Villanova, paced by QB John Robertson, RB Kevin Monangai, and a fired up defense, beat the Dukes of James Madison University 35-20 in their final regular season game at Villanova Stadium, on Saturday afternoon, November 10th.
Villanova led the 9th ranked Dukes from start to finish. After JMU went three and out on its first possession, the Wildcats marched 74 yards in 10 plays to score on a 4 yard run by Robertson. On JMU’s next possession, the Wildcats defense stopped the Dukes on a fourth and one play at the Villanova 42 yard line (but failed to score after missing a FG attempt).
Early in the second quarter, the Wildcats Mark Hamilton booted a 22 yard field goal to make it 10-0. The highlight of the scoring drive was a 68 yard pass play from Robertson to Joe Price. Then, following an interception by safety Joe Sarnese, Villanova drove 45 yards in 11 plays to score on a 20 yard pass from Robertson to wide receiver Dorian Wells. At the half, Villanova led 17-0.
JMU got on the scoreboard in the third quarter after recovering a fumble by Robertson at the Villanova 18 yard line. The Dukes scored on a one yard run by QB Justin Thorpe.
Villanova quickly regained its momentum by driving 69 yards in 6 plays to score on a one yard run by Robertson. This drive was sparked by a 35 yard yard run by Austin Medley. Robertson appeared dazed after a big hit on the TD plunge and was replaced for the rest of the game by back-up QB Chris Polony.
Following an interception by linebacker Devon Bridges deep in JMU’s territory, the Wildcats looked poised to score again. But the Dukes forced a punt which Villanova downed at the JMU one yard line. The Dukes QB was sacked by the Wildcats Matt McCann and Joey Harmon for a safety to make it 26-7.
On the ensuing possession, the Wildcats traveled 55 yards in 9 plays with Monangai capping the drive with a 1 yard plunge. At the end of the third quarter, the Wildcats held a 33-7 lead over the Dukes.
Although JMU tacked on two scores in the fourth quarter to narrow Villanova’s lead to 33-20, the Wildcats maintained their composure. Villanova scored again when Joey Harmon sacked Thorpe once more in the end-zone for another safety to make the score 35-20.
Monangai, who came into the game as the leading rusher in the CAA, gained 150 yards on 25 carries. In doing so, he passed the 1,000 yard mark in rushing for the year. This was his fourth consecutive game of rushing for more than 100 yards in a game. Most impressively, he became only the fourth player in Villanova football history to rush for more than 1,000 yards in a season, joining the legendary Brian Westbrook (who did it 3 times in his career), Aaron Ball, and Curtis Sifford as members of that exclusive club.
Even though his day ended early, Robertson passed for 141 yards and a touchdown, while running for two more scores. Medley, who returned from injury, racked up 61 yards rushing on 10 carries. Dorian Wells was the Wildcats leading receiver with 4 receptions for 47 yards and a touchdown.
With the win, Villanova improved its record to 7-3 (5-2 CAA). JMU dropped to 7-3 (5-2 CAA) with the loss. Villanova will conclude its regular season next Saturday afternoon (330pm) November 17 at Delaware. With a win, it is almost certain that the Wildcats will once again be in the FCS playoffs.
Before an announced crowd of 32,709 the local college football season kicked off with the host Temple Owls battering the Villanova Wildcats 41-10 in the fourth annual Mayor’s Cup game at Lincoln Financial Field. The game marked the 33rd meeting all-time between the Owls and the Wildcats. Overall, Villanova held a 16-14-2 edge coming into the game.
Villanova went three and out on the first possession of the game. Temple then marched 78 yards in 14 plays to take an early 6-0 lead. The score came on an 8 yard shovel pass from Chris Coyer to Kenneth Harper. Brian McManus converted the extra point.
On their second possession, the Wildcats drove from their own 12 yard line to the Owls 3 yard line where their drive stalled. Mark Hamilton then kicked a 20 yard field goal to make the score 7-3 with 2:19 left in the opening quarter. The key play in the drive was a 36 yard run by Austin Medley.
The Owls got back on the scoreboard at the 11:24 mark of the second quarter when Vaughn Carraway picked off an errant pass by Chris Polony and returned it 57 yards for a touchdown. McManus booted the extra point to make it 14-3 in favor of the Owls. On the very next possession, Villanova’s Kevin Monangai fumbled the ball and Carraway recovered the ball for Temple. Temple scored again three plays later on a 19 yard keeper by Chris Coyer. McManus booted the point after to put the Owls on top 21-3.
Just before the end of the first half, Villanova, showing some new life, drove 69 yards in 7 plays with QB John Robertson running it in for a touchdown from 4 yards out. Mark Hamilton converted the extra point to make the score 21-10. Temple, however, not to be outdone, came right back and scored twenty-one seconds before the end of the first half on a dazzling 56 yard run by Matt Brown (141 rushing yards, TD), effectively taking the wind out of Villanova’s sails. The half ended with Temple leading by a commanding score of 28-10.
Temple wasted no time at the start of the second half, quickly driving 69 yards to score. Kenneth Harper raced 38 yards for the touchdown with 12:19 left in the 3rd quarter to give the Owls a 35-10 lead. It was Harper’s second touchdown of the game.
Temple added to its lead when Matt Brown scampered 45 yards on a punt return to put the Owls deep in Villanova territory. A few plays later, Brandon McManus kicked a 24 yard field goal to make it 38-10. The field goal was McManus’ 47th of his career to set a new Temple record. McManus booted another field goal on the Owls next possession from 31 yards to boost the Owls lead to 41-10.
In the final analysis, Temple, led by running back Matt Brown and QB Chris Coyer was just too quick, too deep, and too determined to be stopped. The Owls, who return to the Big East this season, dominated play on both sides of the ball throughout the game. Villanova tried valiantly to keep pace but just did not have the weapons to do so.
Philadelphia mayor Michael Nutter was on hand for the coin toss. Many famous alumni from both school also attended the game including Brian Westbrook from Villanova and Bill Cosby from Temple.
Villanova next plays the Fordham Rams at 6 p.m. on Saturday, September 8 at Villanova Stadium. Temple will host the Maryland Terrapins at the Linc at noon on the same day.
You can view a full photo gallery of the 2012 Mayor’s Cup below (click thumbnails to enlarge):
With 1:32 left in the second half, Villanova trailed Cincinnati 66-64 (after rallying back from an eight point halftime deficit), when Yancy Gates was fouled and went to the line to shoot two free throws. Gates missed both foul shots, but in a moment that was a microcosm for the entire Villanova season, the Wildcats were unable to come up with the rebound and lost the ball out of bounds, losing a chance to tie the game or take a lead. Instead, the Bearcats retained the ball and Dion Dixon drained a triple to make it 67-62. Even though Maalik Wayns drained a three pointer with 40:1 left on the clock, the Wildcats were not able to pull even with the Bearcats and missed an opportunity to gain momentum for the upcoming Big East tournament.
Villanova, coming off of a road win at Rutgers on Thursday night, fell behind Cincinnati 9-4 to start the nationally televised game at the Pavilion. The Wildcats rallied to tie the game at 11-11, but fell behind again when the Bearcats went on a 9-0 run to go up 20-11. Cincinnati was able to retain the lead throughout the first half by dominating the boards (17-12, including 8 offensive rebounds) and hitting on 51.6% of their field goal attempts. At the intermission, the Bearcats held a 40-32 lead. Gates had 10 points and Sean Kilpatrick chipped in 9. For Villanova, Wayns and Dominic Cheek each had 10 points.
Villanova came out for the second half with a greater sense of urgency and outscored Cincinnati 15-7 to notch a tie at 47-47. After the Bearcats briefly retook the lead 49-47, Wayns hit a triple to give the Wildcats a 50-49 lead. The teams then traded the lead four times before the Wildcats again tied it up at 58-58 on a basket by Markus Kennedy. Cincinnati then went back on top 64-58 by hitting two three-point shots. Once more, the Wildcats, who struggled all season long, tried to mount a comeback, and got the score to 64-62 on a Mouph Yarou basket. However, the Wildcats were unable to successfully get over the hump and lost another Big East battle.
With the loss, Villanova closed out the regular season with an overall record of 12-18, 5-13 in the Big East. Cincinnati ended its regular season with a mark of 22-9, 12-6 in the Big East. Villanova was led in scoring by Wayns with 26 points. Yarou added 16 and Cheek contributed 10, all in the first half. Maurice Sutton, who once again played with great energy, scored 9 points. Cincinnati had four players in double figures: Gates had 16, Dixon 14, Kilpatrick 13, and JaQuon Parker pitched in 11.
Villanova ended up winning the rebounding margin 31-30. Yarou had 7 boards, and Sutton & Kennedy had 5 each. Gates was the Bearcats’ leading rebounder with 9. Wayns handed out 5 assists, with only 2 turnovers for Nova and Cashmere Wright had 6 assists and zero turnovers for Cincinnati.
Next up for both teams is the Big East tournament, which starts on March 6th in Madison Square Garden. Cincinnati will enjoy a double bye before playing its first game at the Garden. Villanova will be playing on the first day when they square off with Rutgers at 930pm.
Sitting court side were former Villanova basketball star Malik Allen, former Villanova and Philadelphia Eagles football great Brian Westbrook, and Hall of Fame coach Larry Brown.
On a weekend when Delaware and Villanova squared off on the hardwood and the gridiron, the Villanova hoopsters drew first blood by beating the Blue Hens 79-69 at the Pavilion on Friday night. Part two took place at PPL Park, home of the Philadelphia Union, on Saturday at 330pm, when the two teams faced off in the first ever American football game at the site.
Villanova quickly raced out to a 10-2 lead in basketball on the strength of three baskets and a free throw by Mouphtaou Yarou, and a trey by Darrun Hilliard. The Wildcats, paced by a very assertive Yarou, and point guard Maalik Wayns, led throughout the first half and took what looked like a commanding 14 point lead into the locker room. Yarou had 15 points, and Wayns had 13, at the break. For the Blue Hens, guard Devon Saddler, CAA rookie of the year last season, tossed in 12 first half points.
Delaware went on a 13-6 run to start the second half to cut the Wildcats lead in half, 44-37, with 15:55 to play. Saddler keyed the run by hitting two three-point shots. A few moments later, Jarvis Threatt hit a three-pointer and the Blue Hens drew within 4 points of the heavily favored Wildcats, 44-40. Villanova then rallied as Dominic Cheek, who was limited to two first half points, hit a three pointer. Wayns then scored on a drive and the lead was back up to 9 points, 49-40.
The teams continued to trade buckets and Villanova remained out in front throughout the second half. Cheek hit 5 of 9 second half shots, including three three-point shots (for a total of 19 points), to lead the way for Villanova. The Wildcats also got a very energetic second half contribution from Maurice Sutton, who grabbed 4 boards and scored three points (including a throw down on a nice assist by Wayns, which excited the crowd).
Villanova, which raised its record to 3-0 with the win, had three double figure scorers: Wayns and Cheek both had 21, and Yarou finished with 19. The Wildcats were led in rebounding by Darrun Hilliard with 6 boards. James Bell, who had a quiet night scoring, was Villanova’s assist leader with 7, and did not commit a turnover. Overall, Villanova shot 48.2% from the field, hitting 27 of 56 shots. The Wildcats hit 8 of 22 three-point shots (36.4 %), and pulled down 34 rebounds. Nova also had 19 assists in the game, against just 10 turnovers.
Delaware, which fell to 0-2 on the season, was led by Saddler, the high scorer in the game, with 27 points on 11 of 26 shooting (to go along with his 4 rebounds and 4 assists). Freshman guard Kyle Anderson, who missed Delaware’s first game with an injury, chipped in 12 points, hitting four three-pointers. Another freshman, Jarvis Threatt, added 11 points. Kelvin McNeill topped the Blue Hens in rebounding with 9. The Blue Hens out-rebounded Villanova 36-34.
Next up for Villanova is a trip to Anaheim, California, where the Wildcats will take part in the 76 Classic. Villanova’s trip out west begins with a Thanksgiving Day matinee against UC Riverside. The Wildcats then return home on December 3rd to play the Penn Quakers in a Big Five contest at the Pavilion.
The next day, at PPL Park, the Delaware Blue Hens overcame a 16-13 deficit in the 4th quarter to beat the Villanova Wildcats, for the first time in six years, 26-16. The loss put a damper on an outstanding performance by Villanova freshman Jamal Abdur-Rahman, who gained almost 300 all-purpose yards, and rushed for two touchdowns in a losing effort. Abdur-Rahman, an emerging star for the Wildcats, ran for a net of 119 yards and 2 touchdowns (58 yards and 43 yards), returned kicks for 151 yards, and caught 2 passes for 21 yards. Abdur-Rahman’s performance was so good, Coach Andy Talley remarked that he didn’t remember even Brian Westbrook, the former Villanova and Philadelphia Eagles star, having such a game as a freshman.
In the second part of the weekend battle between the Blue Hens and the Wildcats, the two teams played the first American football game at scenic PPL Park, the home of the Philadelphia Union of the MLS. Delaware took a quick 3-0 lead, following a game opening 61 yard kickoff return by Travis Hawkins to the Villanova 39 yard line. Sean Baner culminated the drive, which stalled on the Wildcats 10 yard line, by kicking a 26 yard field goal, the first of four he made in the game.
With 6:25 to go in the first quarter, Villanova drove from their own 43 to the Delaware 2 yard line. Mark Hamilton kicked a 19 yard field goal to tie the game on the last play of the quarter. Perhaps it was karma that the first two scores in the game, came from kicks on the soccer pitch.
Early in the second quarter, Abdur-Rahman electrified the crowd of 14,107, by racing 58 yards down the right sideline for a touchdown, to put Villanova in the lead. The touchdown was the first ever scored in the PPL Park venue. On its next possession, Delaware took advantage of a Villanova offside penalty on the kickoff to gain good field position. The Blue Hens drove 40 yards in 10 plays before stalling. Baner kicked a 34 yard field goal to make it a 10-6 game.
Villanova reciprocated by driving to the Blue Hens 15 yard line on the strength of a 50 yard dash by senior running back Lawrence Doss. However, the drive died and a scoring opportunity was lost, when Chris Polony’s pass was picked off by Ricky Tunstall in the end zone. This was Tunstall’s third interception in his last two games.
Delaware then proceeded to march 80 yards in 16 plays, 13 of which were carries by Andrew Pierce, to score a go ahead touchdown. Pierce plunged into the endzone from the 1 as the Blue hens took a 13-10 lead, a mere 12 seconds before the half. Pierce carried the ball 26 times for 87 yards in the first half. Delaware dominated the time of possession in the opening half, controlling the ball for 20 minutes and 44seconds. Villanova had the ball for 9:13 in the first half.
Villanova opened the second half by driving to the Delaware 10 yard line where Quarterback Chris Polony fumbled and the Blue Hens’ Patrick Callaway recovered the football, thus killing another promising scoring opportunity. However, the Wildcats struck pay-dirt on their next drive to reclaim the lead. The score came on nifty 43 yard run by Abdur-Rahman, his second touchdown of the game. Mark Hamilton’s extra point try was blocked and Villanova led 16-13, a lead the Wildcats would take into the fourth quarter.
Delaware tied the game at 16 all on a 40 yard field goal by Baner. The Hens appeared to have benefitted from a missed call on a sideline catch by Niahja White on a 3rd and 11. The replay showed the receiver out of bounds.
PPL Park (Outside)
Delaware took the lead for good on another field goal by Baner, this one a 29 yarder. The Blue Hens clinched the victory in the annual Battle of the Blue, when Ricky Tunstall again picked off Polony and ran it back 54 yards for a touchdown.
Once again turnovers cost Villanova the game, as they did for much of the season. Villanova had 3 turnovers, 2 interceptions and a fumble. Two of the turnovers occurred in the Red Zone, costing the Wildcats a chance to tack on points.
With the win, Delaware improved its record to 7-4, 5-3 CAA. The Blue Hens are hoping this win will pave the way for a playoff berth. For the young Wildcats, who started a total of 10 freshmen in the game, their record fell to 2-9, 1-7 CAA. Although Coach Talley was disappointed with the loss, in a game he thought his team could have won, he believes that the future is bright with all of the young Villanova players gaining valuable experience for their return next season.
You can view an expanded photo slideshow of the basketball game below
Try as they might, the Wildcats couldn’t weather the Red Storm. Led by Big East player-of-the year candidate Dwight Hardy’s career-high 34 points, St. John’s beat Villanova 81-68 in a nationally televised (ESPN) game at the Wells Fargo Center on Saturday afternoon.
Maalik Wayns Lay-Up
After Villanova tied the game at 2-2 in the first minute of the game, the Red Storm of St. John’s University took the lead and never relinquished it. Buoyed by a 13-0 run, the Red Storm took an 18-4 lead that forced the Wildcats to play catch up the remainder of the game. Hardy scored 11 of the Red Storm’s first twenty-five points as St. John’s threatened to blow out the Wildcats. To their credit, Villanova battled back led by Corey Stokes, Dominic Cheek, and Maalik Wayns, to cut the Red Storm’s lead to six points at the intermission 41-36.
Dwight Hardy Stroking a ThreeMaalik Wayns & Dwight Hardy (Combined for 53 points)
St. John’s half-time lead was built on a foundation of hot shooting and strong rebounding. The Red Storm hit 14 of 29 field goal attempts (48.3%) including a very impressive 8 for 18 from three point range (44.4 %). Hardy and Paris Horne each hit 3 treys in the first half. Hardy had 13 points and Horne 11 points.
D.J. Kennedy Scores InsideMaalik Wayns Free-Throw
For Villanova, Stokes had 11 points and Cheek 8 points to pace the Wildcats in the first half.
Antonio Pena Baseline Jumper over Justin Burrell
At the start of the second-half, Antonio Pena scored to make it a three-point game 41-38 and aroused the 16,042 fans in attendance at the Wildcats final home game. However, Hardy quickly hit two three-pointers to push the Red Storm out to a 47-40 lead. After Justin Brownlee scored to make it 53-44 with 15:52 left to go, the Wildcats once again clawed their way back into the game as Stokes hit a couple of three-pointers to make it a 55-50 game. Hardy then took charge and scored 5 points on three made free throw attempts and a sweet layup to stretch the lead back to 61-52.
Paris Horne Swishes the JumperCorey Stokes Jumper
Villanova then made another surge and cut the margin to 63-61 on a three-pointer by Stokes. And a few minutes later, when Wayns scored and completed an old-fashioned three-point play, the Cats were within one point of tying the game at 65-64 with 4 minutes left to play. But down the stretch, the Wildcats could not convert and turned the ball over several times, and Hardy and DJ Kennedy were prolific from the charity stripe as the Red Storm outscored Villanova 16-4 to win going away 81-68.
Dominic Cheek Three-Pointer
St. John’s had 4 players in double figures led by Hardy’s 34 (including 5 of 9 from three-point range and 11 of 13 free throws), Kennedy had a double-double with 12 points and 14 boards, Horne finished with a dozen points, and Brownlee added 11.
For Villanova Stokes had 20 points, Wayns contributed 19, and Cheek ended up with 11 points. Both Antonio Pena and Mouphtaou Yarou had 8 rebounds for the Wildcats, who were outrebounded 39-33 by the Red Storm. Corey Fisher, who had a very rough shooting game, had 7 assists, with only one turnover to go along with his 2 points.
Mouphtaou Yarou Takes it Inside
The Wildcats fell to 21-8 overall, 9-7 in the Big East. With the win, the 23rd ranked Red Storm improved their record under coach Steve Lavin to 19-9 on the season, 11-5 in the Big East.
The Wildcats return to action Monday night (February 28) in South Bend, Indiana, when they take on the nationally ranked Fighting Irish of Notre Dame at 7 pm in another Big East clash. The game will be televised by ESPN. Villanova will then wrap up their regular season with a rematch against the Big East leading Pittsburgh Panthers on March 5th.
St. John's Coach Steve LavinJayVaughn Pinkston Watching From the StandsFormer Villanova Great & Philadelphia Eagle Brian Westbrook
View our full video of Villanova’s post-game press conference with Jay Wright, Maalik Wayns, and Corey Stokes below:
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