Villanova hands UConn a 68-60 defeat

Villanova tamed the UConn Huskies on Saturday afternoon, scoring a 68-60 win in their home dwelling of Finneran Pavilion.

The Huskies were doomed in the second half thanks to a poor shooting effort on the two primary levels. While they went 8-for-11 from the free throw line, their 8-for-27 mark from the field and 3-for-12 effort from the perimeter hindered them and spelled more significant troubles. ‘Nova didn’t fare much better from the perimeter in fairness, but their 8-for-13 mark on 2-point tries and 12-for-15 effort from the free throw line aided them greatly.

Jeremiah Robinson-Earl scintillated in the win, earning a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds. JRE also had two steals and just one turnover through 36 minutes of action, whilst shooting 6-for-11 from the field. Robinson-Earl was joined by Collin Gillespie, Justin Moore and Jermaine Samuels in double figures. The trio scored 20, 11 and 11 points respectively, giving the Cats 59 of their 68 points.

James Bouknight led UConn and both sides with 21 points. Bouknight struggled a bit from an efficiency standpoint, as did the rest of the Huskies in the second half of course. He did aggravate his elbow during the game, but was able to return to form and climb up in the point totals. Bouknight also had 10 rebounds to give him a double-double, but did have an ugly blemish: Five turnovers on the day, the most on either side. R.J. Cole was the only other Husky to get into double figures with 10 points. Tyrese Martin and Adama Sanogo came close with nine and eight respectively.

‘Nova still has a stranglehold on the Big East, with a two-game lead over Creighton in the loss column. The Wildcats will play red-hot St. John’s next, while UConn, 7-6 in Big East play now, is set to meet Georgetown on Tuesday.