Villanova Vs. West Virginia: Mountaineers Bag The Wildcats 83-69

Villanova fell flat in their return to action after the holiday break. The Wildcats lost by a final score of 83-69 to the West Virginia Mountaineers in Big East play at the West Virginia University Coliseum.

The Wildcats trailed by just four points at halftime, but the Mountaineers outscored them 43-33 in the second half for the win. Dominic Cheek and Maalik Wayns each scored 20 points for Nova. Cheek also had six rebounds and two assists on the night, but it was not enough to overcome a lack of scoring from the rest of the team.

Darryl Bryant led the Mountaineers with 34 points and four three-pointers.

That was the first game of conference play for the Wildcats. It drops them to 7-7 overall, and they are now 0-3 on the road this season.

For more on Villanova, visit The Nova Blog.

The road trip and their conference schedule continues with a Jan. 1 game against the 13th ranked Marquette Golden Eagles.

Villanova Vs. West Virginia Halftime Score: Wildcats Trail 40-36

The Villanova Wildcats trail the West Virginia Mountaineers 40-36 at halftime from the West Virginia University Coliseum.

The game was a tight one in the first half due to Villanova's rebounding and free throw shooting. The Wildcats had 8 turnovers in the first half but shot 8-11 from the free throw line in the first half. Villanova outrebounded the Mountaineers 19-18. Every time the Mountaineers tried to push their lead to double digits, Villanova made a shot.

Villanova was led in the first half by Dominic Cheek's 13 points. Maalik Wayns chipped in 10 points and four assists. Darryl Bryant led the Mountaineers with 13 points (6-13 shooting). Kevin Jones, a potential Big East Player of the Year candidate, started slow but had 11 points and 5 rebounds by halftime.

For more coverage of Villanova vs. West Virginia, stay tuned to our storystream. For more Villanova coverage, visit our team page or our blog The Nova Blog.

Villanova Vs West Virginia: Wildcats Begin Big East Play Tonight

The Villanova Wildcats begin Big East Conference play Wednesday, as they travel to Morgantown to play the West Virginia Mountaineers (7 p.m. on ESPN3).