Penn Post Game -- Closing Out

They Were on Fire, and Then...
There were times in the first half when it appeared, Big 5 game/rivalry or not, Villanova was going to sweep Penn right out of the Pavilion. The 'Cats opened with a 12-4 run in the game's first five minutes on their way to a 73-65 win over their Big 5 rival. The score understated the Wildcats' domination...

	Score	Poss	PPP	eFG%	TO%
Penn	4	8	0.50	33.3	25.0
Villanova	12	8	1.50	75.0	0.0

The teams were on track for a 32 possession half and a 64 possession game...with a score of 96-32 Villanova. Numbers too good to be sustained...and the skeptics were not disappointed. Not before Villanova doubled the score on Penn, 32-16 near the 3:00 mark of the first half. The Wildcats took a solid 18 point lead, 38-20, into the intermission.

"I thought it was important (with Maalik Wayns out with two first half fouls) that we did not let him (Penn point guard Zack Rosen) get started..." Coach Wright asserted in the post game press conference, "...because once he gets going, it's really tough to stop him..." This served as the explanation for Penn's point guard Zack Rosen's second half explosion. Going into the half with six points on 2-4 (0-1, 2-3) from the floor and 2-2 from the line, Penn's preseason favorite to take Player of the Year honors in the Big 5 used the time to gather himself, and returned to the floor to record 17 more points as he engineered the Quakers' second half rush to close the gap. Though they fell short, Penn whittled a deficit that bulged to 18 early in the half down to four with 0:15 left to play. Rosen's three pointer (one of seven they managed to convert after shooting 0-7 in the first half) brought the Quakers to 65-69, but they could get no closer as the young Wildcats hit their free throws to push the margin back out to eight.

With Maalik Wayns on the bench
Zack Rosen schools Achraf Yacoubou (24) in first half action

The bloggers over at VUHoops.com focus on Villanova's nine game winning streak over Penn and how the squad converted at the line to bring home the win in their piece, "9 Straight for Cats Over Quakers". The Nova Blog noted Penn's second half rally in "Villanova Holds Off Penn's..." and how the Wildcats preserved the win. The University site posted the AP wire story and the official boxscore. The breakdown by halves

Opponent	Penn
	1st	2nd	Game
Pace	33.1	33.4	66.5
	Offense				Defense
	1st	2nd	Game		1st	2nd	Game
Rating	114.8	104.8	109.8		60.4	134.8	97.8
eFG%	62.1	28.8	46.4		29.2	66.1	50.0
TORate	21.2	12.0	16.5		24.2	12.0	18.1
OR%	33.3	35.0	34.3		16.7	33.3	24.2
FTA/FGA	17.2	92.3	52.7		33.3	16.1	23.6
FTM/FGA	6.9	76.9	40.0		25.0	12.9	18.2
ARate	60.0	71.4	63.6		14.3	58.8	45.8
Blk%	10.3	3.8	7.3		4.2	6.5	5.5
Stl%	9.0	8.7	8.9		9.1	3.1	6.1
PPWS	1.21	0.94	1.06		0.72	1.35	1.06
2FG%	47.4	46.2	46.9		46.7	55.6	51.5
3FG%	60.0	7.7	30.4		0.0	53.8	31.8
FT%	40.0	83.3	75.9		75.0	80.0	76.9
%2FG	47.4	34.3	41.1		70.0	44.4	52.3
%3FG	47.4	8.6	28.8		0.0	46.7	32.3
%FT	5.3	57.1	30.1		30.0	8.9	15.4

Half Time Adjustments
The pace was dictated by Villanova and remained consistent through both halves. Penn's marked, half-over-half improvement on offense (or Villanova's defensive lapse if you wish) was graphic and led by the turnaround on their outside shooting. The Wildcats kept their points per possession rate north of one (1.048 PPP) on the strength of their offensive rebounding, dramatic drop in turnovers and the large number of times they got to the line. From Zack Rosen's post game comments, "...I don't know where our confidence was...we want to go out and play with anybody, no matter who it is...and do what we do. I think in the second half we did what we did..." Indeed, the Quakers hit 7-13 from beyond the arc, One of the minor surprises is how Penn, which racked up a staggering 27 personal fouls managed to keep their entire rotation eligible for play. Three Quakers, Rosen, forward Henry Brooks and forward/center Cameron Gunter picked up four fouls apiece while four others had three fouls apiece. Five of Penn's 18 rostered players are 6-8 and taller. They struggled to block out Mouphtao Yarou, sending the junior forward to the line for 12 free throw attempts.

Notes & Observations
1. About Villanova's defense -- "We gotta learn we have to play 40 minutes...it's hard (to maintain defensive intensity), but good teams do that...when you're young...when you get a lead...the place you rest is on defense. When you're a veteran...and you're going to rest, you do it on offense" -- Coach Jay Wright

2. Maalik Wayns picked up his second foul with nine minutes left in the first half and sat for the balance of the period. He took no shots in the first half, dished two dimes, racked up a steal and committed two turnovers before retiring to the bench. Urged at the half to shoot more, the junior's line at the finish was 11 points on 2-4 (1-2 from beyond the arc, 1-2 inside) shooting from the field and 6-6 at the line.

Maalik Wayns' three pointer in the second half
helped staunch a Quaker comeback

3. With Wayns on the bench and Rosen on the loose, the staff with limited options turned to freshmen Ty Johnson and Achraf Yacoubou to pick up Wayns' minutes and they did not disappoint. Johnson logged 15 minutes as he manned the point, recording six points while providing three assists to two turnovers. The freshman grabbed a rebound and was credited with a steal. Yacoubou was a bit less productive offensively, but he did dish two dimes while committing one turnover in an 18 minute stint.

4. Yarou racked up a double-double, 21 points and 11 rebounds in 33 minutes of action. The Quakers did not have a player, or combination of players who could contain Yarou.

Ty Johnson directs the Wildcats late in the first half

5. With the win, the latest in a streak of nine (as reported by VUHoops.com), Villanova now holds a 39-14 edge over Penn in their Big 5 series. This is the least competitive of the head-to-head series within the Big 5.

Penn's Coach Jerome Allen directs the Quakers
from the sidelines

Roster Moves
The staff used an eight man rotation against Penn, the shallowest this season, as junior forward/center Maurice Sutton dislocated his right thumb in practice this week. He is expected to miss between two and three weeks. Do not look for him before the Big East season. Freshman forward Markus Kennedy collided with JayVaughn Pinkston in practice and sustained a shoulder injury. Coach Wright hopes he will be ready Tuesday for the Missouri game in Madison Square Garden.

Guest Contributor Ray Floriani: Izod Doubleheader, Penn/Army and Butler/Duke

by Ray Floriani

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ -- The Izod Center brought a college basketball doubleheader back into the facility on Saturday. A nice mid-major match-up between Penn and Army was followed by the feature game, a rematch of last year's NCAA title game, Duke-Butler.

The Izod Center
East Rutherford, NJ

The scores:

Penn	68	Army	52
Duke	82	Butler	70

The Efficiency:

		Off.
	Poss.	Eff.
Penn	68	100
Army	65	80

The Four Factors:

		FTA
	eFG%	FGA	OR%	TO%
Penn	59	28	31	29
Army	45	10	20	25

The score was tied 28 all, at the half, and from Penn's perspective they were fortunate not to be behind. The Quakers' eFG% was 40% as they were 1 of 10 from three. Army, on the other hand, was 5 of 13 beyond the arc and had a gaudy 54% eFG%. What happened after intermission? Simply put, Penn started hitting shots while tightening up on the defensive end. Army relies a great deal on the three. They entered the game with 42% of their offense coming from that area. Over the final 20 minutes the Cadets still shot respectably from three going 4 of 12.

Unfortunately for Zack Spiker's club, those four treys were half the field goal production as the Cadets actually shot worse (4 of 15 for 27%) from two point range. The final points in the paint, a 28-16 Penn advantage, showed the Quakers were comfortable taking the ball to the basket. Guard Zack Rosen with a sterling 20 point 3 assist afternoon, was especially comfortable taking the ball into the lane. The one thing bothering Penn coach Jerome Allen is turnovers. A recurring problem that inflated to an alarming 29% rate in this contest.

Your VBTN contributor with Butler mascot 'blue'

Duke-Butler:
The Efficiency:

		Off.
	Poss.	Eff.
Butler	71	32
Duke	73	112

The Four Factors:

		FTA
	eFG%	FGA	OR%	TO%
Butler	52	17	32	21
Duke	55	45	28	21

Observations:
The efficiency showed Duke with a decided edge but the Four Factors bear out this was a reasonably close game. A mid second half spurt by Duke keyed the victory.

The entire Blue Devil body of work the final twenty minutes was crucial. In the post game interview Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said that Brian Zoubek, one of last year's Duke kep performers, visited the team after the game and said how the first 30 minutes seemed like April's championship game pace wise. "It was," coach K said. "When we sped it up and changed the pace it became our advantage."

Duke altered the pace with added defensive pressure, that forced turnovers and got out the Blue Devils out in the open floor. The change in pace to a Duke liking was illustrated as at the half, Butler actually had a 97-87 edge in offensive efficiency. The second half Duke posted an almost off the charts 132 OE. A 32-20 advantage in points in the paint for the game, contributed.

During the decisive run Kyrie Irving (21 points) buried two big threes and Andrew Dawkins (10 points 8 boards) who stole a pass and finished it off with a traditional three point play.

A category Duke did enjoy a noticeable edge was free throw rate. Chalk it up to guard penetration as Irving (6) and Nolan Smith (14) combined for 20 of Duke's 29 free throw attempts. Collectively the two guards shot 19 of 20 from the line with the senior Smith accounting for the one miss.

Butler got a nice lift off the bench from Shawn Vanzant. The senior guard led the Bulldogs with14 points, added 5 boards and simply energized the team during his 28 minutes in relief.

Andrew Smith, Butler's 6-11 sophomore, is just going to get better as he continues to gain experience. For the afternoon Smith had a creditable showing, 10 points with 5 rebounds. He did have trouble finishing a few in traffic. Again that will be remedied as he progresses.

Smith had four offensive boards as Butler had the edge in that category. Not a big surprise as rebounding was a question needing addressing coming into the season for Duke. One of the few questions with this club.

Stevens was also pleased with "contributions from several players." He did note the defense must improve and don't mention moral victory. "This is a loss," he said, "we have to learn from it and move on." Coach K noted that "Butler is a team that will get better as the year goes on and be a tough out in March. They (Butler) did lose a lottery pick (Gordon Hayward)."

Referee Brian Dorsey watches the teams
warm up minutes before the second half

The efficiency leaders respectively were senior Nolan Smith and sophomore guard Andre Dawkins pacing Duke with 18. Shelvin Mack, with 11 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists had 16 for Butler. In fact Duke had a very ordinary game, for him , out of Kyle Singler. He had an efficiency of 10 largely on a 13 point afternoon , offset by three turnovers, no assists and 1 of 6 shooting from three. The Duke guards more than compensated:

	Efficiency
Smith	18
Dawkins	18
Irving	17

Had to love Irving's effort. Coming home and playing in front of friends and family he did not force things and let the game come to him. Hard to remember he is just a freshman. And will get even better.

Finishing:
Penn is 4-3 and Army is now 4-4. Rosen led all with 20 points and 6-3 senior forward Jeremy Hence paced the Cadets with 15 points (3 of 4 from three).

Duke improves to 8-0 while Butler is now 4-3. Nolan Smith led all scorers with 24 points while Shawn Vanzant, as noted, was Butler's pacesetter with 14 points.

Good to see officiating friend Brain Dorsey working the game. We have worked together many times in basketball and even officiated a NJ state high school soccer tournament game together. Brian has enjoyed great success moving up the college ranks but remains the same humble person and a great friend.

Met David Woods of the Indianapolis Star who wrote the recently released book Underdawgs, which chronicled the March to last year's championship game. I had a copy which he, and the Butler cheer squad, graciously autographed. Woods said the story of Butler's run is great but even remarkable given the past. "About 20 years ago the program was really bad," Woods said. " It was not a good situation at all. To come from where they were to where they are today is an incredible story in itself."

A picture with the Butler cheerleaders