They did it! After ten long and agonizing years, Saint Joe’s finally defeated #18 Villanova in the best win of Coach Billy Lange’s Hawk Hill Tenure. With a final score of 78-65, Saint Joe’s clinched a berth to the first ever Big 5 tournament championship where they will play Temple.
Down a Man Early
The Hawks headed into this game with a starting lineup of Greer, Reynolds, Brown, Fleming, and Finkley. Center Christ Essandoko was ruled out due to injury, forcing SJU to bring the small lineup.
However, that didn’t matter, the small and nimble lineup played to Saint Joe’s favor as the Hawks forced Villanova to commit over 17 turnovers through the game. Saint Joe’s dominated, taking the lead with eight minutes left in the first half, and never letting it go.
Play by Play
As mentioned above, the first half of this game was in Saint Joe’s favor. The Hawks forced Villanova into 11 turnovers. The Wildcats looked sloppy the entire half as the Hawks responded to every basket with two of their own. As a result, Saint Joe’s would end up going into the locker room with a 43 to 35 lead at halftime.
To start he second half SJU jumped to a 14 point lead. But, with ten minutes remaining Villanova closed the gap. Eric Dixon and Justin Moore made some big shots and attacked the basket hard, forcing their way to the free throw line. However, in what was Coach Lange’s greatest adjustment to date, the Hawks came out of a timeout in a 3-2 defensive zone.
This resulted in Villanova taking tougher shots, and the Hawks generating more of the turnovers that they had seen in the first half. Pair this with multiple big time shots from Erik Reynolds and Xzayvier Brown, and the Hawks found themselves walking away with one of their best wins in many, many years.
Impact Players
Usually I pick one or two players to highlight in a game. However, before I do that, I need to give credit to the entire team. This was a win that wouldn’t have happened unless everyone played their best. For example, Kascper Klaczek had only eight points off the bench, but his two threes came in the clutch moments of the game when the Hawks needed a run.
Guys like Anthony Finkley and Cameron Brown grabbed rebounds, and picked up their defense when Saint Joe’s needed it most, everyone had a part to play. And speaking of defense, boy does Rasher Fleming know how to play defense!
With that said, tonight was the arrival of one of the strongest backcourts this program has seen in a while. Lynn Greer III and Erik Reynolds II both did their part to lead this team to victory, only for Freshman Guard Xzayvier Brown to come off the bench and add to an already potent one two punch.
Reynolds, who was lights out, finished the game with 24 points on 8 for 13 shooting. Greer finished with 15 points and seven assists. Finally, X. Brown had 15 points and was a cool four for five from beyond three. Saint Joe’s backcourt is no longer a one two punch, it’s a trifecta, and possibly one of the best in college basketball.
The History and The Future
Finally, I leave with a few words about the team and what this win means. The Hawks were 1-0 in Big 5 play heading into this game. A win tonight would mean winning their Big 5 pod in the new tournament format and playing for a title against the winner for La Salle and Temple, which we now know is Temple.
In addition to that, the pressure was also on to snap a losing streak that stretched back over ten years. Saint Joe’s has been unable to beat Villanova since 2011, losing by an average of almost ten points over the past decade. They also had not won at Villanova in over twenty years. That is how monumental the moment, and win was.
Finally, the best part was that this team won and did it in impressive fashion. The Hawks didn’t need a miracle three, or a lucky bounce to beat Villanova. They showed up at their house, on a day where they name a new Alley after Coach Jay Wright, and stole the spot light. They dominated their opponent, and responded at every turn, just as the pavilion was ready to erupt with excitement. This wasn’t all luck, and that’s what makes that much sweeter.
The Lange Gang Grows
The Lange Gang has a few more members in it tonight than it did yesterday. Those who were already in it welcome the new members with open arms after years of debate. It’s time that Saint Joe’s fans unite after being split for so long. It’s true, winning cures all ills, and there is no win that could possibly do it better than the one tonight. But, tonight isn’t the end. We saw the potential/theory of what “could be” against #16 Kentucky, only to see the fulfillment of it in practice against Villanova.
This team has legitimate guards. It has legitimate big men in both Fleming and Essandoko. It has both young talent and veteran leadership. And, on top of it all, most of these guys are still adjusting to college play and to one another.
This team has a bright future this year. Because of that, I foresee the the Lange Gang continuing to grow, the question is, how big can it get?
