(PHOTOS & VIDEO BY LENNIE MALMGREN FOR PSD)
BY JOHN KNEBELS
Red hot.
After three impressive victories in the Women’s Basketball Invitational Tournament, that’s the reputation Villanova possesses as they prepare to take on Belmont in the second-year tourney’s Final Four, which takes place March 31 and April 2 at the Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana.
The Wildcats’ latest impressive outing, a convincing 71-61 win over the University of Portland March 27 in front of 1,153 home folks at the Finneran Pavilion, included four double-digit scorers.
“Truly excited to get a game here at home and get a final win here at the Finn,” said Villanova coach Denise Dillon. “Lot of respect for a great Portland team.
“I couldn’t be more proud of this group for just continuing to get better as the season has progressed. I felt their energy and was feeding off of that. They came here to get a win so they can continue their season.”
As she has done throughout her excellent freshman campaign, standout guard Jasmine Bascoe led all scorers with 20 points to go along with a game-best eight assists, five rebounds, and four steals – the latter contribution establishing a Villanova season record for thefts by a freshman.
VILLANOVA VS. PORTLAND IN WBIT QUARTERFINAL (VIDEO BY LENNIE MALMGREN FOR PSD)
Unlike their previous two come-from-behind WBIT wins over Boston College and St. Joseph’s, the Wildcats seized control of the momentum in the first quarter. After outscoring the Pilots by 18-11 in the first quarter and 18-13 in the second, Villanova didn’t relinquish the lead and appeared in control start to finish.
Villanova Freshman Jasmine Bascoe and Coach Denise Dillon discuss Nova’s WBIT quarterfinal victory in Postgame press conference. (video/ John Knebels for PSD)
On six-for-eight shooting, sophomore Maddie Webber tallied 16 points and three assists. Junior Ryanne Allen, an Archbishop Wood grad, came off the bench to collect 12 points and four boards.
In exactly 20 minutes of playing time, graduate student Lara Edmanson scored 10 points, grabbed four rebounds, and finished with a plus-16 in scoring.
Coming off an earlier injury that saw her miss games and practice, Edmanson seems full healthy.
“It’s been great to see Lara feeling better,” said Dillon. “We had to shut her down, and when you’re not practicing, your confidence wavers a little bit. You can just see the change the last couple games. She feels more like herself and it’s showing in the stat sheet.”
Villanova’s next opponent stunned a very strong James Madison University squad in the quarterfinals by an almost unfathomable 90-45. JMU, one of the 32-team tourney’s four number-one seeds, is usually particularly strong at home, so when the final score of the game made its way around Finneran, some thought there must have been some kind of a mistake.
Villanova vs. Portland (highlights by john knebels for psd)
Despite Belmont’s impressive win, Villanova is only focusing on their game. If the contest goes back and forth and comes down to the closing minutes, the Wildcats will be prepared as they attempt to reach the WBIT final for a second straight season.
"We’ve played so many close games this year,” said Bascoe. “We know what to do in those situations. It’s the trust we have in each other. As long as we stick together and all talk with each other and listen to Denise, we’ll be okay. It gets rocky sometimes, but we always find a way to pick it up.”
(Contact John Knebels at jknebels@gmail.com or on ‘X’ @johnknebels.)
