Villanova shoots its way past Miami and into Elite Eight

Villanova picked a good time to play its best basketball of the season.

Behind a balanced scoring attack and sizzling shooting – 62.7 percent from the field and 66.7 percent from behind the arc – the No. 2 seed Wildcats trounced No. 3 seed Miami 92-69 to punch their ticket to the Elite Eight.

Villanova got big performances from a number of players, but it was Ryan Arcidiacono who set the tone. With leading scorer Josh Hart on the bench with two early fouls, Arcidiacono, a senior point guard and the team’s four-year captain, scored 13 of the Wildcats’ first 20 points en route to a dazzling performance. Arcidiacono finished with 21 points on 7-of-11 shooting (4-of-7 from the 3-point line) while adding four assists and three steals and committing only one turnover. He controlled the pace in both halves while hounding Miami’s guards defensively.

Arcidiacono’s hot start allowed Villanova to jump out to an early double-digit lead, but the Hurricanes would not wilt.

Hot shooting by Sheldon McClellan (game-high 26 points) and a few gorgeous moves from Angel Rodriguez (13 points, 8 assists) brought Miami back within one late in the first half. But every time the Canes cut it close, Villanova’s Kris Jenkins was there to hit a clutch 3-pointer to extend the Wildcats' lead.

Villanova’s lead was six at halftime; Miami would never get that close again.

Jenkins, who finished with 21 points and hit five threes, and Arcidiacono continued to fill it up from behind the arc while big man Daniel Ochefu was dominant inside – especially with Tonye Jekiri, Miami’s senior 7-footer, in foul trouble. Even after it appeared he tweaked an ankle injury late in the first half, Ochefu’s consistent finishing down low opened up the rest of the team’s offense. As Miami’s perimeter defenders did their best to key on Nova’s various shooting threats, the Wildcats looked to Ochefu, who connected on 7-of-11 shots for 17 points. Hart, too, was able to get in the lane and finished with 14 points without attempting a 3-pointer.

But beyond Villanova’s hot shooting, it seemed like the Wildcats were doing all of the little things as well. Each loose ball. Each 50-50-ball. Every play that required an extra ounce of hustle. It was Villanova putting forward the extra effort.

The Wildcats’ defense stepped up in the second half, too. Miami shot 65.6 percent from the field in the first half, but only 43.8 percent in the second. That’s not poor by any means, but with Villanova in this kind of groove offensively, it meant bad news for the Hurricanes. Couple that with 12 turnovers, that turned into a recipe for disaster for Miami.

Moving forward, Villanova will square off with either Kansas or Maryland on Saturday – the program’s first Elite Eight appearance since the 2008-09 campaign. The Wildcats advanced to the Final Four that year, and if the Wildcats continue to shoot at this level, there’s no reason to think they can’t do it again.