Connect with us

Villanova Men's Basketball

Villanova Men’s Basketball Suffers Brutal 90-80 Upset Against Columbia

Published

on

Villanova Wildcats forward Eric Dixon (43) March 18, 2022 David Hague/PSN

Villanova Men’s Basketball suffered their first loss of the season in brutal fashion on Wednesday, November 6, suffering a 90-80 loss to the Columbia Lions in a game they entered as a 17.5 point home favorite.

The Wildcats attempted to pour it on from beyond the arc, taking 32 of their 60 shots from behind the three-point line, but they converted at just a 34.4 percent clip. Columbia actually fared worse, making eight of 24 attempts from three, but their play in the paint (36 points to the Wildcats’ 24) more than made up for it. The Lions attacking inside also turned into foul trouble for Villanova, and Columbia enjoyed a 24-of-26 success rate from the charity stripe… although many of those came in the final minutes as the Wildcats desperately tried to chip away at a double digit deficit.

Playing in his first game of the season after missing the home opener against Lafayette due to suspension, Eric Dixon wasted no time making his presence felt. Dixon, who received preseason All-BIG EAST honors and was named a watch list candidate for the 2025 Karl Malone award as the best power forward in the nation, scored 12 of the Wildcats’ first 15 points and played a major role in the other three, swinging an assist to Wooga Poplar. The graduate forward finished the night with 33 points, six boards, two assists and three steals, making 5-of-7 three-pointers and 11-of-16 shots overall. 

Growing pains were on display early for freshman forward Josiah Moseley, who committed fouls on consecutive possessions heading into the under 12 media timeout.

Dixon put the Wildcats ahead 37-36 on a three-pointer with 11 seconds to go in the half, but Columbia’s Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa, who led the Lions with 22 points, answered with a three ball of his own just before the buzzer.

Villanova took a 49-48 lead with just over 16 minutes to play on another Dixon three as he scored ten of the Wildcats’ first 12 points out of the break. Columbia soon began to pull away, though, and the Wildcats never recovered from a 13-3 run that put the Lions ahead by double digits.

Villanova Men’s Basketball falls to 1-1 on the season. They’ll conclude this three game homestand at 8:30pm on Friday, November 8 against NJIT.

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Subscribe to PHL Sports Now

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.