Villanova Basketball looks for bounceback win at Creighton

Happy Game Day Nova Nation! The Wildcats wrap up their two game road trip tonight in Omaha as they take on the Creighton Bluejays. You can catch our full preview here, but suffice it to say that Villanova will have their hands full tonight as they try to rebound from Saturday’s loss at Marquette.

Heading into the game there’s been no word yet on junior Jermaine Samuels status after hitting the ground hard in Saturday’s game and not returning. Villanova usually keeps medical details to themselves unless there’s going to be some long term absence, so in this case no news is good news. Will he be 100% heading into tonight? We’ll have to wait and see, but so will Creighton.

As for the game, it’s likely to boil down to three keys for the Wildcats: defend the perimeter, score in the paint, and win on the boards. If Villanova wins all three of those battles, they could pull out the upset. That’s right, Villanova is a 2.5 point underdog on the road tonight.

That leads us to today’s game day poll. With paint touches being a premium in this matchup for the Wildcats, who do you think will score the most points in the paint tonight?

In other “news”, everything you need to know about tonight’s game at Creighton, Villanova projecting as a 4-Seed in a few Bracketologies, and Kyle Lowry’s night at the ballet. Enjoy!

Villanova Men’s Basketball

Here's What the NCAA Tournament Bracket Looks Like Right Now - Stadium
Kansas is back on top in the Big 12. But will they earn a No. 1 seed? Villanova comes in as the 4 seed in the MidWest.

Gillespie, Moore Earn Weekly Honors | Villanova University Athletics
Two Wildcats Earned Weekly Honors on Monday.

Villanova vs Creighton

Davis: My picks against the spread for Ohio State-Maryland, Baylor-Texas Tech and the rest of the night’s top games | The Athletic
Seth Davis makes his college basketball picks against the spread for the best games on Tuesday. Creighton is the favorite in tonight's game.

Villanova visits another tough Big East venue at Creighton looking for better shooting and smarter decisions | The Inquirer
Coach Jay Wright didn't think his players made good decisions in front of a sold-out crowd at Marquette, and will need to do better in another hostile environment against the Bluejays.

College basketball expert picks: Schedule, predictions | Sports Illustrated
Who will win Baylor vs Kansas, Maryland vs Ohio State, Oregon vs Arizona and more big games in college basketball this week? SI is going with the Wildcats tonight in a split decision.

Men's Basketball Hosts No. 16 Villanova on Tuesday | Creighton University Athletics
Villanova leads the all-time series with Creighton, 13-3, including a 4-2 record in Omaha.

No. 16 Villanova, Creighton look to rebound after losses | Yahoo! Sports
Villanova will be looking to rebound from a tough road loss at Marquette with an even more daunting challenge Tuesday at Creighton. The No. 16-ranked Wildcats (10-3, 1-1 in Big East) fell 71-60 Saturday against the Golden Eagles largely because of poor shooting. Villanova shot just 35.3 percent and

Scouting report: Players to watch, three keys for Creighton vs. No. 16 Villanova | omaha.com
The reigning Big East champions are coming to town. Here’s how the game sets up.

Big East

Big East Men’s Basketball Schedule: Week 10 | Anonymous Eagle
Marquette and Providence are in the biggest games this week.

Butler reaches its highest-ever mark in first AP men's basketball rankings of 2020 | NCAA.com
Butler jumped to sixth in the first AP men's college basketball poll of 2020, the highest-ever ranking for the Bulldogs in the AP.

Big 5

Jack Scheuer Palestra courtside 50 years and counting | The Inquirer
Scheuer is certain he’s attended more Big 5 games than anybody. He hasn’t lost his enthusiasm.

No. 20 Dayton tops Saint Joe's to end Hawk Hill drought | Weirton Daily Times
With Obi Toppin on the bench early in the second half against Saint Joseph’s with four fouls, Dayton showed the depth that has it atop the Atlantic 10.

PSU rocked the Palestra, strengthening connection with Philly hoops
Over 8,700 college hoops fans crammed inside the most iconic venue the sport can over on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania Saturday afternoon to welcome Penn State and Iowa in a Big Ten clash.

NBA Wildcats

Eric Paschall Q&A: Warriors rookie discusses NBA life, favorite music | NBCS Bay Area
Now 32 games into his career, Eric Paschall discussed NBA life, his migration from the East Coast to the Bay Area and more.

Omari Spellman is earning a larger role in Steve Kerr’s rotation | Warriors Wire
After back-to-back double-digit scoring off the bench, second-year forward, Omair Spellman has earned a larger role with Golden State.

Kyle Lowry Pretty Much Forced Raptors Teammate Matt Thomas To Do The Nutcracker | Narcity
Can't say no to Kyle.

Golden State Warriors: Omari Spellman, not Evans, is the sophomore stud | Blue Man Hoop
Omari Spellman, a forward the Golden State Warriors traded for this past offseason, has been one of the team's better young talents.

Why the Warriors aren’t worried about Eric Paschall’s midseason struggles | SFChronicle.com
Eric Paschall might have experienced the “rookie wall” last month, but the Warriors believe he’s getting his rookie season back on track.

Go-Go Roundup: January 6 | Washington Wizards
Phil Booth tallied a season high 22 points in his first start of the season.

Villanova Women’s Basketball

Maddy Siegrist Named BIG EAST Rookie of the Week | Villanova University Athletics
NEW YORK – Two Villanova Wildcats were honored by the BIG EAST Conference for their play in three games last week. Redshirt freshman forward Maddy Siegrist (Poughkeepsie,

Villanvoa Football

Four Football Student-Athletes Named to Academic All-Area Team | Villanova University Athletics
PHILADELPHIA—Four student-athletes who each made significant on-field contributions during the 2019 season were named to the Philadelphia Inquirer Academic All-Area

Villanova Athletics

Lydia Olivere Named Villanova Student-Athlete of the Month | Villanova University Athletics
VILLANOVA, Pa.—Sophomore women's cross country runner Lydia Olivere (Wilmington, Del.) was named the Office of Academic Support Student-Athlete of the Month presented

College Basketball

College basketball’s conference play has taught us these 10 things | SBNation.com
The conference grind portion of the 2019-20 college basketball season has arrived.

The gap between Duke and North Carolina and 17 more college basketball lessons learned to begin 2020 | NCAA.com
Duke and North Carolina broke hard in opposite directions the first weekend of 2020 in men's college basketball.

Bracketology: Butler and undefeated San Diego State join Gonzaga and Duke as No. 1 seeds in updated bracket | CBSSports.com
There are some surprising teams on the top line in Jerry Palm's latest NCAA Tournament bracket projection

Jay Bilas' college basketball rankings for 2019-20, version 2.0 | ESPN
College basketball has had its challenges in 2019-20, and an officiating problem is among the core issues. Villanova comes in at #19.

Buy, sell or hold? The annual Hoop Thoughts Stock Report has all the answers | The Athletic
Seth Davis tells you what he thinks — and what you should think — about 70 teams in college basketball.

Why Duke, Gonzaga and 19 other ranked teams won't win the NCAA tournament | ESPN
History says these negative characteristics will be the biggest hurdle keeping certain top teams from winning a national title.