Villanova Remains the Best in Big East

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Liam Watkins, Staff Writer

One month ago, on December 19, Villanova’s season looked lost.

Jay Wright’s Wildcats had lost two games within fifteen days and they were struggling to score. The team was shooting 31% from behind the three and nearly half (49.5%) of their shots were coming from behind the arc. Some speculated that Villanova might not even be one of the Big East’s three best teams. Xavier started off the season 12-0, steamrolling past every team that they came to face. Butler began the year 11-1, a previously unbeaten Purdue squad in convincing fashion. Providence also got off to a 14-1 start behind the play of stud senior Kris Dunn. In the Dec. 28 AP Poll, the Big East hierarchy was as follows: Xavier was ranked No. 6 in the country, followed by No. 9 Butler, No. 12 Providence and No. 16 Villanova. Skip ahead to January 19 – Villanova is back on top. They are 5-0 in the Big East, tearing apart the competition with wins that include a 31-point victory over Xavier and a 5-point victory over Butler. What has changed since their early struggles? Well, in Conference play the Wildcats are taking only 37.1% of their field-goal attempts from deep and since Villanova has been making 59.5% of their shots inside the arc all season, more shots up close is a very good thing. Also, this team’s defense has really picked up and they are ranked sixth in defensive efficiency. Villanova is now ranked No. 4 nationally and with an upcoming game against Providence this week the Wildcats will look to continue their Big East dominance.