Coming off back-to-back Big East losses to Creighton and Providence, the Wildcats were looking to get back on track. Villanova (13–7 overall, 6–3 Big East) faced off against DePaul (10–12 overall, 2–7 Big East) on Sunday, Jan. 28.
The ‘Cats came out with a 95-64 blowout victory on the road.
The win over the Blue Demons was an all-around team performance that saw every player record minutes in the game. The Wildcats also had four players scoring double-digits and two players close behind with nine points.
The first quarter was a competitive battle that finished with Villanova up 24–20. It wasn’t until late in the second quarter that the Wildcats started to run away with the lead, finishing the first half with a 12-point advantage.
It was all Villanova coming out of the half. The ‘Cats brought the deficit up to 20 points late in the third quarter. They would go into the fourth with a 19-point lead, controlling the game.
The last 12 minutes were more of the same for the Wildcats. The lead reached as high as 35 in the final thirty seconds of the 31-point victory.
Junior guard Lucy Olsen left her mark on the game. She nearly secured a double-double after scoring a game-high 24 points and nine assists. Olsen also tacked on six rebounds and shot 50 percent from the field.
Freshman forward Maddie Webber continued to impress, as she recorded 18 points and four assists while shooting an efficient 8–14 from the field. This record was just two points shy of Webber’s career high 20, which she previously put up in their recent loss against Providence.
Junior guard Zanai Jones and senior forward Bella Runyan were the other two Wildcat starters to reach double-digit points. Jones recorded 16 points and three assists, proving to be a reliable scoring option. Runyan filled the stat sheet with ten points, five assists and six rebounds.
The bench unit was able to get more involved due to the large lead. Senior guard Maddie Burke put up nine points in 23 minutes.
There were also notable contributions from two younger players on the Villanova roster, each recording five minutes in the matchup.
Redshirt freshman guard Abby Jegede recorded a career-high nine points on perfect shooting in her limited minutes. Jegede connected on all three of her shots from behind the arc.
Freshman forward Brynn McCurry had a solid performance as well, collecting seven points on 3–3 shooting.
In the blowout win, the Wildcats made sure to prove they were still a top team in the Big East. Every player had a role in a promising victory heading into a tough home matchup against No. 8 UConn (17–4 overall, 9–0 Big East) on Wednesday. Tip-off is set for 6:30 p.m.
