On Saturday, Jan. 4, Villanova (10-5, 3-1 Big East) dominated DePaul (9-6, 0-4 Big East), 100-56, marking its first 100-point game since Nov. 16, 2021. Villanova is 9-0 this season in holding opponents to under 70 points.
“I thought our guys came out and really locked in defensively,” Villanova head coach Kyle Neptune said. “I was really impressed and proud of how we defended today.”
Villanova senior guard Wooga Poplar finished Villanova’s dominant win with 17 points and three rebounds. The guard has found confidence on the court after a slow start to the season. Over the last five games, Poplar has dropped two double-doubles, averaging 15.2 points and 7.4 rebounds.
He has been a key part of Villanova’s improvement throughout the season, coming off a career-high 15 rebounds in the 73-65 win over Butler on Jan. 1.
Villanova opened the game on a 13-0 run and held its lead for the remainder of the game.
The highlight of Villanova’s offensive performance was senior guard Jordan Longino. He shot a perfect five-for-five on three-pointers, marking a career-high. His previous career-high was three.
Longino also finished with a career-high 19 points, shooting 77.7% on field goals.
Graduate guard Jhamir Brickus had a career-high 11 assists and just one turnover. Brickus shot three-for-four from three, scoring 11 points. He was one of four Wildcats to score double-digits.
Redshirt freshman Kris Parker came off the bench and scored a career-high 11 points. Parker has played an under-the-radar season, however, he has had major defensive contributions as of late.
“Kris [Parker] is somebody who kind of had a tough paper route here,” Neptune said. “He didn’t come to us until August and got hurt in the preseason. He’s a talent. So he’s a guy that we think can improve dramatically over these next couple of months, especially defensively. He gives us another multifaceted defender who can guard multiple positions.”
Entering the game, DePaul averaged 11 made three-pointers per game. The Wildcats were able to hold the Blue Demons to 28% from three. It was DePaul’s worst three-point performance of conference play.
The lack of defensive intensity has been a weakness for Villanova this season. KenPom, a data-driven basketball system, currently ranks the Wildcats 191st defensively, the worst in the KenPom era. In the win, however, Villanova outrebounded DePaul, 42-32, and held the Blue Demons to 33.3% on field goals.
“We have to try to keep improving our weaknesses [defense] and keep going with our strengths,” Neptune said. “Fine-tuning our strengths. And again, keep pushing towards the end of this season.”
Villanova’s 44-point win is the largest win margin in Big East history since the conference realignment in 2013.
“We just [have] to remain humble and hungry,” Neptune said. “This was our Super Bowl today. We get a day off and a couple of days of practice, and [then] we have another Super Bowl coming up [against UConn].”
The Wildcats will now prepare to face No. 11 UConn (11-3, 3-0 Big East) at home on Wednesday, Jan. 8. (6:30 p.m., FS1). It will be the first time Villanova hosts UConn in front of fans at the Finn since Jan. 5, 1995.
