Jan. 9, 2010
Recap | Box Score | Quotes | Photo Gallery 
PAVILION WINNING STREAK
Villanova's win over Marquette this afternoon extended its Pavilion winning streak to 35 games. The streak began with a 102-87 win over then-No. 20 Notre Dame (102-87) on January 17, 2007. The last loss in the building was a 73-65 defeat at the hands of DePaul on January 6, 2007. The Wildcats have also won 15 straight BIG EAST games in the Pavilion and are 86-12 (.878) at their on-campus home under ninth-year head coach Jay Wright.
SERIES WITH MARQUETTE
Today's game was the second meeting between Villanova and Marquette in the past week. Last Saturday in Milwaukee, the Wildcats pulled out a late 74-72 victory in a game where the teams were not separated by more than four points in the last 29 minutes of the contest. There have been five head-to-head matchups between Villanova and the Golden Eagles since the start of last season, with the Wildcats winning the four most recent games between the two teams. Villanova is 5-3 against Marquette since the Golden Eagles joined the BIG EAST Conference and 10-6 against Marquette all-time.
BIG EAST PLAY
Villanova has won its first three BIG EAST games of the season for the first time since starting conference play 5-0 back in 2002-03. The Wildcats finished that season with an 8-8 league record and a 15-16 overall mark.
SECOND HALF TURNAROUND
After Villanova opened up a 52-30 lead in the game with 13:23 remaining, Marquette went on a series of runs to get back into the contest. The Golden Eagles went on a 20-7 surge to cut the deficit to 59-50 with 8:34 left. Marquette finished that spurt by scoring 10 of 12 points to get the score back into a single-digit margin.
A few minutes later, the Golden Eagles used a second 10-2 run to turn a 64-53 Villanova lead into a 66-63 margin with 5:16 remaining. Marquette scored those 10 points in a span of just 1:52 before the score remained close over the closing minutes.
The 57 points scored by Marquette in the second half were the most allowed in a half by Villanova since Providence also scored 57 in the second half against the Wildcats last season on February 4, 2009. Villanova won that game, 94-91.
THREE POINT STORY
Marquette entered the game leading the BIG EAST Conference in both three-point field goal percentage and number of made three-pointers per game. In the first half of this afternoon's contest, the Golden Eagles hit just 2-of-8 (25.0%) from long distance. The second half was a different story, as Marquette went 9-of-15 (60.0%) from deep to cut what had been a 22-point Villanova lead in the middle of the period to a two-point final margin.
HOT SHOOTING CONTINUES FOR VILLANOVA
For the fourth time in the last five games, the Wildcats shot better than 50 percent from the field. Villanova hit on 57.1 percent (28-of-49) in today's game, including 52 percent (13-of-25) in the first half and 62.5 percent (15-of-24) in the second half. Villanova also hit 7-of-15 (46.7%) three-pointers in the game, with junior guard Corey Stokes going 4-of-8 from long range.
NOT LIKE LAST WEEK
When Villanova and Marquette played one week ago at the Bradley Center, the score was close throughout. The teams were never separated by more than four points in the final 29 minutes of the contest and it was a one-possession game for 30 of the 40 minutes on the day. This afternoon's game did not start out that way, as Villanova built a 31-19 cushion at halftime and pushed their lead to as many as 22 points in the second half before a furious comeback bid by the Golden Eagles.
FIVE IN DOUBLE FIGURES
Junior guard Corey Stokes led a balanced scoring effort in today's game with 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting, including 4-of-8 three-pointers. He was one of five Villanova players to reach double figures and was joined by senior guard Scottie Reynolds (15 points), junior forward Antonio Pena and junior guard Corey Fisher (11 points), as well as senior guard Reggie Redding (10 points). Reynolds scored 10 of his 15 points in the last 7:22 of the game.
NEXT UP
It will be a quick turnaround for Villanova from this afternoon's game, as the team heads on the road for a Big Monday matchup against Louisville. Monday night's game at Freedom Hall will be televised live on ESPN beginning at 7 p.m.
