Villanova Basketball’s Phil Booth will break school games record

Happy Friday Nova Nation! Your Villanova Wildcats won a hard fought first round victory over the St. Mary’s Gaels, 61-57. It was a close game throughout, but whenever Nova needed someone to come up with a basket, Phil Booth delivered. He finished with a game-high 20 points and 6 assists, adding 2 rebounds and 2 steals.

As big of an accomplishment as the victory was, there was an even bigger accomplishment for the senior on Thursday night. Phil Booth has now joined Josh Hart and Kris Jenkins as the players who have played the most games in a Villanova jersey of all-time. And as of tomorrow, Booth will be the first Wildcat to ever appear in 147 games.

The record had been held by Ryan Arcidiacono before Hart and Jenkins took it over. But now in Booth’s hands, it represents the greatest and most successful era in Villanova Basketball history. Phil Booth may not have the accolades of his former teammates, but he may go down as the most beloved player of this era.

And it’s not just Villanova records that Booth has tied, he now is one of five players that hold the NCAA Tournament record for most consecutive wins:

That’s some pretty great company to be associated with when you’re talking about winning in the NCAA Tournament. Now Booth will have a shot at breaking that record as well if he can lead the Wildcats to a win over the Purdue Boilermakers tomorrow.

Speaking of Purdue, here’s your Game Day poll... a day early:

In other “news”, the Big East is down to one, Obama is picking Duke, and Ja Morant is Ja-Mazing. Enjoy!

Villanova defeats St. Mary’s

Villanova goes into Big East grind mode and reaches 2nd round | New York Post
Villanova has Providence, Xavier and Seton Hall to thank. After grinding through the Big East Tournament last week for some uncomfortable wins, the...

Defending NCAA Champ Villanova Holds Off Saint Mary's | NBC 10 Philadelphia
The Villanova Wildcats beat Saint Mary's 61 to 57 Thursday night to advance to the second round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament.

March Madness: Villanova puts down Saint Mary's Gaels | The Mercury News
The Saint Mary's Gaels held their own, leading at halftime, but defending NCAA Tournament champion Villanova clamped down, holding Jordan Ford eight points below his average.

Villanova opens NCAA Tournament with a win over St. Mary’s | The Inquirer
The Wildcats handled the slow pace of Saint Mary's behind 20 points and six assists by Phil Booth, but made it a little scary at the end.

VIDEO: Villanova vs. Saint Mary’s: First Round NCAA Tournament Extended Highlights | YouTube
Watch all the highlights from Villanova's first round win over Saint Mary's.

Villanova might not repeat as NCAA Tournament champions, but history against St. Mary’s doesn’t, either | The Inquirer
St. Mary’s, always a pesky, deliberate team, bounced the Wildcats from the second round of the 2010 tournament. Villanova was a No. 2 seed that year and the loss stung for a long time.

No. 6 Villanova Avoids No. 11 Saint Mary's Upset, Advances at NCAA Tournament | Bleacher Report
The sixth-seeded Villanova Wildcats' title defense remains on course after the defending champions defeated the 11th-seeded Saint Mary's Gaels 61-57 on Thursday in the opening round of the 2019 NCAA men's basketball tournament in Hartford, Connecticut...

Defending champ Villanova survives 61-57 over Saint Mary's | Delaware Online
Villanova held off Saint Mary's in a hard-fought 61-57 victory.

Despite their tournament loss, St. Mary's basketball fans remain proud | KRON
Brackets and Brews -- Stadium Pub in Walnut Creek was filled with both, as St. Mary’s Gaels fans cheered on their team.

Photos: Villanova tops Saint Mary's 61-57 | Delaware Online
Photos from Villanova's faceoff against Saint Mary's.

Villanova vs Purdue

Villanova vs. Purdue - 3/23/19 College Basketball Pick, Odds, and Prediction | Sports Chat Place
The Purdue Boilermakers and Villanova Wildcats meet Saturday in the second round of the college basketball NCAA Tournament at the XL Center.

#3 Purdue 61, #14 Old Dominion 48 | Hammer and Rails
It was ugly at the end, but Purdue survived and will advance to the 2nd Round.

Nojel Eastern Injures Ankles in Pregame, Did Not Start | Hammer and Rails
Well...crap

Purdue basketball stifles Old Dominion in 61-48 NCAA yournament win | Journal & Courier
The Boilermakers overcame a freak injury to Nojel Eastern right before the game's start in a 61-48 victory. They face Villanova on Saturday.

Big East

Seton Hall gets shot down by red-hot Wofford in NCAA Tournament | APP
5 takeaways from a wild NCAA Tournament game

2019 NCAA Tournament Recap: #12 Murray State 83, #5 Marquette 64 | Anonymous Eagle
The Golden Eagles were just another victim of The Ja Morant Show.

March Madness

One Key Number From Every NCAA Tournament First Round Game | Stadium
55.7 – That’s the percent of Villanova’s points that were scored by fifth-year seniors Phil Booth and Eric Paschall.

World, meet Ja Morant. Ja, show the world what you got | The Athletic
HARTFORD, Conn. — Tee Morant finally allowed himself to smile, slowly, his lips curling upward as...

March Madness 2019: One important thought about every school | SBNation.com
Here is an important March Madness guide for people who know nothing about the NCAA men’s tournament field.

Obama's March Madness bracket picks Duke all the way | Yahoo! Sports
Former United States president Barack Obama revealed his brackets for the 2019 NCAA men’s and women’s basketball tournaments on Thursday. And while he didn’t pick all one seeds like he has in the past, his title picks are as unsurprising as can be.

March Madness 2019: Fun facts about all 68 teams, schools | SI.com
Astound your family and friends this weekend with your knowledge of random trivia about this year's NCAA tournament field.