"Villanova is showing such poise tonight." How many times did we hear that one from the ESPN2 crew? Ya know what, we showed zero poise if you ask me (granted I only saw the 2nd half live and I'm still running hot about that loss). And yes, this is a young team and we're on a steep learning curve clearly, but that was a game that we should have been able to win.
And really, we went out with a whimper. That's the most frustrating part. For all of the good we saw against Missouri, we saw a lot of bad against a rival. A game we should have no problem getting up for.
Cheers and /Facepalms are after The Jump. Fair warning, I'm not happy with a lot of people.
Cheers to...
Maalik Wayns - For my money, really the only player who showed up for Villanova. 23 points and 7 assists for the junior, and he clearly was doing everything in his power to keep Villanova in the game. I've been a fairly harsh critic of Wayns this year, but I was impressed with him. He knew he had to step up, and while he couldn't carry the team on his back Kemba-style (which, we clearly need), he put in a strong shift.
C/Facepalms to...
Mouphtaou Yarou - 14 points and 8 rebounds will be "good" numbers against tough Big East teams. That's the point we've reached with Mouph. Against Temple (and against a redshirt freshman I might add), that just isn't good enough. Anthony Lee was in the spotlight for good play far too much for my liking.
JayVaughn Pinkston - Tough run with the foul trouble, and he certainly needs to improve his FT shooting since he's figured out he can get to the line almost at will when he's inside. He was efficient converting his FG's, which is another step in the right direction.
Facepalms to...
Dominic Cheek - Cheek-O, we know you can hit the 3. We also know that taking 8 of them isn't going to suit you well. When will he learn? After not getting to the line against Mizzou he got there 3 times against Temple. Not good enough. ATTACK THE BASKET!
Darrun Hilliard - 0-8 from the floor. 0-5 from 3-point range. Completely and utterly unacceptable. Freshman or not (I don't think of you as one anymore Darrun), you cannot take that many shots and go 0-for.
Anyone Who Tried To Guard Ramone Moore - Absolutely f*cking pathetic. He's the best player on their team, and he drops 30+ on us. This after Marcus Denmon was clearly the best player on Mizzou and nearly dropped 30. Which leads me to Jay Wright...
Jay Wright - WHERE IS YOUR GAMEPLAN??!!!!! That's twice now that everybody in the building knows who's taking the shots and there appears to be no decisive plan on how to stop it. It's still on the players for not being able to play 1-on-1 defense (they let Moore get to the line 15 times. 15!), but it's more on Jay Wright for 1. Not appearing to have a gameplan from the outset to slow down Moore and 2. for not having any adjustment during the game. Moore literally had a field day for 40 minutes. /endrant
Tweet of the Game
Wasn't on Twitter during the game, so no-go here this week. However, because I'm still fuming and because it's the right thing for a rival to do, I'm calling out the Temple folks. You guys berate me for weeks about how much you hate Villanova and how we're scared to let you join the Big East. Then you abuse us in your building on national TV and NOT A SINGLE PERSON tweets at me to let me hear it? Are you even aware you won the game? And don't give me the "we're too classy for that excuse." You're not, and you're proud of the fact that you're not on most occasions.
GameThread Comment of the Game
Another no-show from me, which I'm giving myself a /Facepalm for. But luckily, KShark28 was there to deliver again. Bonus points for calling out everyone's favorite a gameshow host in the process.
Fran Dunphy
Now in the Alex Trebek Hall of Fame for People Who Will Always Look Naked Without Their ’Stache
Villanova will take on Boston U. at the Wells Fargo Center tomorrow night. We'll have our preview up either later tonight or early tomorrow morning.