It’s been a lively start at the Pavilion tonight in the 83rd meeting between the Villanova Wildcats and Temple Owls. So far, the contrast of styles we expected is exactly what we’re getting. When the teams have settled into a half court offense, Temple has been the more physical team and had the advantage. However, every time the game has seemed to speed up, Villanova has controlled the play.
Nova has been pressuring the ball every possession, not allowing Temple PG Juan Fernandez to walk the ball up the court once. Clearly, Jay Wright’s plan is to keep Temple from settling into that half court offense that they can be so efficient with. The highlight of the night so far was probably when Corey Fisher jumped into a passing lane for a steal and what looked like would be an easy transition basket, but Temple’s Ramone Moore hustled back for the block. So far, Moore leads all scorers with eight.