Villanova Blows Past DePaul With Second Half Heater

Villanova Men’s Basketball poured on 50 points in the second half of their 76-57 road win over DePaul on Wednesday, March 4, making 64.3 percent of their shots in the second half as they snapped out of an early cold streak.

The Wildcats (23-7, 14-5 Big East) made just one shot in the first 6:49 of play, going 1-for-13 in the stretch. They also managed to force three turnovers and hauled down three offensive rebounds, preventing the Blue Demons’ from capitalizing on the freeze. Duke Brennan (15 points, 12 rebounds) helped Villanova outrebound DePaul despite a clear size disadvantage in the absence of starting wing Matt Hodge, ruled out for the season with an ACL tear.

Guard Tyler Perkins (20 points, six rebounds) also picked up slack on the glass. After trailing 18-10 the court tilted in Villanova’s favor, two Bryce Lindsay free throws sparking a 10-1 run that put them ahead. The Wildcats converted on 8 of 11 free throws in the first half (17 of 23 overall) — still a far cry from the Jay Wright era, but a much-needed boost for a team that struggled to make shots.

Villanova held down the pedal out of the half, two 7-0 runs pushing their lead to double digits at the U16 timeout. They forced DePaul point guard Layden Blocker into severe foul trouble, limiting him to just 17 minutes played and taking the motor out of the Blue Demons’ offense.

Starting in place of Hodge, sophomore wing Malachi Palmer scored all ten of his points in the second half, helping to power the comeback.

Villanova will host Xavier at 12 p.m. on Saturday, March 7 in their regular season finale.