November 18, 2029
@#2 Villanova 85, Virginia 63
The poor Cavaliers continue to struggle in my universe. Their 55 Prestige might have them on the verge of relegation from the ACC to a mid-major conference; they're 10 points lower than any other ACC program, and they'd rank in the middle of the Patriot League.
The Hoos' assortment of Green and Yellow players can't hang with us tonight. But one of them, senior forward
Doug Smith, absolutely blows up, scoring
44 points. Doug is from York, PA, and I recruited him when I was at Lafayette. Fortunately for us, his teammates give him very little help.
Avery Sullivan (23p/9r/5b) is Player of the Game.
Corey Hicks scores 15,
Lowell Welter adds 10 with 10 boards, and sixth man
Tony Ezell pitches in 10 more.
Blake Norton has 9 assists. And the Pavilion crowd goes home satisfied with their first look at
Asher Wise, who contributes 20 points, 8 rebounds, and 2 steals in his debut.
Record: 1-0.
November 22, 2029
Maui Shootout, First Round
(2) #2 Villanova 82, (7) American 49
Our former Patriot League opponent faces us in the first round, and after making it a close game for 26 minutes, they yield in the face of Wildcats runs of 14-2 and 11-0.
Tony Ezell stars in a reserve role, with 21 points and 9 rebounds.
Avery Sullivan scores 12 and rebounds 14.
Corey Hicks (19p/4r) and
Blake Norton (10p/7r) play well, and so does freshman guard
Justice Stafford, who scores 6 points and hands out 4 assists in 16 minutes.
Record: 2-0.
November 23, 2029
Maui Shootout, Semifinal
(2) #2 Villanova 88, (6) Air Force 62
The Air Force upset Ohio State in the first round, but we send them back stateside with a decisive victory.
Avery Sullivan posts another double-double (21p/10r) and blocks 2 shots.
Corey Hicks pitches in 15 points and 7 boards, and
Kris DeMello makes the most of 9 minutes on the court by scoring 12 points, including two three-balls.
Record: 3-0.
November 24, 2029
Maui Shootout Championship
(2) #2 Villanova 72, (4) California 57
Villanova haters will point out that other teams did most of the heavy lifting in this tournament; the Golden Bears upset top-seeded Tennessee in the other semifinal. Still, you can only beat the teams you play, and we'll be returning from sunny Hawai'i with a trophy for our collection.
Corey Hicks is the star; he scores 18 tonight and grabs 7 rebounds.
Avery Sullivan scores 11, and sixth man Tony Ezell finishes with 10 points and 6 boards.
Asher Wise struggles a bit tonight; he makes only 2 of 7 shots and scores only 4 points. He does help out with 6 rebounds.
Blake Norton hands out 5 assists.
Record: 4-0.
November 27, 2029
#2 Villanova 92, @Vanderbilt 79
What a crazy game! The Commodores play at a frenetic pace. Tonight, they toss up 88 shots, including 34 from behind the arc. For a while, it works well; they lead us 37-27 at halftime.
After the intermission, our shots begin to fall, and Vanderbilt players can't stop fouling us. We finish 24-for-32 at the line. The Commodores keep firing away, and now they can't find the basket. Thanks to a 65-point half, we return to the Main Line with a big road win.
We pull down 54 rebounds, two shy of our school record.
Avery Sullivan (15p/10r) and
Corey Hicks (13p/10r) achieve double-doubles, and if
Tony Ezell (25p/9r) and
Lowell Welter (11p/9r) had grabbed one more carom each, they'd have doubled up, too.
Asher Wise scores 15 with 7 rebounds.
Ezell is thriving in his role, so for now, I'll roll with the starting five I've been using.
Record: 5-0.
November 30, 2029
#2 Villanova 79, @Rider 76
Behind a career-high 19 points from sophomore
Blake Norton, we escape the trap set by a tenacious Rider team.
Avery Sullivan (13p/15r/6b) makes it even more clear that he'll be ready to turn pro this spring.
Tony Ezell continues to come off the bench and score at will.
Lowell Welter (6p/10r/3b) plays with heart and makes things happen. Norton hands out 6 assists when he's not scoring himself.
Record: 6-0.