An extended 17-2 run in the second quarter allowed No. 1 Villanova (20-12, 11-7 Big East) to cruise past No. 4 Virginia (16-16, 7-11 ACC) in the second round of the Women’s Basketball Invitation Tournament at the Finneran Pavilion Sunday afternoon, 73-55.
Though the Wildcats did not trail in the game, their lead was by just one entering the second period. The ‘Cats outscored the Cavaliers 19-6 in the second to build up a 36-20 lead by the halftime break. From there, the smallest the Wildcat lead got was nine.
The win sets up a Big 5 rematch with No. 3 St. Joe’s (28-5, 15-3 A10). The Hawks downed No. 2 Cal, 63-61, in Berkeley Sunday evening to advance.
Junior guard Lucy Olsen spearheaded the offensive effort for the Wildcats, finishing with 30 points on 12-of-23 shooting from the field and four assists.
“I just want to do whatever I have to do to win,” Olsen said. “If I need to score the ball [or] dish it out, I just want to win. So if I have to score points, that’s fun too.”
Olsen scored 14 of the Wildcats’ 17 first quarter points, and was the only Wildcat to score for a nearly-10 minute stretch spanning the first and second quarters.
The ‘Cats were without their third-leading scorer in freshman guard Maddie Webber, who sustained an injury during the first round game against VCU. She was on the bench in a knee brace. The nature of her injury has not yet been announced.
“It’s tough,” Villanova head coach Denise Dillon said. “You hate to see a player go out, especially with the rotation… Unfortunately she went down in that VCU game. Still waiting to find out what she’s dealing with, but I was really pleased with other players stepping up. It’s tough.”
Also in double figures for the ‘Cats were senior guard Bella Runyan and freshman forward Brynn McCurry. Runyan finished with 15 points, eight rebounds and six assists, while McCurry finished with 10 points.
Junior forward Christina Dalce finished with six points and 15 rebounds. The ‘Cats out-rebounded the Cavaliers, 42-28.
“I thought the biggest thing was the rebounding battle,” Dillon said. “We won the battle of the boards, that was a collective effort. Everyone had that mentality of getting after the boards, that ‘one and done’ mentality.”
The Wildcats advance to the quarterfinals of the inaugural WBIT. St. Joe’s and Villanova met in non-conference play in early December on Hawk Hill. In that meeting, the Hawks erased a 10-point Villanova lead over the last 15 minutes of the game, handing Villanova a 73-67 loss. Olsen scored 32 in the loss.
The winner of the second meeting between the Hawks and the ‘Cats will advance to the semifinals of the WBIT, hosted at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. The semifinal games are set to be played on April 1, with the championship game scheduled for April 3.
“Every game could be our last, so we’re coming out every day hoping to play one more,” Olsen said. “Especially having home games, it’s been super fun. We don’t want it to end.”
Tip for the game against St. Joe’s is set for 7 p.m. at the Finneran Pavilion on Thursday, March 28. It will be streamed on ESPN+.
