Villanova Shows No Rust, Dominates Colorado in the Crown

Villanova picked up a 85-64 win in the opening round of the College Basketball Crown invitational tournament in Last Vegas on Tuesday, April 1, punishing the Colorado Buffaloes behind 20 point efforts from Eric Dixon and Wooga Poplar.

Villanova showed no signs of rust under interim head coach Mike Nardi (and with new head coach Kevin Willard in attendance) after nearly three weeks off, making 53.2 percent of their shots — weighed down by an 11-of-31 clip from three — and holding Colorado to a 39.7 percent clip.

Wooga Poplar dropped 16 points in the first half and 24 on the day, helping Villanova race out to a double digit lead midway through the first half.

Their advantage grew as high as 42-22 after a 13-0 run that saw six straight points from Poplar. It also included a record breaking shot from Dixon, a jumper in the paint to push him past Kerry Kittles for the No. 1 spot on Villanova’s all-time scoring leaderboard.

The onslaught continued in the second half with a 16-2 run that put the Wildcats ahead 68-40. Most of Villanova’s roster got in on the action, with Tyler Perkins dropping nine points and eight rebounds off the bench, while even former walk-on Collin O’Toole got a chance to check in late. Jordan Longino was the third Wildcats’ starter to hit double digits, adding 13 points.

Villanova advances to face USC at 9:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 3.