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Pennsylvania at Villanova

Balanced attack leads fifth-ranked Villanova to rout
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VILLANOVA, Pa. -- Villanova coach Jay Wright was searching for any reason to call a timeout.

He never needed one. Not when the No. 5 Wildcats played a near-flawless game.

Maalik Wayns scored 16 points, Corey Stokes, Scottie Reynolds and Taylor King each added 14 and Villanova had no trouble in a 103-65 rout against city rival Pennsylvania on Monday night.

Corey Fisher scored 13 and Antonio Pena contributed 12 points and 10 rebounds for the balanced Wildcats (2-0), who have won 19 of their last 20 games in Big Five play also encompassing Temple, La Salle and Saint Josephs. Villanova has now won seven straight over Penn.

"We kept playing well," Wright said. "If we stopped playing, I kept thinking of calling a timeout. We kept playing. It was fun to be a part of that."

Wright has won 302 games with Villanova (2001-present) and Hofstra (1994-2001) and he couldnt recall one of those games where he went without a timeout.

"I don't think I have," Wright said. "Hey, they just kept making really good plays."

The Wildcats won their 30th in a row at The Pavilion, their cozy 6,500-seat on-campus arena. The streak began with a 102-87 victory over Notre Dame on Jan. 17, 2007.

Ten Villanova players scored, nine in the first half alone.

"When I go in the game, I just want to contribute as much as I can," said King, who sat out last season after transferring from Duke.

Darren Smith scored 21 points and Rob Belcore added 16 for Penn (0-2), which dropped its season opener to NIT champion Penn State last Friday.

The Quakers have lost all seven career meetings on Villanova's home court.

"We can play a better game," said Penn coach Glen Miller. "It just snowballed on us. We couldnt keep up with them."

Tyler Bernardini, Penn's leading returning scorer at 13.7 points, was held scoreless on 0-for-3 shooting.

Miller said after the game that Bernardini injured his right foot and will undergo an MRI on Tuesday.

With Ed Pinckney -- Villanova's Most Valuable Player from its 1985 national championship team -- looking on from the baseline, the 2009-10 version raced to a 55-25 advantage at halftime. This was more reminiscent of Villanova's Final Four team from last season rather than the team which struggled against Fairleigh Dickinson in the season-opening game last Friday. The Wildcats held a slim 35-34 lead at halftime and then pulled away for an 84-61 victory.

Villanova used a suffocating halfcourt trap to fluster the Quakers early and often. It worked as the Wildcats forced 10 turnovers and limited Penn to 7-for-27 shooting, 4-of-17 from 3-point range in the first half.

"We want a slower pace," Miller said.

The game was never close after halftime.

In fact, Villanova kept the pressure on with seven straight points to begin the second half - a jumper by Fisher, a 3-pointer by Fisher and a dunk by Pena - to take a commanding 62-25 lead.

That was certainly more than enough as the Wildcats shot 59 percent from the field.

"There was nothing they could do," Wright said. "I actually felt for them."

Villanova, which was 13-0 at home last season, leads 39-18 in the all-time series against Penn. Penn's last win came on Dec. 10, 2002 at the Palestra.

Copyright 2012 by STATS LLC and The Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and The Associated Press is strictly prohibited.
 
 
Scottie Reynolds scores 14 points, one of six Wildcats to reach double figures.  (AP)
Scottie Reynolds scores 14 points, one of six Wildcats to reach double figures. (AP)

 
Scoreboard
Pennsylvania (0-2)254065
Villanova #5 (2-0) «5548103
PA:Darren Smith 21 Pts
PA:Mike Howlett 7 Reb
PA:Zack Rosen 6 Ast
NOVA:Maalik Wayns 16 Pts
NOVA:Antonio Pena 10 Reb
NOVA:Corey Fisher 8 Ast
 
PLAYERS OF THE GAME
VillanovaPennsylvania
NOVA
Antonio Pena
PA
Darren Smith
PtsRebsAstPtsRebsAst
121012121
Pennsylvania Quakers
D. Smith, G336-155-621221
Z. Rosen, G322-102-23637
A. Schreiber, C201-64-70216
J. Eggleston, F194-70-00149
T. Bernardini, G150-30-01100
R. Belcore, G285-93-620316
M. Howlett, F130-10-27000
C. Turley, F130-12-22022
B. Fitzpatrick, U81-20-01002
C. Sullivan, G80-20-00010
L. Loughery, F40-00-01100
D. Monckton, G40-10-00010
Z. Gordon, FDid Not Play
S. Mullan, UDid Not Play
J. Reilly, FDid Not Play
Totals 20-5816-2719131865
 34.5%59.3% 
Villanova Wildcats
C. Fisher, G264-94-638113
A. Pena, F254-64-4101212
S. Reynolds, G215-102-325214
C. Stokes, G205-72-251314
M. Yarou, F-C171-32-25154
T. King, F235-72-271114
D. Cheek, G183-40-02107
M. Wayns, G186-101-101116
M. Sutton, F-C143-51-25037
I. Armwood, F130-10-03030
J. Colenda, G30-00-10010
R. Wooten, F21-10-01002
R. Redding, GDid Not Play
Totals 37-6318-23431922103
 58.7%78.3% 
Ivy League
TeamConf. W-LTot. W-L
Harvard12-226-5
Penn11-320-13
Princeton10-420-12
Yale9-519-10
Cornell7-712-16
Columbia4-1015-15
Brown2-128-23
Dartmouth1-135-25

Big East
TeamConf. W-LTot. W-L
Syracuse17-134-3
Marquette14-427-8
Notre Dame13-522-12
Georgetown12-624-9
Cincinnati12-626-11
South Florida12-622-14
Louisville10-830-10
West Virginia9-919-14
Seton Hall8-1021-13
Connecticut8-1020-14
Rutgers6-1214-18
St. Johns (N.Y.)6-1213-19
Pittsburgh5-1322-17
Villanova5-1313-19
Providence4-1415-17
DePaul3-1512-19
 
Other games
CSTCAR 49 Final
DUKE 74
MIAOH 70 Final
Kentucky 72
SFA 42 Final
Minn 82
COLG 63 Final
UConn 77