City Six Notebook: ‘Nova preps for Big East

Share

VILLANOVAOnly a few minutes after Villanova closed out its non-conference schedule with a 73-52 win over American on Thursday, Wildcats head coach Jay Wright turned his attention to the new chapter of the season thats about to open.

Now its on, Wright said. Well see what we can do with the big boys now.

The big boys he was referring to are the national powers that make up the Big East, which, at least until all of the reshuffling that will take place in 2013, remains arguably the premier basketball conference in Division I.

And for Villanova, which struggled to a 7-5 record in non-conference play, it will be a daunting test, one that begins Wednesday when the Cats visit Morgantown to take on West Virginia.

I embrace the challenge and dont think guys understand yet whats coming, said Wright. A lot of them have never played in the Big East yet. We all know weve played in tough environments but we havent been to West Virginia yet, we havent been to Pitt yet, we havent been to Syracuse yet, we havent been to UConn yet. I know they dont know and I know we have to go through that together.

The Pomeroy Ratings currently rank Villanova as the 10th best team in the league, behind Syracuse (13-0), Marquette (11-1), Georgetown (10-1), Louisville (12-0), UConn (10-1), West Virginia (9-3), Pitt (11-2), Cincinnati (9-3) and Seton Hall (11-1), while ahead of Notre Dame (8-5), Providence (11-2), Rutgers (7-5), South Florida (7-5), DePaul (9-3) and St. Johns (6-5).

Last year, after two straight fourth-place finishes in the ultra-competitive Big East, Villanova slipped to ninth place in the league due to a late-season slide. The Wildcats figure to be in the middle of the pack once again, but Wright is hopeful his team can surge higher in the standings and qualify for the programs eighth straight NCAA tournament berth.

Sometimes you have teams that play well in their non-conference schedule and when they get to the Big East they arent as good, Wright said. And sometimes you have teams that are a good fit for Big East games. Im hoping thats what we are.

One big reason Wright believes his teams can be a Big East contender is Maalik Wayns, the junior point guard who the Nova coach thinks can be one of the best players in the conference. Another is Mouphtaou Yarou, the junior forward who could be an inside force once he shakes off his nagging ankle injury. And, of course, the rest of his teams younger playerssome of whom have never before played in a Big East gameshould continue to improve as the season progresses.

Following Wednesdays trip to West Virginia, the Wildcats have another tough road gameat Marquetteon New Years Day, before coming home for winnable league contests against South Florida and DePaul. Thats followed by a Jan. 11 showdown vs. Syracuse at the Wells Fargo Center.

Were finding our way here, Wright said. I still believe we can be a good team. We just have to speed up the process.

Transfer of power
In Saint Josephs last winan 81-72 defeat of Coppin State on Wednesdayfour of the five Hawks starters scored in double figures.

According to head coach Phil Martelli, the only one that didntHalil Kanacevicwas the Hawks best player that night.

In the victory, which moved red-hot St. Joes to 9-3 on the season, Kanacevic finished with seven points, eight assists, eight rebounds and four blocks, while shooting a perfect 3 for 3 from the floor. Martelli also commended the forwards defense.

He does the small things defensively that you wonder who will make that particular play, Martelli said following the game. Other guys are young and not as confident in their abilities. Hes willing to be wrong defensively and thats OK.

At 6-foot-8 and 260 pounds, Kanacevic may look like a one-dimensional player that simply bangs in the paint. Instead, the transfer from Hofstra has been perhaps the teams most versatile player, playing as much on the perimeter as he does inside, where he has the ability to pass as well as a guard.

Im just out there to do whatever the team needs honestly, from the offensive end to the defensive end, Kanacevic said. If I need to grab rebounds, dish the ball, be in the right positionanything the team needs Im trying to do.

The sophomore forward put that kind of versatility on full display against Coppin State when he was on the giving end of some key alley oops to C.J. Aiken. For Kanacevic, who sat out last season due to transfer rules, its been something he was always eager to do.

Last year, while I was sitting out, I told them personally, I cant wait until next year when Im actually on the court and you just point up and I throw it up there, Kanacevic said. I definitely enjoy it. Im jumping up before they are because I know as soon as I throw it up, its gonna be a dunk and its gonna look ridiculous.

Milestones in Texas
Temples trip to Texas was a memorable one for at least two Owls.

Last Saturday, in a 77-65 loss to Texas, senior guard Ramone Moore scored his 1,000th career point. And two days later, in a 77-70 win at Rice, fellow senior guard Juan Fernandez accomplished the same feat.

Fernandez did it in style, scoring a season-high 23 points vs. Rice and shooting 5 for 7 from three-point range. Moore has been scoring in bunches all season and is currently averaging 17.5 points per game, the third highest total in the city.

Moore and Fernandez are the 47th and 48th players in Temples illustrious to reach the scoring milestone.

Back from Texas, the Owls (7-3) host Buffalo at the Liacouras Center on Wednesday and then make the short trip to take on Delaware on Friday.

Bernardini on fire
For much of this season, senior point guard Zack Rosen has carried the offensive load for Penn.

But in the past two games, hes gotten a whole lot of help from Tyler Bernardini.

Two weeks ago vs. UCLA, in Bernardinis first collegiate game in his home state of California, the senior swingman set his career-high with 29 points. After a long layoff, Bernardini followed that up with an even better effort Friday vs. Marist, setting a new career high with 30 points to lead Penn to an 84-71 win.

Bernardini, who struggled a bit to start the season, has made 16 of 23 three-point attempts over the past two games for the Quakers (6-6), who will spend their New Years in North Carolina, where they have games against Davidson (Dec. 29) and Duke (Jan. 1).

La Salle winning big
Off to an impressive 8-4 start, La Salle looks like it will certainly be a threat when the calendar flips to 2012 and Atlantic 10 play begins.

Some may think its an illusion considering the Explorers strength of schedule ranks 213th in the RPI and that the team got off to similarly good starts over the past two seasons before stumbling.

But heres one reason to believe this year may be different: On average, La Salle has scored 12 more points than the oppositionan impressive stat no matter who the opponent is.

Fresh off an 85-59 stomping of Central Connecticut State, the Explorers come home for four straight games at the Tom Gola Arena, starting with a clash against Boston University on Thursday.

Here come the Dragons
Drexel has also had a favorable schedule of late but theres no denying that the Dragons have been equally impressive.

Winners of four straight, Drexel (6-4) have upcoming home games against Fairfield on Wednesday and St. Francis (Pa.) on Saturday, before getting into the heart of Colonial Athletic Association play.

Drexel was preseason pick to win the competitive conference but lost its first league game earlier this month to Delaware.

Six in the City is a weekly notebook on the citys six Division I college basketball teams written by CSNPhilly.com contributor Dave Zeitlin. Email him at djzeitlin@gmail.com.

Contact Us