Villanova was firmly an NCAA Tournament bubble team as it opened Big East Tournament play on Wednesday. That bubble nearly popped. But thanks to a big shot, the Wildcats are still alive.
Awaiting Villanova in the first round was DePaul. And while the Wildcats didn’t have a great season, there was no reason to think that the Blue Demons would be much of a threat. DePaul finished the regular season 3-28 and lost its last 19 regular season games, not having won a game since December. The Blue Demons also finished the regular season without a single win in the Big East. Despite that, they gave the Wildcats everything they could ask for — and very nearly more.
The game was close throughout. In the final seconds, DePaul found itself trying to hold onto a 57-55 win. Villanova needed a big shot and got it from fifth-year senior Justin Moore, who buried a three to put the Wildcats up one. The Blue Demons had 8.8 seconds to respond. Jalen Terry dribbled the ball up the court but when he went to pass it, Villanova’s TJ Bamba got his hand on it. The loose ball eventually got into the hands of Mark Armstrong, who ran the remainder of the clock out to seal the Wildcats win.
Wildcats coach Kyle Neptune summed his team’s feelings up in five words: “Thank God for Justin Moore.”
While Moore of course deserves all the praise he’ll receive for making that shot, the rest of the college basketball world wasn’t impressed by his team’s performance.
Villanova was favored by 24.5 coming into the game. And while the Wildcats won, the general feeling coming out of the game was that they didn’t exactly impress anyone doing so.
As a bubble team coming into the Big East Tournament, Villanova likely needed to go on a deep run to solidify its NCAA Tournament resume. Being taken to the wire by a three-win team certainly places even more importance on a deep run. But thanks to Moore, the Wildcats at least have that chance.