FAIRFIELD, Conn. – After leading by as many as 13 points on Sunday afternoon, Villanova fell to a Fairfield side that caught fire in the second half, resulting in a 74-71 loss inside Leo D. Mahoney Arena.
Four Villanova (5-5) players reached double-digit scoring led by a 16-point effort from
Denae Carter on 6-of-8 shooting from the field and going 4-for-6 from the foul line, adding a team-high eight rebounds and three assists. She was one point shy of matching her career high for scoring. The Wildcats had a 10-point lead at the break, but Fairfield (6-2) held a 41-28 advantage through the second half to get the comeback.
Villanova took its largest lead of the first quarter with an 8-0 run on jumpers from
Lara Edmanson,
Maddie Webber and Carter to take an 8-3 advantage. Fairfield regained control to lead by as many as three points with a long ball from Kendall McGruder to make it 15-12 Stags with just over 5 minutes to play in the frame. The Wildcats outscored Fairfield 7-3 down the stretch with a pair of
Jasmine Bascoe free throws late putting Villanova up 23-21 after the first. Those 23 points match a season-high in the first quarter for the group in this campaign.
The 'Cats took on another 8-0 run early in the second capped by a
Jaliyah Green driving layup that forced Fairfield to call a timeout nearly three minutes into the frame with Villanova up 31-24. A Bascoe three at the 2:45 mark sparked another Blue and White run. Bascoe found Carter inside on a long toss into the paint that Carter took to the hoop for a seven-point Villanova lead, 43-30. Fairfield ended the half with a Janelle Brown layup and a Meghan Andersen free throw to leave the Wildcats ahead 43-33 at the break.
Villanova shot 68-percent from the field in the first half, going 17-of-25 while also holding a narrow 15-12 lead on the boards. Bascoe and Edmanson led the team at that point with 11 and 10 points, respectively.
Fairfield clawed its way back into the contest throughout the opening portion of the third, using back-to-back Meghan Andersen layups and a Brown three-pointer to make it a 47-43 Wildcat lead with 5:06 to play in the frame.
Kaitlyn Orihel and Green drained a pair of looks from beyond the arc to build up a 10-point lead, but Villanova went without a field goal in the final 4:12 of the frame, allowing Fairfield to make it a two-point game heading into the fourth, 56-54.
A five-point Wildcat run kept the Stags at bay to open the final stanza before another field goal drought ensued for the 'Cats. Fairfield picked up an 11-1 spurt over 4:42 of game play to take a 69-66 lead that it would not give up. Bascoe went to the foul line and hit both of her chances for get within one, 69-68 with a minute left. In the final seconds, Webber connected on a dead-on three that forced Fairfield to call a timeout, leading 72-71. Anderson hit two free throws to put the game away with a last-second layup from Bascoe being waved off as time expired.
Andersen led Fairfield with 22 points and seven rebounds.
The short road swing continues for Villanova this week as it heads to Delaware on Wednesday for a 7 p.m. tip-off against the Blue Hens.
