuel Thursday in dismantling Miami, the No. 3 seed in the South Regional, by a score of 92-69. The Hurricanes weren't all that bad offensively themselves. They shot 53.2 percent from the floor and made 10 of 17 three-pointers. But a few too many turnovers, not enough second shots, and absolutely no answer for the withering Villanova offense turned the game into a blowout.
Villanova advanced to the Elite Eight game on Saturday against No. 1 seed Kansas, with a trip to the Final Four on the line in that one. If the Wildcats play with anything close to the efficiency they have shown in three NCAA tournament wins so far, it wouldn't be a good idea to doubt them. The Wildcats are averaging just over 88 points per game and have shot 59.9 percent from the floor, including 53.2 percent on three-pointers. Those are numbers that simply don't happen during this tournament.
"They're just an incredible offensive team. We had no way to stop them," said Miami coach Jim Larranaga, who tried man-to-man, 2-3 zone, and 3-2 zone, but didn't get results with any of it. "We were playing at a high level [in the ACC], but nobody shot the three and stretched our defense like these guys did. They only took 15 threes. It seemed like they took 30 and made 25 of them. It seemed like every opportunity we had to get a stop . . . at the end of the first half it's a three-point game, they throw it out to Kris Jenkins and he buries a 35-footer like it's a layup."
As recently as a month ago, Jenkins was an important part of the rotation, but his contributions came in spurts. He was averaging 10.9 points a game before scoring 20 in a home win against Butler. Before that, he had scored 20 points just three times in the first 26 games. Starting with that game, and including the 10 games since, he has scored at least 20 six times and averaged 19.6 points during that span.
"About halfway through this season, he really found his stamina, found his stride," Wright said. "And he played defense and rebounded consistently, so we could keep him on the floor. He's a great scorer, and if you keep a great scorer on the floor for 35 minutes . . . he's going to get numbers. And he does have tremendous range. I don't like a couple of those that he took. He just believes he's making every shot and he can score from everywhere."
The five three-pointers he made against Miami on six attempts came from all over the arc, including the one from well beyond it. His 21 points were tied for team high with Ryan Arcidiacono, who dropped in 4 of 7 three-pointers himself.
"I joke with the guards and let them know, 'Whenever you are in trouble, when in doubt, I'll bail you out,' " said Jenkins, referring to that deep three at the end of the first half. "Hopefully, we don't have to take too many more of those. I just wanted to give us a chance. The shot clock was running down, and I shot the ball just like I shoot any other shot. That one just happened to go in."
So have a lot of the other ones. All the Wildcats are playing at a very high level right now, something that will be tested again on Saturday. But the way Jenkins is shooting and the way the rest of his game allows Wright to leave him on the court, he gives them more than just a chance at a late basket here and there.
He gives them a chance to something much bigger.
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