Feb. 28, 2006

Box Score

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - With its trademark offensive system on display throughout the entire game, Villanova (18-9, 9-7 Big East) never trailed after the opening two minutes and clinched the #8 seed in the Big East Tournament by defeating West Virginia (12-15, 4-12 Big East) 69-56 on Tuesday night at the West Virginia Coliseum.

The Wildcats entered the game ranked second in the nation in percentage of field goals with an assist, and tonight's game showcased what the team is capable of when playing its own style of basketball. Villanova shot 53 percent (28-of-53) from the field for the evening and assisted on 21 of 28 baskets in its fourth consecutive victory and seventh in the final 10 games of the regular season. Senior point guard Betsy McManus (Pearl River, N.Y.) led the way with seven assists, while two other had five helpers.

Senior forward Liad Suez-Karni (Even-Yehuda, Israel) scored 14 of her game-high 21 points in the first half, while senior guard Jenna Viani (Poughkeepsie, N.Y.) also reached double figures. Suez-Karni made four three-pointers and added six rebounds, five assists and three steals. Viani scored 11 of her 18 points in the second half.

The Wildcats had control of the game throughout the evening but finally put the score out of reach of the Mountaineers with seven unanswered points in a span of 2:05 in the second half. With Villanova leading 52-46 with 7:12 remaining, Viani hit consecutive three-pointers and senior center Kate Dessart Mager (Media, Pa.) hit a free throw to extend the lead to 59-46 with 5:07 left. West Virginia was forced to settle for trading points in the closing minutes, as the Wildcats lead bounced between 11-13 points the rest of the way. Dessart Mager finished with nine points, five assists, two blocks and a steal in 29 minutes.

Chakhia Cole led the Mountaineers with an 8-of-12 shooting effort for 21 points, while Olayinka Sanni had 14 points and a game-high eight rebounds off the bench. West Virginia had 11 offensive rebounds and a 34-25 edge on the boards, but could not make up for the sharp-shooting of Villanova, which made seven three-pointers for the night.

The Wildcats started the game strong behind a three-pointer from Suez-Karni and layups by Viani and junior forward Jackie Adamshick (Allentown, Pa.) that forged a quick 9-4 lead. Villanova would maintain a two- or three-possession lead for most of the opening period, before eventually going ahead 33-23 on a Suez-Karni three-pointer with 2:52 remaining before halftime.

The Mountaineers cut the deficit to 35-30 at the break and got within two points on three occasions in the final 20 minuets, but a 10-4 run by the Wildcats that featured three-pointers from Viani and Suez-Karni gave Villanova a 50-42 edge midway through the period.

The Wildcats have the rest of the week to prepare for the Big East Tournament, where they will open play as the #8 seed in the 12-team event. Villanova begins postseason play on Saturday at 2:00 p.m. against #9 seed Marquette, with the winner going on to face top-seeded Rutgers on Sunday at 2:00 p.m. The Wildcats defeated Marquette earlier this season by a 72-58 score at the Pavilion in the first-ever meeting between the teams.

NOTES: Villanova is 15-2 this season when scoring at least 60 points ... Tonight's victory was the fourth time this season that the team had at least 20 assists in a game ... The Wildcats are 4-0 in those games ... Villanova turned the ball over just five times in the game, and had no turnovers in the second half ... The Wildcats have won five straight games at West Virginia ... Villanova went 6-1 in February this season and is now 32-3 in the month over the past four seasons ... Suez-Karni scored at least 20 points for the eighth time this season, including the third time in her past four games ... The Wildcats finished the regular season in a four-way tie for sixth place in the conference standings ... The tiebreaker includes head-to-head records between the tied teams ... That system allowed Pittsburgh to garner the #6 seed, while University of South Florida was #7 and Marquette was #9 ... Villanova is 26-20 (.565) all-time in the Big East Tournament ... The team reached the semifinals last season after wins over Providence and Boston College.