Xavier vs. Villanova: Game Recap

Xavier went into the half with a seven point lead over Villanova, only to have the Wildcats storm back to win a good game at Cintas Center, the final was 78-66. The Wildcats had great scoring balance as five Villanova players scored eight or more points.  Ryan Arcidiacono had himself a day as he tallied 15 points and added six assists.  Three major takeaways from Saturday's Big East matchup:

1. Villanova is tough to beat when they are shooting well

The Wildcats went 13 of 29 from deep Saturday which works out to be about 45%.  Villanova does a ton of things well and shooting is certainly one of those things.  The Wildcats can kill you if you give them open looks and Xavier did just that.  Kris Jenkins and Dylan Ennis both hit four three's, needless to say they were hot and the fire spread to the other members of Villanova's team.  Xavier shot about 50% from deep in the first half but cooled of considerably and shot south of 20% from deep in the second half which really sealed their fate.

2. Villanova bested Xavier in assists, turnovers and rebounds.

Xavier's MO this year has been assists, as they are ranked in the top ten in the country in that category.  So go the turnovers, so go the Musketeers.  Today they turned the ball over 14 times and only had 19 assists which was certainly an issue for the home team.  Villanova does not beat themselves which really makes them a tough team to beat, they had 20 assists and only 9 turnovers.

3. Ryan Arcidiacono led Villanova in the second half

Arcidiacono did not have a great first half as he only tallied three points.  He came out hot in the second half where he added an additional 12 points, many of which came from his ability to shoot from distance.  It was very clear he was the vocal leader of the Wildcats. A coach on the floor, really.  He led through example and it was just too much for Xavier to overcome.