PROVIDENCE, R.I. – There’s no question Villanova had their chances on Saturday afternoon at Providence. In fact, both teams did, since host Providence was 29-48 at the foul line. But Villanova gave the ball away too many times and gave up too many offensive rebounds in their 69-66 loss, their third straight after a seven-game winning streak.
Villanova has struggled on offense, with their 69 points per game being a deceiving statistic. The Wildcats barely top 40 percent from the field and give the ball away 16 times per game. The latter was a big reason they had a tough time on Saturday, as they turned it over 25 times against the Friars, including 17 in the second half. They shot just under 45 percent from the field, so when they held on to the ball they shot a reasonable percentage for a win.
Add in having just over 12 assists per game, and you get a team whose offense can leave a lot to be desired at times. One such example came in the Wildcats’ prior game on Wednesday night, where Villanova didn’t score in the final 5:13 in a loss to Pittsburgh.
“I thought our Pitt game could have gone either way, even though the score doesn’t indicate that,” said head coach Jay Wright. “I thought we had a chance to win that game.”
This team isn’t built to be an offensive powerhouse. When Villanova holds opponents below 70 points, they are 9-2 on the year. When an opponent scores at least 70, they are just 3-5 on the season. While the Wildcats have been a good defensive team, they have to be better given the offensive issues. Another key to Saturday’s loss was on the glass, where they allowed 19 offensive rebounds and were out-rebounded 41-35. The Wildcats have a positive rebounding margin on the season, although Pittsburgh out-rebounded them by 12 on Wednesday.
It all added up to many more possessions for Providence. Give a Big East team enough chances and they will make you pay for it sooner or later. That’s a big part of why Wright was also disappointed in the defense on Saturday and not just because foul trouble mounted early.
Part of this can be attributed to inexperience. Villanova has three seniors, but none has been a go-to guy or is capable of that. They start a freshman and sophomore in the backcourt, and the other perimeter starter, junior James Bell, didn’t play much as a freshman and only started 18 games last season. Wake Forest transfer Tony Chennault is more experienced, but hasn’t been able to push past Ryan Arcidiacono for the starting point guard spot And while Arcidiacono will be very good and has shown some flashes of it, he’s not ready to be the floor leader and go-to guy of a Big East contender right now, at least certainly not without some other good talent around him.
“I just think it’s a team that is inexperienced, has a lot to learn,” said Wright. “I think they’re going to be good. I don’t know how long it’s going to take, but I think they’re going to be good. But we’re not good enough right now.”
While inexperience is an explanation for the recent troubles, especially with turnovers, Wright knows that other teams have won with inexperience on the perimeter.
“Other people do it, but we’re playing like an inexperienced team,” said Wright. “We’ve got to play smarter. I do think we’re going to get there, I really do.”
What doesn’t help is that Mouphtaou Yarou, their most experienced player, has had a down year. The Wildcats needed him to be their best player, or at least close to it, but his scoring, rebounding and field goal numbers are all down appreciably from last season. The other post players are either not scorers (senior Maurice Sutton) or not ready to be key scorers inside (freshman Daniel Ochefu).
The Wildcats have to regroup quickly, because they host Louisville and Syracuse next, then head to Notre Dame. The Cardinals specialize in forcing turnovers, so that could be a particularly bad matchup for them. Unless they correct some things at the offensive end, this could turn into a five- or six-game losing streak quickly.
