What a '70s Show!!! - Villanova Wallops #21 West Virginia At Pavilion, 84-46

The Afros and leisure suits were out at the Pavilion last night, and the ESPN Classic crew opted to televise the game with 1979-era graphics. Even former long-time VU coach Rollie Massimino was there - but behind the bench, broadcasting the game, rather than in front of it, gesticulating to the officials. If there were any Main Line Rip Van Winkles out there, asleep after a quarter-century's nap, they could be forgiven for thinking they had just nodded off for a moment if they had come to the Pavilion last night. Accordingly, tonight's article will stay consistent with the theme:

On Wednesday night, Villanova took a giant step toward returning to the NCAA tournament, by walloping undefeated, #21 West Virginia, 84-46, in the Big East opener for both teams in "Turn Back the Clock Night" at the Pavilion. The Wildcats relied heavily on that one major post-1979 innovation, the three-point shot, in leveling the Mountaineers, connecting on 10 triples.

Villanova is now hotter than Studio 54 in its heyday, having won seven straight contests. The Wildcats are now 8-1 overall, 1-0 Big East. After experiencing a Three Mile Island-esque genuine meltdown, West Virginia dropped to 10-1 overall, 0-1 Big East.

Allan Ray hit the Mountaineers harder than Sugar Ray Leonard, dropping 26 points on 10-16 shooting, including five three-pointers. The most pleasant surprise came from Mike Nardi, who had been struggling with his shot all season. Nardi exploded for 18 points and canned four triples. Curtis Sumpter, ordinarily in the spotlight, took third place with "just" 13 points and seven rebounds. Randy Foye chipped in with 11 points and four assists. And Jason Fraser was a monster in the lane, pulling down nine boards and swatting three shots, in just 25 minutes of action. Finally, Kyle Lowry followed up his solid New Year's Eve debut with six points and six boards in just 19 minutes.

There really weren't any bright spots for West Virginia, but D'Or Fischer led the Mountaineers with 14 points.

The Wildcats' offensive statistics zoomed upwards as if it really WERE the era of sky-high inflation, as 'Nova hung 84 points on a Big East opponent, after a few days of hostile murmuring about Villanova's cupcake-laden December. The Wildcats shot 54% overall, and 42% from beyond the arc. It was an even more impressive feat in light of West Virginia's formidable defense. Prior to West Virginia's victory over fellow ranked team George Washington, the Mountaineers had yielded 55 or fewer points in their previous five games, including four occasions in which the opponents scored 48 or fewer.

West Virginia entered the night as one of just six undefeated teams remaining in Division I, with three of those coming from the Big East: aside from WVU- #9 Connecticut and Boston College, who played each other last night as well. But West Virginia's unblemished season record fell more swiftly than the Shah of Iran, as Villanova sprinted to a 36-16 lead at the 1:36 mark in the first half, culminating by an "and-one" from Sumpter. The Wildcats took a 38-18 advantage into the locker room and never looked back. The lead actually peaked at 41, when Baker Dunleavy scored in the final minute to give 'Nova a 84-43 lead.

It seemed only fitting that on 1979 night, West Virginia sank into a "malaise", to borrow a term President Jimmy Carter made famous in that era. The Mountaineers had made only 20% of their shots by halftime.

Villanova's defense was more tyrannical than J.R. Ewing, after a day when several oil gushers had run dry - and stingier than the Steel Curtain in Pittsburgh. WVU had a potent offense thus far this year, averaging over 76 points a game. The 46 points tonight, matches the fewest Villanova has ever allowed in Big East play, in a conference which coincidentally dates back to 1979. The previous low had been 48 surrendered against Pittsburgh in 1983, a game markedly lacking both a shot clock and a three-point shot. In 2003 and 2002, Georgetown and Connecticut, respectively, both scored exactly 46 points in VICTORIES over Villanova. And the 38 point differential also represented the largest victory margin ever for 'Nova over a Big East opponent. West Virginia finished the game shooting a pitiful 27% from the floor and 20% from beyond the arc, and the numbers would have been even worse if the Mountaineers hadn't scored a meaningless three in the final seconds. WVU had ten turnovers in the first half alone, leading to ten Villanova points - a damning statistic when one considers that WVU averaged fewer than 10 turnovers a game entering the contest.

As for the inside game, I doubt that even Darryl "Chocolate Thunder" Dawkins - whose famous backboard-shattering feat for the 76ers observed its silver anniversary just a couple of weeks ago - could have been effective in the paint for the Mountaineers tonight. Fraser had eight rebounds in the first half. And there were a lot of rebounds to get, as WVU was shooting just 22% nearly halfway through the second half.

On both ends of the court, the Mountaineers experienced an "energy crisis", of their own. At the same time, Villanova's performance continued to IMPROVE as the game went on, eventually reaching heights previously reserved solely for Barry Gibb's voice pitch.

Fortunately for Villanova, this game advanced their NCAA hopes considerably further, than it would have if the game had been played during the Carter administration. Back then, there were just 40 teams in the tournament, and a great regular-season performance did not mean as much without today's abundance of available at-large bids (there were just a handful then). Plus, the 2004-05 Wildcats don't have to worry about facing Magic Johnson's Michigan State or Larry Bird's Indiana State, who squared off in the 1979 national title game.

Worth noting: In 1979, Villanova meandered to a 15-13 record with the likes of Alex Bradley, Marty Caron, Tom Sienkiewicz, Rory Sparrow, and Aaron Howard. 'Nova was rebuilding, however, after an Elite Eight appearance the previous year. Jay Wright was a senior at Council Rock High School in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, playing point guard before leaving for Bucknell in the fall of 1979. And none of the current Wildcats had yet been born.

Around the 4 minute mark, the Pavilion crowd began chanting "Overrated". Undoubtedly, the outcome must have come as a profound shock to the WVU faithful. These have been some lean years for Mountaineer basketball. Before cracking the Top 25 this week, the Mountaineers hadn't been ranked since the conclusion of the 1997-98 season, when they finished ranked #23 after a Sweet 16 run and an upset victory over Temple. Although the Mountaineers haven't qualified for the NCAA tournament since that same year, 1998, they had generated a lot of under-the-radar buzz thanks to the early success. This was West Virginia's first 10-0 start since 1959-60, when Jerry West led the squad.

Looking back even further in history, Villanova now leads the all-time series against West Virginia, 19-14. The series actually dates back significantly further than 1979, going all the way back to 1955-56. As members of the Big East, Villanova now leads 10-5, since WVU left the Atlantic Ten in time for the 1995-96 season. WVU is now just 4-10 at Villanova. The Wildcats have done well in recent years, winning seven of the last ten contests.

Villanova will advance 25 years into the future as they prepare to clash with Notre Dame at South Bend, Indiana, on Saturday, in a game that will be televised in Philadelphia with normal graphics and presumably without Rollie's august presence.

Lowry Debuts as 2004 Ends, Wildcats Quell Quakers At Pavilion on New Year's Eve

Call it Jay Wright's New Year's Rockin' Eve. While Regis Philbin didn't grace the Pavilion with his presence, it was still a memorable end to the year. And on the day when the seemingly ageless Dick Clark remained on the DL, Kyle Lowry emerged from it. Lowry, who had been sidelined all year with a knee injury, came off the bench to score five points in 17 minutes - including an incredible layup while being fouled - helping Villanova roll to a 74-64 victory over the Penn Quakers at the Pavilion, where the Quakers have never gone home triumphant. Ironically, as 2004 came to an end, Lowry's Villanova career began - in a highly auspicious way.

It was a matinee game for the New Year's Eve crowd, with a 4 PM tipoff. Villanova also went this route two years ago, taking on Temple on New Year's Eve 2002 - and it worked, coming away with a 70-62 victory. It was Villanova's fifth-ever New Year's Eve game, and the Wildcats are now 4-1 on December 31 all-time.

Curtis Sumpter continued his powerful play. The junior forward rocked the house for 16 points and 13 boards, despite scuffling to a disastrous 3-11 shooting afternoon; his outstanding 9-10 performance from the foul line converted what could have been a disastrous day into just another full stat sheet for Sumpter. Randy Foye also struggled from the floor, going just 5-15, but still managed to score 15 points. Allan Ray also reached double figures with 14 points. Jason Fraser continued to contribute significantly, just missing a double-double by recording nine points and nine rebounds in just 18 minutes before fouling out. For Penn, Ibrahim Jaaber scored a game-high 22 points, with three other Quakers reaching double figures.

Success at the foul line was the key to the Wildcats' victory. Villanova went to the line a lot (38 attempts) and was very accurate (converting 28 of them, a formidable 74%). They also pummeled Penn on the glass, outrebounding the smaller Quakers by a 41-26 margin.

Villanova improved its record to 7-1 overall, and 2-1 in City Series competition. Unless Temple sweeps the Big Five (the Owls are currently 2-0 with games remaining against St. Joseph's and La Salle), Villanova can clinch at least a share of the Big Five title, by defeating St. Joseph's at the Palestra in January. It was sizzling 'Nova's sixth straight victory; the Wildcats have not lost since the Big Five Classic at the Palestra, when they fell to Temple on December 4. The Quakers dropped to 4-4 overall, 1-2 City Series. Rust may have played a role; the Quakers hadn't played since December 8, a very lengthy layoff.

Granted, it wasn't a typical Big Five game, and not just because it wasn't at the Palestra. These games, the really memorable ones, are the nailbiters that leave you marveling even years later about a last second shot that went in or not, and who shot it. This wasn't one of those games. Villanova never trailed in the contest, and while Penn made a spirited charge down the homestretch, there was a sense that the bigger and more talented Wildcats were not going to let this one slip away from them. After trading baskets in the early going, Villanova built a substantial, 36-25 lead by intermission, their largest lead of the half- and they were able to make it stand up. Villanova had 17 bench points and 7 second-chance points in the first half alone. And the Quakers, despite improved play, won the second half by just one point.

Villanova's lead peaked at 13 points, when Sumpter singlehandedly took over the game, scoring five straight points (a pair of free throws followed by a three-pointer) to increase 'Nova's lead to 52-39 with 11:05 remaining. The Quakers responded with a 12-4 run, making it interesting for a little while. Penn pulled to within 56-51 with 7:15 to go, after Jaaber stole the ball from Foye and laid it in.

Fortunately, Villanova counterattacked with a 7-0 run of its own, including five free throws. Just as quickly, the Quakers were back down 63-51 with just 5:38 to play and the Wildcats were firmly back in charge. Penn never drew closer than seven points away for the balance of the contest.

Villanova now leads the long series with its ancient rival by a margin of more than two to one, holding a commanding 35-17 advantage. The first game took place on January 7, 1922, in Villanova's second year of intercollegiate competition, with the Quakers winning 27-23. Surprisingly, the series then lay dormant for 34 years, until the Big Five was organized in the mid-1950s. The vast majority of these games, regardless of whom was formally the home team, have been at the Palestra; only in recent times has the game shifted elsewhere. This was only Penn's fifth visit to the Pavilion, and its first in the new millennium; the last game there was February 23, 1999, when a Howard Brown/John Celestand team kept its NCAA hopes (ultimately realized) alive with a hard-fought 73-63 victory.

Although Penn had won two of the last three games prior to this one, Villanova had dominated the series over the past generation. Since 1975, including today, Villanova has gone 21-5 against the Quakers and has also won seven of the last nine contests.

The Wildcats will open Big East play against West Virginia on January 5, on what is being billed as "Turn Back the Clock to the '70s Night". ESPN plans to broadcast the game with the graphics and overall tone of a 1979 broadcast, and former VU coach Rollie Massimino will call the game. It will complete a five-game Pavilion homestand for Villanova.