Game of the Day: La Salle vs Villanova
La Salle will make the short trip to take on the #4 ranked Villanova Wildcats. The Explorers are coming off a tough loss to Drexel, while the Wildcats come into the game boasting their perfect 9-0 record. This will by far be the best team B.J Johnson and company faces this season. Here are some things that will need to go there way if they are going to pull off a monumental upset.
First, La Salle is going to have to find a way to win the battle on the boards. They were outrebounded by 14 against Drexel in their last game, and they cannot expect to hang in this one if that happens again. Villanova is a guard oriented team, and they cannot allow guards like Brunson to get second opportunities off of offensive rebounds. Tony Washington is going to have to find a way to stay on the court and produce more for the Explorers than he has been as of late, he only had 3 boards in 17 minutes in there last game. As of now, Johnson leads the Explorers in rebounding this season. If he leads La Salle in rebounding in this one, it could be a long night.
The player vs. player matchup to watch for this one has to be Johnson and Bridges. Mikal Bridges, who is coming off his best game of the season after putting up 28 points, is essentially a matchup nightmare for most teams. But, at least on paper, Johnson should match up with him fairly well. These two guys have very similar styles of play on the court, so it will be interesting to see who can outperform the other throughout the course of this one.
Villanova has not just been winning their games, but they have been destroying teams as of late. In there last 4 games, they have won by an average of 25 points per game. The main goal for the Explorers should be to build some confidence, and to not let the game get out of hand. If they can do that, I would call it a win.
My Prediction: Villanova 85, La Salle 64
James Madison vs Richmond
Originally scheduled for yesterday, this one will take place today at 2 Eastern. There is no secret, not much has gone right for the Richmond Spiders this season, but they hope to turn it around against 3-7 James Madison. Although don’t be fooled, this James Madison team is much better than the record suggests, as their last three losses have only come by a combined 7 points. Grant Golden has played well for Richmond all year, and expect him to have another big game today for the Spiders. Richmond has not won a home game yet this season, but I have a feeling they will be able to change that today.
My Prediction: James Madison 62, Richmond 70
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