Villanova uses 3-pointers to oust West Virginia
BOSTON — Chalk it up to Villanova’s 3-point accuracy. And an ability to withstand the intense pressure of a quality opponent, West Virginia.
And so the top-seeded Wildcats are on the doorstep of another Final Four, two seasons after winning a national championship.
“What a game, man,” Villanova coach Jay Wright said after his team’s 90-78 victory Friday night which earned it a second trip to the regional finals in three seasons. “I hope that looked as good as it did from the bench. That was the most physically demanding, mentally draining 40 minutes we’ve played in a long time. “They are so relentless.”
Villanova’s next obstacle is Texas Tech on Sunday in the East Regional final. Tech advanced with a 78-65 victory over Purdue on Friday night.
Jalen Brunson led Villanova with 27 points and Omari Spellman had 18 with eight rebounds as Villanova overcame the West Virginia press by hitting 13 of 24 shots from 3-point range.
Daxter Miles had 16 points to lead West Virginia. Jevon Carter and Sagaba Konate added 12 each.
Villanova (33-4) has now made 47 3-pointers in the tournament. The outside barrage helped the Wildcats overcome 16 turnovers.
The Mountaineers (26-11) stayed close throughout, ramping up the pressure and making Villanova play faster than it wanted to early. But foul trouble in the second half was too much for West Virginia to overcome.
Carter was called for his third with 17:33 left. That was followed by Miles being whistled for his third and fourth fouls over a two minute stretch that sent him to the bench with 15 minutes remaining.
Coach Bob Huggins said the fouls “absolutely” stifled the Mountaineers’ ability to keep pressure on Villanova.
“When the whistle keeps blowing it really takes away your aggression,” he said.
West Virginia adjusted for a while, taking advantage of a more than three-minute Villanova scoring drought to take a 60-54 edge with just over 11 minutes left.
But Villanova heated up again. Its 11-point run was capped by a thunderous block and dunk on the other end by Spellman that pushed the Wildcats back in front 65-60.
The Wildcats kept the momentum going, stretching the lead to 76-66 on a 3-pointer by Brunson.
“The deeper you go, the better the teams are going to be,” Brunson said. “For us, most importantly, nothing changes no matter who we play, where we play, what time we play. We play every game like it’s our last.”