UConn Basketball: 3 keys to Huskies upsetting No. 10 Villanova

Fresh off their dominant romp over Providence, UConn Basketball will look to pick up its biggest win of the year over Villanova on Saturday.

With their best player finally back, UConn Basketball looks primed to make a statement in the Big East – and the Huskies will have a crucial opportunity to make that happen on Saturday, traveling to take on the 10th-ranked Villanova Wildcats.

After dropping four of five games to close January and begin February, the Huskies – very much fighting for their at-large lives – have enjoyed a much-needed resurgence in the past week, scraping by Xavier on the road last Saturday (80-72) before dominating Providence on Tuesday, 73-61, avenging a loss to the Friars from February 10th.

UConn’s dismantling of Providence can largely be traced to the return of sophomore James Bouknight, who had been sidelined with a shoulder injury from the Huskies’ January 5th game at Marquette.  Entering the game having averaged 20.3 points prior to his injury – and with a 40-game performance this season under his belt already – Bouknight showed no rust, tying for the game-high with 18 points (7-12 2PT, 4-5 FT) off the bench – and made his presence known early, as evidenced by his insane put-back dunk:

The Huskies will clash with a Villanova squad that has uncharacteristically struggled as of late.  Once ranked as high as third in the national polls with an 11-1 record and on a nine-game winning streak, the Wildcats have won two of their last four – a 32-point blowout over Marquette and a 10-point struggle over Georgetown – while dropping double-digit road tilts at St. John’s and, most recently, Creighton.

The Wildcats’ 86-70 loss – their widest margin of defeat yet this season – saw the Wildcats experience solid success on the offensive end, scoring 1.09 points per possession behind double-digit efforts from Justin Moore (21), Jermaine Samuels (16), and Brandon Slater (11).  But it also yielded one of Villanova’s worst defensive efforts in recent years.  The Wildcats allowed Creighton to average 1.34 points per possession on blistering clips of 71.4% (2PT), 46.2% (3PT), and 76.9% (FT).

With an ailing 10th-ranked program on their schedule, the Huskies desperately need a resume-boosting win.  Firmly on the bubble – and, in most projections, still among the first handful of teams out – UConn cannot let an opportunity like this one slip by.  To make their postseason dream a reality, however, the Huskies will need to ensure a few things happen.