Sorry, just one of those iconic moments in Philly sports history which transcends the shape of the ball they play with… Basketball overlaps a lot with football in skill sets, anyway. But I was really stoked to watch Villanova beat Kansas 64-59 on Saturday night in Louisville.
I know for a fact a lot of players on the Eagles roster as well as employees of the organization were tuned into the Elite Eight matchup between Villanova and Kansas on Saturday night.
What I like about this Villanova team is their grit and self-discipline. This group stays on the script. They don’t free-lance. They may not have the greatest individual talents in the basketball universe but they play hard and they play together as complementary pieces of a bigger picture. If things seem to be getting out of control, they just focus and adjust. I like that—and I’d like to be able to honestly write that about the Eagles in 2016, too.
Villanova became the second No. 2 seed to win on Saturday, toppling Kansas, the top overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, to reach the Final Four for the first time since 2009.
- Playing on his birthday, Villanova senior guard Ryan Arcidiacono led a balanced attack, scoring 13 points while adding three rebounds, an assist and a steal. He hit 6-of-7 free throws, with four coming in the final 33 seconds.
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- Kris Jenkins and Josh Hart also had 13 points for Villanova, while Daniel Ochefu added 10.
- The Wildcats were 18-of-19 from the free throw line.
- The teams were a combined 10-of-40 from 3-point range.
- Kansas guard Devonte’ Graham led all scorers with 17 points, while Wayne Selden Jr. and Frank Mason III added 16 apiece.
- Kansas had 16 turnovers to Villanova’s nine.
- Villanova guard Mikal Bridges had a game-high five steals.
- Kansas forward Landen Lucas had a game-high 12 rebounds.
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- After Jenkins gave the Wildcats a 62-59 lead with 13 seconds left, Arcidiacono stole the ball from Mason on the Jayhawks’ next possession, sealing the win.
Up next:
- Villanova vs. Oklahoma (4/2/16)
| NAME | POS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | REB | AST | ST | BLK | TO | PF | PTS |
| Daniel Ochefu | F | 29 | 5-8 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 10 |
| Kris Jenkins | F | 28 | 3-10 | 1-7 | 6-6 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 13 |
| Darryl Reynolds | F | 12 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Jalen Brunson | G | 22 | 2-6 | 1-2 | 2-2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
| Josh Hart | G | 38 | 6-17 | 1-4 | 0-0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 13 |
| Phil Booth | G | 12 | 0-1 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ryan Arcidiacono | G | 33 | 3-6 | 1-3 | 6-7 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 13 |
| Mikal Bridges | G-F | 26 | 2-4 | 0-1 | 2-2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
| TOTAL | 21-52 | 4-18 | 18-19 | 5 | 27 | 7 | 11 | 2 | 9 | 16 | 64 | ||
| 40.40% | 22.20% | 94.70% | |||||||||||
| NAME | POS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | REB | AST | ST | BLK | TO | PF | PTS |
| Perry Ellis | F | 34 | 1-5 | 0-0 | 2-3 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 4 |
| Landen Lucas | F | 35 | 3-3 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 1 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 |
| Jamari Traylor | F | 5 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Carlton Bragg | F | 6 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Frank Mason | G | 40 | 7-14 | 1-6 | 1-2 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 16 |
| Wayne Selden | G | 38 | 6-14 | 0-6 | 4-5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 16 |
| Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk | G | 7 | 0-1 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Devonte’ Graham | G | 35 | 6-13 | 5-9 | 0-0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 17 |
| TOTAL | 23-50 | 6-22 | 7-11 | 5 | 29 | 11 | 5 | 2 | 16 | 19 | 59 | ||
| 46.00% | 27.30% | 63.60% | |||||||||||
Yeah ya know it!!! Philly is relevant again in round-ball! I really needed that! It can only help inspire the aura surrounding Eagles football. I truly believe that… it’s a groovy kind of love!
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