Busting Brackets
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Villanova Basketball: Keys to success against Kansas at home

By Lukas Harkins

VILLANOVA, PA - DECEMBER 04: Villanova Wildcats T-shirts are draped over chairs prior to a game against the Pennsylvania Quakers at Finneran Pavilion on December 4, 2019 in Villanova, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
VILLANOVA, PA - DECEMBER 04: Villanova Wildcats T-shirts are draped over chairs prior to a game against the Pennsylvania Quakers at Finneran Pavilion on December 4, 2019 in Villanova, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /
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PHILADELPHIA, PA – NOVEMBER 16: Gillespie of the Wildcats attempts. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA – NOVEMBER 16: Gillespie of the Wildcats attempts. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /

1. Make it rain from 3-point range.

Villanova’s 3-point shooting is easily the biggest key to this game, in my opinion. The Wildcats are seemingly always ranked among the best perimeter shooting teams in the country every single year and this campaign is no different. Through the opening month and a half of this season, Villanova is scoring 35.8% of its total points from beyond the arc. Not only does the team rank in the top-100 nationally in 3PAr but is also managing to connect on 38.1% of those attempts.

Elite perimeter shooting is such an important part of Villanova’s offensive scheme as the team can make it rain from seemingly every spot on the court. The Wildcats hold the third-best adjusted offensive efficiency in the nation so far this season and their constant diligence with moving the ball side-to-side or drive-and-kicking to find open shooters from distance is the main reason why.

Five Wildcats have already hit at least 10 trifectas so far this season with Cole Swider (21-for-44), Saddiq Bey (16-for-36), and Justin Moore (16-for-37) all shooting over 40% for the season. That even goes without mentioning the team’s second-leading scorer in point guard Collin Gillespie, who is also always a threat from beyond the arc.

With these statistics, I think I have made it fairly clear that one of Villanova’s biggest strengths is 3-point shooting. On the flip side, though, Kansas excels with regard to defending the perimeter. To this point in the year, the Jayhawks’ defense is surrendering just 29.6% shooting from distance while keeping opponents to the eighth-lowest 3PAr in the entire country. Head coach Bill Self’s team has made a point to limit open looks from distance that will obviously remain a priority in this game. Villanova will be, though, the best 3-point shooting team that Kansas has faced so far this season.

In order for Villanova to win this game, it will likely need to outwork Kansas’ defense with diligent ball-movement to create open looks. Burying open 3-pointers would not only force the Jayhawks out of their usual comfort zone but also ignite the home-crowd in a way that only tickling the twine from distance can. If the ‘Cats can knock in some trifectas early, then the Wells Fargo Center will instantly become a very, very hostile environment for Kansas.