Villanova Breaks Down Season-Ending Run From Utah State

Villanova Men’s Basketball poured it on from three in the middle stages of their Round of 64 loss to Utah State on Friday, March 20, flipping a nine point deficit into a 48-38 lead. The Wildcats then endured 16-6 and 17-4 runs from the Aggies that put them in their own double digit hole, one they never recovered from.

Villanova led 73-71 with 3:55 to play, prompting a fatal 9-0 run from Utah State. 

“I’m gonna go back and watch the game, but it felt like it was tied up, then I blinked, and they were up ten,” sophomore wing Malachi Palmer said of the Aggies’ knockout blow.

After committing just one turnover in the first half, Villanova coughed the ball up eight times in the second half; Wildcats’ head coach Kevin Willard also credited the Aggies’ timely offensive rebounds with helping them extend runs.

“We got up 10 and we gave up three offensive rebounds and that’s kind of been — give them credit. They’re a veteran team, older guards. They did a great job getting in the lane,” Willard said. “But we had our opportunities. We missed 73-71. I think we were up and we missed two layups that kind of really hurt us. Give them credit. They capitalized on it.”

Villanova Wears Down

Utah State senior MJ Collins said the Aggies switched up their defense during the late stages, helping to baffle Villanova.

“We switched up a couple coverages late in the game, and it kind of messed them up, and they were kind of stagnant and we executed off of it,” Collins said. “We weren’t making threes so we knew we had to rely on our defense. And it kind of carried us over in the second half.”

Collins, who finished with 20 points, added that the Wildcats’ lack of depth, a problem for Villanova all season, helped the Aggies get stronger as the game went on. 

“We came in the huddle and coach was like ‘they’re wearing down,’” Collins said. “We strive off our depth and they played seven, eight guys, so we knew at some point they were going to wear down… They shot the cover off the ball early. You can’t really maintain that for a whole 40 minutes.”

While Villanova managed to pour it on from beyond the arc, landing 14 of 30 three-point shots, Utah State attacked the paint and got to the line, making 28 free throws; the Wildcats attempted just 13. Senior forward Duke Brennan described the Aggies’ success in the paint.

“They weren’t shooting too much. So they were driving the paint. They were just getting fouls,” Brennan said. “We just weren’t defending without fouling.”

Offense Freezes Up

For all their defensive struggles, it was an offensive rut that ended the Wildcats’ season. After Bryce Lindsay three put them up 73-71 with six minutes to play, they made just one more shot from the field the rest of the way, a last-minute Brennan layup that did nothing to climb out of a double digit hole. Calhoun said the Aggies broke up Villanova’s pick-and-roll game, forcing them to play one-on-one and dismantling their offense.

“We switched the pick-and-roll and then we brought the big in from the corner to meet the roll sometimes,” Calhoun said. “And I think the last seven minutes, they played one-on-one more than just getting to the next advantage. I thought that was a crucial adjustment throughout the last seven minutes.”

Villanova freshman Acaden Lewis said Utah State sped him and his teammates up during the late stages, forcing them off their game. Lewis scored seven points on three-of-12 shooting but made up for it as a facilitator, notching eight assists to just three turnovers committed.

“The game wasn’t super duper fast [in the first half],” Lewis said. “I think the moments where they did kind of take over and they made runs, it was ‘cause of turnovers and bad shots that let them run out. Sometimes the game gets sped up, and I think I got sped up a little bit in moments.”