March 8, 2012
Box Score
NEW YORK, N.Y. - One night after displaying its own brand of stifling defense in a win over Rutgers, Villanova found itself on the opposite end of a superior clampdown. In this case, that pressure helped the University of South Florida defeat Villanova 56-47 in the second round of the BIG EAST Tournament presented by American Eagle Outfitters.
Mouphtaou Yarou scored 20 points to pace the Wildcats. Anthony Collins was high scorer for the Bulls (17 points), who advance to meet Notre Dame in Thursday night's quarterfinals. USF is 20-12 overall while the Wildcats are 13-19.
"I thought South Florida's defense was outstanding.," said VU head coach Jay Wright. "That's not a surprise to anyone that's seen them this year. I know they're going to do damage in the NCAA Tournament because they play a style that is very, very difficult to play against."
Sparked by Victor Rudd, Jr., USF grabbed a firm hold of the lead early, scoring 10 of the game's first 12 points. Rudd accounted for eight of those points, including a thundering slam dunk that prompted Wright to signal for a timeout with 16:25 left in the half.
The rest of the period featured a deliberate pace and plenty of gritty defense. USF constructed a 21-8 lead as the Wildcats were able to convert just three of their first 17 field goal attempts.
The offensive bright spot for VU was Yarou, who scored eight points on 3-of-4 shooting from the field before heading the sidelines with his second foul.
The Bulls held a 27-17 edge at intermission on the strength of a defense that limited Villanova to 5-of-25 shooting from the field (.200).
Villanova narrowed the gap to eight points twice in the opening minutes of the second half only to see USF hold firm. A Rudd basket pushed the Bulls margin to 35-23 with 15:20 on the clock in regulation.
"We were down 10 at halftime, and down 10 to them is like 20, 25 to somebody else because of the way they control the tempo and the way Collins just controls the game," stated Wright. "He was just incredible. We didn't have an answer for him. We know they're going to keep the ball in his hands, and he was outstanding."
Villanova's first 3-point goal of the night, from James Bell, and a circus basket on a drive by Maalik Wayns pulled the 'Cats to within 37-30 with 11:54 on the second half clock.
The closest the Wildcats would get was when they trailed by six, 40-34 with 6:59 to go.
Though the 'Cats were getting stops, adding points continued to be an uphill fight. A Collins basket with 2:06 to play pushed the USF advantage to 46-35.
The Bulls then converted their free throws in the final minutes to post the 56-47 victory.
