City of Basketball Love

Will Slover (@WillSlover31)
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In front of a packed crowd at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ, two of the nine remaining undefeated teams in Division I basketball went head-to-head in a clash that had the fans in attendance on the edge of their seats.

The first of two games in the Never Forget Tribute Classic, an event that pays homage to those who lost their lives in the tragedies that occurred on September 11, 2001, was a battle between two former conference foes (Villanova and Notre Dame) that was a treat for all who watched.

No. 1 Villanova topped No. 23 Notre Dame by a score of 74-66, but this game had more meaning than just what was happening on the court.

“We’re really proud to be a part of the cause. The cause is beautiful,” said Villanova head coach Jay Wright. “During the national anthem, with the firefighters out there and the policemen out there and the members of the families who lost people during 9/11. When they introduced me and (Notre Dame head coach) Mike (Brey), we both said how lucky we were to be here. It was definitely a special event.”

Villanova (10-0), whose win gives them a school record of 16 in a row dating back to last season, needed a herculean effort from senior Josh Hart, in order to make sure they left the building still with a zero in the loss column.

The National Player of the Year candidate, and frontrunner in many people’s eyes, finished with a career-high of 37 points, on 10-of-14 shooting from the field, 3-of-4 from three point range and a perfect 14-of-14 from the free throw line.

“I honestly didn’t know how many points I had,” said Hart. “I was just trying to make the right play.”

After falling behind by as much as 11 and trailing for the entirety of the first half, Villanova needed Hart in a big way after going into the intermission in unfamiliar territory, as they trailed at the break for the first time all season, by a score of 41-36.

Down by as much as eight in the second half, Villanova used a 16-6 run over a four minute span to take their first lead of the ball game with just over eight minutes remaining on a Jalen Brunson fast break layup triggered by an Eric Paschall block on the defensive end.

Of the 16 points scored in that span, 12 were by Hart, which combined with his 19 first half points, surpassed his previous career high of 30 with still almost a quarter of a ballgame left to play.

After jumping ahead by three, Villanova saw Notre Dame (9-1) climb back and retake the lead with 6:35 to go.

Who else but Hart to takeover and draw the foul and put Villanova ahead again, and this time for good, by a score of 63-62 just 20 seconds after.

“I was just out there playing,” said Hart. “Being tired and all of that is just mental. In a game like that, we were just battling until the end. Fatigue isn't a factor you’re just out there trying to give everything you have for your teammates.”

For the remainder of the game, Notre Dame continued to battle and stay close, never falling behind by more than three until a Kris Jenkins and-one with two minutes to go in the contest opened things up for Villanova and they never looked back.

Going 6-for-6 from the free throw line in the final minute, Villanova put Notre Dame away and kept their undefeated season alive.

While it was Hart’s scoring that got the attention of most people in the building, the senior’s ability to do it all is what drew the most praise from his coach.

“He’s as good as any player in the country,” said Wright. “He’s so complete. He will do whatever it takes to win a game and he’s got the ability to do it and at the right time. He got big rebounds at the end of the game, he got offensive rebounds, he scored, he made passes, he made free-throws, he defended (Steve) Vasturia. He did everything.’

On top of his impressive scoring effort, Hart also added in a game high of 11 rebounds and chipped in with four assists as the senior guard continues to make his case as the best player in the nation.

For Notre Dame, it was their New Jersey guard duo of junior Matt Farrell (Point Pleasant Beach HS) and senior Steve Vasturia (St. Joseph’s Prep) that made things so difficult for Villanova.

The tandem combined for 36 points and nine assists and they were largely responsible for Notre Dame’s ability to stay in the game after falling behind.

With each of them scoring 18 points, it was Vasturia who got Notre Dame their brief lead back with a three-pointer prior to the six minute mark, and it was his right hand man, Farrell, who cut Villanova’s lead right back down to two after the Jenkins and-one.

Following this matchup between the two power conference foes, each team will continue their out-of-conference slate as Villanova will play host to Big 5 opponent Temple on Tuesday and Notre Dame will travel to Purdue to take on the 18th ranked Boilermakers next Saturday.

If Villanova wants to extend their school-record win streak, Wright believes his team needs to take some things away from this tight contest.

“They taught us a lot about what we're going to have to deal with, so we’re going to learn from them,” said Wright. “I think we gutted out a win. We didn't play our best game, that’s to Notre Dame’s credit. We can get a lot better, that’s what we’re going to take away from this one.”