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ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Maalik Wayns scored a season-high 23 points and Villanova cruised to a 71-46 victory over UC Riverside on Thursday in the 76 Classic.
Darrun Hilliard and James Bell each had 12 points for the Wildcats (4-0), who used a 30-6 run to overwhelm the Highlanders.
That was a good start to this tournament for us, Villanova head coach Jay Wright said. We have struggled with quick guards at times and I just told Coach (Jim) Woolridge that they really did a good job with their game plan. I thought Mouph was really effective inside in the first half and Maalik kind of took over in the second half.
Villanova fell behind by six early but turned up the defensive pressure to hold the Highlanders scoreless for nearly seven minutes. Hilliard's three-pointer started a run of 16 unanswered points to put the Wildcats in front 28-14.
They did a good job of switching on ball screens early, Wright said. We talked about having to work harder getting over ball screens and switches.
BJ Shearry snapped the drought with a jumper at 2:21 for Riverside's lone points during the final 9:47 of the first half. The Wildcats led 32-16 at halftime and quickly pushed the advantage to 24 after the break.
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We did a little bit better job today with the lead than we have before, Wright said. We had a couple of games where we had a lead at halftime and came out and didnt really build on it. Today we came out at the start of the second half great. That really showed me something.
Villanova held UC Riverside to 32 percent shooting, including 3 for 17 from three.
I really thought the game didnt change on offense, but on defense, said Mophtaou Yarou, who had 11 points and 10 rebounds. I got a block and took a charge and my teammates did a good job of defending. Everyone did a good job of stepping up on defense.
The game was Villanova's first in California since 2003-04. The Wildcats continue the tournament against St. Louis on Friday at 2:30 p.m.