Wildcats head to Oregon for PK Invitational

They face Iowa State in opener

RADNOR >> March Madness is four months away and it’s something young players have to experience firsthand to get a true sense of why that riveting time of the college basketball season is known by that moniker.

There are times, though, when teams get a little taste of what that mayhem is all about and this week is one of those opportunities for Villanova as it heads out to Portland, Oregon, to take part in the PK Invitational.

The Wildcats (2-2) will play three games in four days against some highlevel competition, starting with Iowa State Thursday afternoon (3:30, ESPN2) at the Moda Center.

It isn’t quite the same intensity as the Big East and NCAA tournaments but it does give the players, especially the newcomers, a taste of what’s to come in March.

“We all know, especially the older guys, that come March time, conference tournament time, there’s little amount of time for recovery between games so we just try to stay locked into each other, watch film and just doing what we do,” guard Caleb Daniels said after practice Tuesday. “This right now is the start of it. It’s early in the season so this will prepare us for what’s going to happen when February and March comes. I think it’s very good for all of us, especially the younger guys.”

First-year coach Kyle Neptune agreed with Daniels’ assessment.

“Our goal is to be the best team we can be by the end of the season and that includes being ready for these types of situations toward the end of the season,” Neptune said. “And anytime you go into a tournament where you have a good amount of games in a short amount of time you get used to that routine of playing back-toback days. You’re tired. You have to recover. You have to eat the right way. You have to rest up and you have to lock in and focus on a new team without the benefit of a couple of days to prepare. This is a great opportunity to practice that knowing that we’ll be in that situation later in the season.”

First up in the eightteam field that includes four ranked squads and two receiving votes are the undefeated Cyclones (3-0). The Wildcats are receiving votes in both major polls while Iowa State is receiving votes in the USA Today top 25. This is only the second meeting between the teams. The first was a 74-53 Villanova victory on Dec. 11, 1961 in what is now known as the Jake Nevin

Field House.

Iowa State leads the country in scoring defense (45.0), are sixth in field goal percentage defense (32.8) and tied for 28th in 3-point field goal defense (24.6). As usual, the Cylones are big, physical and get after you on the defensive end. They’ve forced 75 turnovers in their first three games.

“We’ll watch more scout film of them, but from what I’ve seen, they’re very good. “Daniels said. “We want to continue to be on the attack for 40 minutes and stay together offensively and defensive.”

The Wildcats get the winner or loser of Thursday’s first-round game between No. 1 North Carolina

(4-0) and Portland (22) either in the semifinals or the first round of consolations on Friday. The other half of the bracket is just as tough. No. 20 Connecticut (5-0) takes on Oregon (2-2), while No. 18 Alabama (4-0) faces No. 12 Michigan State (3-1), which knocked off Villanova last Friday night in East Lansing, 73-71.

After an off day Saturday, the tournament concludes Sunday with the championship and third-, fifth-and seventh-place games.

“It’s a great field,” Neptune said. “There are a lot of good teams out there. We have a young team. We have a lot of room for growth and we’re looking to get better every game.”