City of Basketball Love

Finn Courtney (@finncourtney_)
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VILLANOVA - Villanova women’s basketball played a superb game for three quarters Wednesday night, opening up a 14-point lead early in the third quarter.

The fourth frame, though, proved to be the architect of their defeat, as the Wildcats were outscored 23-11 across the final ten minutes and defeated by Princeton, 73-68.

A game many expected would be a dogfight turned into just that down the stretch, with multiple ties and lead changes after the five-minute mark.

“That was a tough outcome,” Villanova head coach Denise Dillon said. “Got to do a lot more work. I gotta be better for our team to be better, but good finish by Princeton out there.”

The decisive fourth quarter saw Villanova enter an offensive rut at an inopportune time. The Wildcats had just one made field goal on 10 attempts, including no made field goals in the final eight-and-a-half minutes — a testament to a Princeton defense that tightened up in the clutch.

Defensively, Villanova struggled to get stops against an experienced Princeton team returning most of its players from last season’s Ivy League championship season, including guard Skye Belker who scored nine points for the Tigers in the last quarter alone.

“Just doing better trying to connect with the players out there to keep them settled,” Dillon said, when asked about what needs to be improved on from the dysmal fourth quarter. “But keeping that urgency on the defensive end, trying to get stops that we needed. Some shots weren’t falling, so I think a little panic set in. [...] I will connect it with them, continue feeding them some confidence and just trying to get some cleaner looks down the stretch as well. So, [credit] their defense, but I felt that we kind of lost focus, shut off a little bit and weren’t able to close it out.”

Still sorting through a roster that returned just five rotational pieces, Villanova required major minutes from players adjusting to larger roles — namely, talented freshman Kennedy Henry, who played a team-high 34.

It was a tale of two halves for the Westtown alum; at halftime, Henry had logged 11 points, three steals — she finished with six, a new career-high — and three assists. But in the second half, Henry went just 1-of-2 from the field and committed four turnovers. 

“I think Kennedy has a bright future, she’s out there probably playing, I think right now, averaging the most minutes on the team early in her career,” Dillon said. “She just has areas where she impacts both ends of the floor [and she] just contributes in so many areas. I think it’s maybe too many minutes, because she got a little gassed down the stretch, lost a little bit of that balance that she had. But definitely pleased with her early in her career.”

On a team still trying to find its secondary scorer behind sophomore star Jasmine Bascoe, Henry looks to be fitting the role through four games, averaging 9 points, 5.5 rebounds and a team-leading 17 assists.

And despite Wednesday being just her fourth collegiate game, with some growing pains adjusting to the next level, Henry has impressed both Dillon and those watching.

“It was nice to be able to throw her in there early,” Dillon said. “Obviously, we need her, so she’s getting that experience quickly but her overall basketball queue is really good. I think that’s what gives her the edge that she needs. She’s played good basketball, high school and AAU but it’s a definite flip to this level but she is embracing it and trying to learn quickly.”

Beyond Henry, Bascoe led the team with 16 points, but it was an overall inefficient night for the Ontario native, who shot just 5-of-15 and just 1-of-5 from beyond the arc, struggling down the stretch with Princeton's physical interior defense. Senior Denae Carter also scored in double-digits, finishing with 12 points and four rebounds, but shuffled on and off the court with foul trouble.

The balanced, still-gelling nature of this roster was on full display Wednesday, as eight players scored five or more points and nine found the court for at least ten minutes. Of note, sophomore Dani Ceseretti and junior Brynn McCurry found the floor for 23 and 20 minutes respectively, including their fair share of crunch-time minutes.

“Dani, we were relying on to get some defensive stops out there,” Dillon said, of the guard’s increased usage. “Again, just putting people in situations that may have been in these situations before. With a number of freshmen out there, throughout the contest, you could see some areas where they got exposed a little. So [relied on] a little bit of, I wouldn’t say they’re veterans by any means, Dani and Brynn, but players who have experience a little bit.”

For McCurry, Wednesday marked arguably her best game since her freshman year. It’s been a story of injuries for the New Jersey native, suffering a torn ACL that wiped out her senior year of high school and a torn ACL in her other leg that wiped out her sophomore season.

In the loss to Princeton, the 6-1 forward finished with seven points, six rebounds and five assists, her highest totals since spring 2024. Despite a brace still being on her right knee and heavy padding on an unrelated elbow injury, McCurry has played well in the early part of the season. She’s been one of the first Wildcats off the bench, averaging the most minutes of any non-starter (18.3).

“Brynn just is vocal, she’s doing a nice job the more she’s playing after a year out,” Dillon said. “She just gives you a little bit of that spark, she knows what needs to happen. She’s tough, she is a competitor.” 

Villanova gets back in action in just four days, paying a visit to James Madison; the Dukes are now 3-1 on the year after beating Liberty earlier tonight. Tipoff is set for 2:00 p.m. Sunday, with the Wildcats looking to get back in the win column.