WKU Basketball: Tops Open Battle 4 Atlantis Against Villanova
The biggest test so far for this season — and, arguably, all season — for the Tops will commence this afternoon as they take on a Top 5…
The biggest test so far for this season — and, arguably, all season — for the Tops will commence this afternoon as they take on a Top 5 squad in the Villanova Wildcats.
Game Info
Time: 1:30 p.m. CT
Location: Imperial Arena | Nassau, Bahamas
TV: ESPN 2 (Karl Ravech, Dick Vitale)
Radio: The Hilltopper IMG Sports Network
WKU is coming off a pretty damn impressive performance against Nicholls State, which saw the Tops hold Nicholls to a 31.4% first-half shooting percentage and a 38.5% for the entirety of the game.
Both Justin Johnson and Dwight Coleby logged double-doubles, with Johnson scoring 14 and grabbing 11 boards and Coleby netting 17 and grabbing 10 boards.
The WKU scoring was a plenty, as six players — and four starters — all notched double figures, led by 24 from Taveion Hollingsworth. Jake Ohmer and Marek Nelson each added 10+ points from the bench.
Villanova, who is just two years removed from winning a national title, is 3–0 and they also posted 100 points on Nichols, beating them 113–77. The Wildcats also have wins over Columbia (75–60) and Lafayette (104–57).
The Cats boast the 12th best scoring offense in college basketball (but, again, look at that competition) and are averaging 43.3 rebounds a game (tied for 33rd in the country — WKU, meanwhile, is averaging 38.7 boards per game).
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Six Wildcats are averaging double-figures in points, with the duo of Mikal Bridges (18.3 points per game) and Jalen Brunson (17.7 points per game) leading the way. Omari Spellman is the man who gets it done on the glass, as he’s averaging 8.7 rebounds to accompany his 11.7 points through three games.
This game is a tricky one for WKU — on one hand, this should give us an idea of where the Tops truly are as a team. If they can come out hot and hitting shots and not bury themselves in an early 20-point hole, things could get interesting. This will also be the first true test of the team’s depth — neither Josh Anderson nor Moustapha Diagne traveled with the team to the Bahamas.
Basically, it all boils down to — Will the Tops be able to hang with a Top 10 team? How long will they be able to hang with a Top 10 team? Will they show resilience if they do come out shooting cold or is it over as soon as Nova hits a double-digit lead?
Vegas has this game at about a 22-point differential (in favor of Nova, of course) so obviously the odds makers don’t think the Tops will put up a fight, but I think it’ll be a bit closer than most think. The final score might be a bit of an unwelcome sight, but I think it’ll be within single-digits with about 10 minutes to go before the Tops’ lack of depth begins to show.
I like the idea of repeating the same lineup from Nicholls State (Coleby, Johnson, Bearden, Hollingsworth, Thompson) but for some reason I’d like to see Nelson get the start and have Thompson be fresh legs off the bench early.
The Tops will get the mirror-result of the Purdue/Tennessee game (which tips off at 11 a.m. CT today, if you wanna get some early scouting in). If it’s a Tops’ win, they’ll play the winner at 11:30 a.m. on Thanksgiving. If WKU falls, they’ll take on the loser at 6 p.m. on Thursday.