By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru
VILLANOVA/PHILADELPHIA – Two moderate local losing streaks were snapped Wednesday afternoon and night when Villanova’s three-game slide reversed with an 18-12 run in the fourth quarter to defeat visiting DePaul 66-55 at Finneran Pavilion in a Big East game before an Education Day crowd of 1,219.
Later at night a few miles south where the Western suburbs become part of the city limits in a marathon Atlantic Ten game on Hawk Hill at Hagan Arena in which no one got near the foul line in the first half and couldn’t stay off it the rest of the way Saint Joseph’s parted ways with a two-game dip by beating Fordham 72-65.
Of the remaining five locals in play only Lehigh was successful with an 80-54 victory at home in Stabler Arena in Bethlehem, Pa., downing visiting Boston University in the Patriot League.
In the other Patriot game in the local mix, Lafayette at home in the Kirby Sports Center in Easton, Pa., fell to visiting Army 74-65, the winless Big Ten woes of Rutgers and Penn State continued on both coasts, and La Salle’s operation as the equivalent of an expansion team in these days of the transfer portal continued to play havoc, the Explorers falling 82-66 to A-10 lame-duck UMass on the road up at Amherst in New England.
The small slate of nationally ranked teams for Wednesday were unharmed as No. 6 Connecticut claimed a 71-45 win at Saint John’s in a Big East game in Queens on Long Island as all-American Paige Bueckers returned from a two-game absence caused by a left knee sprain injury in a recent game at Villanova as Hall of Fame coach Geno Auriemma extended his NCAA record win total for men or women to 1,229 triumphs.
Let’s handle first things first with Villanova (9-9, 3-3), who welcomed back freshman Jasmine Bascoe, who also missed two games and was involved with a collision with Bueckers diving for a loose ball that sent the Huskies superstar to the sidelines.
Bascoe, a native of Toronto, Canada, scored 18 against the Blue Demons (9-10, 4-2) of Chicago as did Maddie Webber, while DePaul’s Jorie Allen scored 20 and Shakara McCline scored 14.
DePaul has had a myriad of problems in recent seasons, primarily off the transfer portal that saw all-American Aneesah Morrow, a native of the Windy City, head to LSU.
This season Jill Pizzotti has been promoted to interim coach to run the team with the veteran Doug Bruno temporarily stepping aside due to a medical situation, though a spokesman said he has been improving and recently attending games.
Transfers affected Villanova in the offseason, losing Lucy Olsen, the nation’s third-leading scorer in 2023-24, to fill the Iowa vacancy left by the WNBA-bound Caitlin Clark, post player Christina Dalce went to Maryland, and guard Zanai Jones to SMU.
But coach Denise Dillon has been able to fill the spots to be competitive talent-wise, the telling stat to date, though, even with the Wildcats getting back to 9-9 overall, the second half record where most games have been lost is 4-14.
“It’s an incredible stat and it’s not cool,” she said afterwards. “We put the challenge in front of them and us making some adjustments, that find what that secret is to keep us in position to win a basketball game.”
As the season rolls along, soon thinking will begin, especially in the Big East, how to be on the side of the bracket to avoid meeting Connecticut early to make a deep run to gain favor in the eyes of the NCAA committee.
But all that is not of immediate concern, yielding to team development.
“You just got to be in the moment, we’re in, and can’t look to far ahead, and be where we are,” she said. “You can’t look back, you’re not getting these games back.
“You look back, it’s here we go again. You look ahead, you’re out of position. You have to look at the game you’re in.”
On Saturday, Villanova heads to St. John’s, a team the Wildcats demolished 71-57 here last month in the conference opener.
Since we’re talking Big East, in the UConn game in the same place Villanova is heading, Bueckers scored 12 points moving closer to 2,000 for a career within four that saw her win national player of the year as a freshman, then miss a half and then an entire season with knee injuries, before returning last year to lead the Huskies to another Final Four.
She also grabbed five boards with two steals, while Azzi Fudd scored 13 points, and Ashlynn Shade collected 10 as UConn (16-2, 7-0) led all the way.
Ber’Nyah Mayo scored 10 for the Red Storm (11-6, 1-5).
Elsewhere in the conference, Seton Hall (13-4, 6-1) won at Marquette 58-52 in Milwaukee as Jada Eads scored 20 points and Faith Masonius had 14 points and eight boards.
The Golden Eagles (11-6, 2-3) got 13 points from Lee Volker, while Jaidynn Mason scored 11.
Saint Joseph’s Rallies in Second Half
As somewhat dire as two quick losses after a 3-0 start began to look for the Hawks in the A-10, the reality is that being 13-4 overall with a .Net in the 40s has the Hawks back in the race in a giant logjam with three teams with one loss and five teams with two.
“There are a lot of games left, and this is a great league with a lot of great teams,” said veteran Hawks coach Cindy Griffin.
Already, no one is unbeaten in the league, including defending champion Richmond, which fell earlier to Fordham, which last season contributed at the end to the demise of Saint Joseph’s NCAA hopes.
So, while getting to the top seed with a perfect record in the conference tournament is now off the table, landing in the top four with a double bye and then getting to the title game minimizing losses the rest of the way is still attainable.
But this one looked like it might be disruptive in the first half with Fordham (10-7, 4-2) controlling the action.
In the second half, however, the Hawks began finding their way with a 20-13 upper hand third quarter and once ahead steadily stayed that way to the finish.
But from a half in which both teams were 0-0 involving foul shots, the rest of the way was clunky with the Rams going 17-22 off 20 Hawks fouls, while the winners went 25-35 off 28 fouls from the Rams, besides each coach assessed a technical.
“When you are playing from behind, you’re trying to figure things out and trying to find out what is working,” Griffin said. “Then all of a sudden, things are starting to work.”
That’s true of Mackenzie Smith, who several times has had strong second halves and in this one, finished with 16 points, within three of her 1,400th, while Laura Ziegler had another double-double with 12 points and 15 boards, along with seven assists. Aleah Snead had 13 off the bench.
“That was the first time I lost two in a row in a really long time,” Smith said. “There was a really big emphasis coming back. We only had one day to prep for these guys. When we came back, we really had a fire under us to get back in the column that we belong in.”
While the three-headed attack of Talya Bruglar, Ziegler, and Smith was in check in the first half, the Rams’ leading producer Taylor Donaldson was held in check to three points overall by the home folks.
Chae Harris had a game-high for the visitors, whose iconic Rose Hill Gym back in the Bronx had its 100th anniversary Wednesday. Taya Davis scored 16.
Adding to the glut of teams in the A-10 has been the improvement of Dayton under former UConn star Tamika (Williams) Jeter.
Noteworthy off the court was Ziegler named to the mid-season Mid Major watch list while Emma Boslet as one of the selectees to the WBCA’s “So, You Wanna Be A Coach,” seminar at the Women’s Final Four, this season in Tampa.
Also, the NCAA as expected at its convention voted the start of units, same as the men, at the NCAA tournament with initial distribution payouts in 2026.
“That’s great,” said Griffin. “Hopefully, it’s in the millions. It’s a big step forward.”
Saint Joseph’s heads to Massachusetts Saturday in Amherst. The Minutewomen next season will be in the Mid-America Conference.
Earlier on Wednesday they handled La Salle 82-66 at the Mullins Center, though the Explorers (7-12, 1-5) outscored UMass 38-31 in the second half.
Joan Quinn and Ashleigh Connor each scored 13 points for the visitors, while Mackenzie Daleba scored 12.
UMass (9-8, 4-2) got 22 and nine boards from Megan Olbrys, yet another departed Villanova player, while Stefanie Kuleza out of Wilmington, Del., scored 19 and also grabbed nine boards, and Yahmani McKayle scored 12.
La Salle hosts George Mason on Saturday at 2 p.m. (ESPN+) at the John Glaser Arena.
Rutgers and Penn State Still Winless in the Big Ten
Next season as the A-10 celebrates its 50th anniversary, Penn State and Rutgers will be part of a women’s doubleheader at The Palestra playing Saint Joseph’s and Fordham, respectively, a throwback to when the Lady Lions and Scarlet Knights ruled the penthouse of the conference.
These days, the two state schools of Pennsylvania and New Jersey are nearing a fight to avoid being among three teams at the bottom of the standings voided out of the Big Ten tournament, a consequence of the four-team expansion admitting PAC-12 refugees, including No. 1 UCLA and No. 4 Southern Cal besides Washington and Oregon.
The ACC is in the same situation while the MAAC decided only the first 10 will be in the tournament returning to Atlantic City.
Neither Rutgers or Penn State has yet to win this season in the conference, a slide that continued Wednesday, though the teams will face each other before the end of the month in the first of two home-and-home pairings a week from Sunday, at the Bryce Jordan Center at State College.
On Wednesday, Rutgers (8-10, 0-7) at home in Jersey Mike’s Arena in Piscataway, N.J., put up a fight with No. 22 Michigan State (14-3, 4-2) before eventually falling 70-60.
Destiny Adams had 15 points and 10 boards for the home team, while freshman Kiyomi McMiller, who returned last game after not playing in the previous two, coach Coquese Washington calling it an internal matter, had 13 points.
Chyna Cornwell had 15 boards, eight on the offensive glass, and blocked a career-high four shots.
“The turnovers in the second half,” Rutgers coach Coquese Washington said. “That was a big deal. We had a number of opportunities in transition, and they got a few quick second chance opportunities.
“We went in a little drought. They got the lead, and we weren’t able to overcome that.”
The Spartans’ Julia Ayrault and Emma Shumate each scored 12, Ayrault also grabbing nine boards, while Grace VanSlooten scored 11.
Rutgers on Saturday visits recently ranked Michigan in Ann Arbor at noon on the Big Ten Network.
Out West, meanwhile, in a game moved from Pauley Pavilion in Westwood because of the ongoing wildfires in Los Angeles, it’s not getting easier for Penn State, which is playing two of the last three unbeaten Division I teams this week.
In this one No. 1 UCLA stayed perfect beating the Lady Lions 83-67 at the Walter Pyramid on the campus of Long Beach State.
The Bruins (17-0, 6-0) are off to their best start in program history.
UCLA is on its way for an East swing, playing Baylor of the Big 12 Monday as part of a doubleheader in the Coretta Scott King Classic in the afternoon honoring Martin Luther King Day at The Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, No. 7 Texas of the SEC meets No. 8 Maryland of the Big Ten in the other game, both airing on FOX.
The Bruins will then return to conference play later in the week visiting Rutgers and Maryland.
Penn State (9-9, 0-7), which lost to No. 4 Southern Cal Sunday, also heads back home in the East hosting unbeaten Ohio State Sunday. No. 5 LSU is the other team with a perfect record that is about to receive a major challenge in the SEC.
The Lady Lions’ Gabby Elliott scored 17 points, freshman Talayah Walker scored 17 also with a career-high nine boards, and Alli Campbell collected 12 points.
Penn State’s last game facing a No. 1 team came against UConn in 2013.
Northwestern was set to play at UCLA on the weekend and at USC Wednesday night but chose not to fly out and the Big Ten is looking at options to reschedule the two games.
Lauren Betts scored 22 against Penn State with 12 boards, Angela Dugalic scored 11 with eight boards, Gabriela Jaquez and Kiki Rice each scored 10 points.
Lehigh and Lafayette Split in the Patriot League
In the Lehigh 80-54 win over visiting Boston U. (7-9, 1-4), the Mountain Hawks (13-4, 4-1) used a strong second half.
“We’re sharing it and shooting it,” said Lehigh coach Addie Micir. “That’s the motto, but what I love is everybody is aggressive and ready. We always say the offense looks for you, shoot it because that means your buddies earned you a shot, and that’s what we did.”
Ella Stemmer had 14 points for Lehigh, Lily Fandre and Whitney Lind each scored 11 points.
Allison Schwertner scored 14 for Boston U.
Saturday, Lehigh is at Loyola, Md., at 5 p.m. at Reitz Arena on ESPN+.
In the loss by Lafayette (4-12, 1-4), Abby Antognoli scored 17, Kay Donahue collected 13, and Talia Zurinskas scored 10.
The visiting Black Knights (12-3, 4-1) got 20 from Fiona Hastick, who shot 4-8 from deep, with six boards, while Reese Ericson was 5-10 from beyond the arc for 15 points, and Camryn Tade had 13 points and 10 boards.
The Leopards on Saturday visit Colgate in Hamilton, N.Y. at 2 p.m. (ESPN+)
The National Scene
Most of it was covered within the local team/conference discussion above but in the Big 12 No. 20 West Virginia at home in Morgantown beat Colorado, which returned this season from the former PAC-12, 73-46 as Sydney Shaw and JJ Quinerly each scored 20 for the Mountaineers (14-3, 4-2).
The win caused a split with Colorado (12-5, 3-3), who got 11 points.
In the Sun Belt, preseason favorite James Madison won 93-65 at defending champion Marshall.
Looking Ahead
It’s a light night locally, with Rider in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) visiting Mount St. Mary’s at 7 p.m. on ESPN+.
The two frontrunners, unbeaten in league play in the MAAC, are Quinnipiac at Merrimack at at 7 p.m., while defending champion Fairfield visits Niagara at 11 a.m. both on ESPN+
It’s a heavy dose of ranked teams meeting in the ACC, SEC, and Big 12, while in the Big 10, No. 9 Ohio State (16-0) visits Wisconsin at 9 p.m. in Madison on Peacock.
In the SEC, No. 2 South Carolina is at No. 19 Alabama, No.7 Texas is at Auburn; No. 13 Oklahoma hosts Missouri, No. 16 Tennessee hosts Mississippi State.
In the ACC, No. 21 NC State hosts Pitt at 7 p.m.; No. 3 Notre Dame hosts No. 17 Georgia Tech; No. 14 North Carolina is at SMU, while No. 18 California is at No. 18 Duke.
In the Big Ten, former ranked teams battling has Iowa hosting Nebraska, Illinois at Indiana,
In the West Coast Conference Portland is at Gonzaga.
On Friday night locally in the Coastal Athletic Association, Drexel is at North Carolina A&T while Delaware is at Hampton, both at 7 p.m. on FloSports.
On Saturday among local teams not mentioned off their previous games, in the Ivy League, Penn is at Cornell at 1 p.m., while Princeton is hosting Dartmouth at 2 p.m. both on ESPN+.
Temple in the American Athletic Conference is hosting Charlotte at the Liacouras Center at 2 p.m. on ESPN+.
In the MAAC, Rider hosts Marist at 4 p.m. on ESPN+.
And that’s all for now.
