Poised Villanova outlasts Houston
Wildcats advance to national semifinals for 3rd time in 6 tourneys
Jermaine Samuels had 16 points and 10 rebounds as Villanova advanced to its third NCAA Final Four in the past six NCAA Tournaments with a grind-it-out 50-44 victory over Houston in the South Region final Saturday.
Caleb Daniels added 14 points for the Wildcats (30-7), and fifth-year senior Collin Gillespie’s only made field goal was a clutch shot late.
With both teams willing to limit possessions, the first spot for this year’s Final Four in New Orleans was settled in a game that was ugly to watch with all the missed shots.
Villanova shot 28.8 percent from the field (15-for-52). The Cougars were only slightly better at 29.8 percent (17-for-57), missing their last five shots and 10 of 11 overall, and they made only one of their 20 attempted 3-pointers.
TBC: John Knight III had 20 points as Southern Utah topped Portland 77-66 in the second round of The Basketball Classic.
Division II: Trevor Hudgins hit five 3-pointers and finished with 31 points to help fifth-seeded Northwest Missouri State beat Augusta 67-58 and the Bearcats became the first program in history to win three consecutive Division II national championships. Obituary: Joe Williams, who coached Artis Gilmore and tiny Jacksonville University to the 1970 NCAA Tournament title game against mighty UCLA, died Saturday. He was 88.