Return of Reynolds from injury inspires Wildcats in finale
WASHINGTON >> Jay Wright wasted no time getting Darryl Reynolds on the floor in Villanova’s 81-55 romp over Georgetown Saturday at the Verizon Center, even though the 6-9 senior forward from Lower Merion had missed the last five games with a rib injury.
Reynolds went into the game after Georgetown center Jessie Govan grabbed an offensive rebound on the Hoyas’ first possession in the game and turned the board into the first two of 11 second-chance points.
The return of Reynolds and the development of 6-10 freshman center Dylan Painter also allowed Wright to experiment a little bit with a lineup featuring both of his big men. It was the first time the two played on the floor at the same time. Wright liked what he saw. “I like it a lot, especially when Josh (Hart) is hitting threes,” Wright said.
Reynolds grabbed seven rebounds and made two steals in 27 minutes. Painter only played nine minutes and took one shot but he had an impact on a defensive effort that held the Hoyas to 36.7 percent overall and forced Georgetown into 20 turnovers, which led to 19 points for the Wildcats.
Although Villanova defeated St. John’s by double digits both times (70-57 and 92-79), the Red Storm forced the Wildcats into a total of 43 turnovers in the two meetings, 20 in New York and 23 at the Wells Fargo Center.
Villanova also won both regular-season meetings with the Hoyas. The Wildcats topped Georgetown at the Pavilion Feb. 7, 75-64.
*** The win over the Hoyas may have been a preview of Villanova’s firstround game in the Big East Tournament. The Hoyas are the ninth seed and take on eighth-seeded St. John’s in Wednesday’s tournament opener. The winner gets Villanova Thursday in the quarterfinals.
*** NOTES >> The Wildcats continue to light it up from two-point range. Villanova shot 54.8 percent (17for-31) from inside the arc against the Hoyas and are shooting 58.8 percent (554-for-942) from twopoint land for the season … Josh Hart continues to move up the scoring chart. His 21 points gives him 1,828 in his career. Hart ranks 11th and needs 38 points to pass Ed Pinckney and move into the top 10 … the win assures that Hart, Reynolds and fellow senior Kris Jenkins will leave having never lost more than five games in a single season.