Jan. 11, 2012
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PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - Syracuse, the nation's top-ranked team, used a 20-2 surge in a seven minute stretch of the first half to build a double-digit lead and went on to defeat Villanova 79-66 in a BIG EAST contest played here at the Wells Fargo Center on Wednesday night.
Mouphtaou Yarou, Dominic Cheek and JayVaughn Pinkston each scored 12 points for the Wildcats, who are now 8-9 overall, 1-4 in the BIG EAST. Syracuse improved to 18-0 on the season, one win away from matching the school's all-time best start to a season.
"I thought their zone did a great job on Maalik Wayns and Dominic Cheek," stated Villanova head coach Jay Wright. "They did a real good job on our perimeter scorers, extending their zone. We made little mistakes and they did a great job of capitalizing on them in the first half. You can't make those kinds of mistakes against a great team like Syracuse."
The two teams were even at the mid-point of the first half, with the score tied at 14 apiece with 10:32 left. The Wildcats' offense in the early going was supplied on the inside by Mouphtaou Yarou and from the outside by Ty Johnson, who sank a pair of triples to help VU stay close. That allowed Villanova to hold its own.
But the Orange kept Villanova in check over the next minutes and got its own attack going. Much of the damage was done by reserves Dion Waiters, who ended the night with a game-high 20 points, and James Southerland (15 points).
"To me, that's what makes them a special team," Wright said. "You could argue that Waiters, (C.J.) and Southerland are good enough to start. What you can't argue is how unselfish they are. They play their roles and bring great energy."
Villanova shaved the gap to 12 points late in the half before another Syracuse run was capped by a 3-point toss from just over half-court that banked in for senior Scoop Jardine as the horn sounded on the first half. The count was 43-24 at the break in favor of the Orange.
The Wildcats closed the gap to 11 points midway through the second half but never were able to get the deficit into single digits. Syracuse posted a 79-66 triumph.
"We didn't quit, which is a positive," stated Wright. "But as we've said before, if that's your positive, it's not a good sign."
"We played so well in the first half," stated SU coach Jim Boeheim, "that we had a margin for error, basically."
Villanova connected on just 20-of-61 (.328) from the field while SU sank 28-of-63 (.444). The Orange owned a 44-41 rebounding advantage and a 17-9 edge in fast-break points.
The Wildcats return to action on Saturday afternoon at Cincinnati (Noon/PHL 17/ESPN 950 Radio).
