Loyola,SIU & ISU all bow out of Arch Madness. All Illinois Schools are history

ST. LOUIS—Ron Baker hit 5-3-pointers and scored 25 points and league champion Wichita State used a late 11-0 run to rally for an a 66-58 win over eighth-seeded Loyola in the quarterfinals of the Missouri Valley tournament on Thursday.The Shockers (24-7), who have won six straight, face fourth-seeded Northern Iowa in Saturday’s semifinals.The Ramblers (15-17), who trailed 30-21 at the half against a team that beat them by 26 and 22 during the regular season, were up 52-45 before a 3 by Baker started a game-winning 17-3 run. Baker’s 3 at 1:54 put Wichita State up 57-55. Fred VanVleet then made 5 of 6 free throws for a seven-point lead.Devon Turk had 16 points for the Ramblers, who made just 1 of their last nine shots as Shaquille Morris had several of his career-high six blocks for the Shockers, who finished with 10.Wichita State had a season-high 17 turnovers.
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Jeremy Morgan scored 18 points and Northern Iowa made six free throws in the last 28 seconds to defeat Southern Illinois 66-60 in the quarterfinals of the Missouri Valley tournament on Thursday.The fourth-seeded Panthers (20-12) face league champion Wichita State in Saturday’s early semifinal.Northern Iowa led 29-28 at the half and built the lead to 12 before the fifth-seeded Salukis (22-10) battled back. A 3-point play by Armon Fletcher tied the game at 56 with 2:18 to play. Both teams had a pair of empty possessions before Morgan made a pair of free throws at 1:15. Sean O’Brien tied it at 1:01 but 14 seconds later Wes Washpun made a tough layup for Northern Iowa.Then Fletcher missed a 3-pointer and Morgan made two more free throws with 28 seconds remaining. Anthony Bean quickly scored for Southern Illinois but Matt Bohannon and Klint Carlson clinched it at the foul line. Northern Iowa was 15 of 18 from the line in the second half.Beane had 17 points and O’Brien had 12 points and 12 rebounds for SIU.
———————————————————————————————————–Brenton Scott scored 14 points and Indiana State never trailed in the second half and beat Illinois State 65-57 on Friday night in the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament.Niels Bunschoten added 11 points for the sixth-seeded Sycamores (15-16), who play No. 2 seed Evansville (24-8) in Saturday’s semifinal.MiKyle McIntosh had 17 points and DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell scored 13 points and grabbed 14 rebounds for No. 3 seed Illinois State (18-14), which shot just 23 percent in the first half and finished 20 of 64 from the floor for 31-percent shooting overall.Indiana State had its largest lead, 43-26 with 14 minutes remaining. The Redbirds pulled to 61-57 and had a chance to pull closer after the Sycamores committed a turnover with 41 seconds left.McIntosh missed a 3, Bunschoten blocked Justin McCloud’s layup attempt, and Akoon-Purcell missed another 3-point attempt on the Redbirds’ next possession. The Sycamores then made 4 of 5 free throws to seal it.

All four Illinois Schools have been eliminated from Arch Madness.

 

Flat Hawks fall to Bruins 4-2

BOSTON—Home has suddenly become an advantage for the Boston Bruins.Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand each had a goal and an assist to help lead the Bruins over the Blackhawks 4-2 on Thursday night.Boston recorded their fourth home win of the season against a team currently slotted in the playoffs. The Bruins won consecutive home games for the first time since Dec. 20, but for the fifth time in seven games. ”I think the fact (the Hawks) made some trades, they really geared up for another Stanley Cup run,” said Bruins coach Claude Julien, who tied Art Ross for the most wins in team history. ”There were a lot of reasons to get excited about this game tonight and it showed in our play.” The Bruins continue their toughest stretch of the season against the Washington Capitals, the NHL’s points leader, on Saturday, before heading out on the road for six of the next eight games.Ryan Spooner and Loui Eriksson also had goals for Boston. Tuukka Rask made 25 saves and newcomer Lee Stempniak – acquired from New Jersey on Monday – notched two assists, as did Torey Krug. ”It’s obviously a big game for us playing a team like Chicago, so deep and such a dominant team,” Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara said. ”It was a big game for us to challenge ourselves.” Jonathan Toews and Thomas Fleischmann scored for the Hawks, who beat Detroit 5-2 on Wednesday but has dropped three of its last five and 6 of 10. The Western Conference leaders remained two points ahead of Dallas and St. Louis, who were idle. ”They were doing all the little things and hanging on us and getting in our way and interfering,” Toews said. ”When you don’t match their speed and work ethic, it’s hard to play through that traffic.” Bergeron got the Bruins started just 1:18 into the game when he roofed a shot over the shoulder of Blackhawks goalie Scott Darling for his 25th of the season.Toews scored a power-play goal to tie it at 1 with 5:46 remaining in the first, but Marchand scored the first of three unanswered goals for Boston when he slapped one past Darling for his team-leading 33rd goal with 22 seconds remaining in the period. ”It’s just one of those games that we got behind early,” Blackhawks defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson said. ”I know it’s a back-to-back, but you can’t really make up any excuses.” Spooner and Eriksson capped the scoring for Boston, who has seven home games remaining.Fleischmann cut the Bruins’ lead to 4-2 with 50 seconds remaining in the second when he beat Rask over the left shoulder.Darling made 21 saves for the Hawks, who have a tough stretch of its own as they face Detroit, St. Louis and Dallas in their next three games.

 

NOTES—Bergeron has five points in his last two games against the Blackhawks and is now tied with Terry O’Reilly for eighth on their career points list. … Recent acquisitions Dale Wiese played his first game and Fleischmann scored his first goal for the Blackhawks. … Boston beat Calgary on Tuesday and is now 15-16-3 at home. …The Hawks had won five of their last six on the road. … Patrick Kane finished with a minus-3.

Loyola win first round Arch Madness game from Bradley–Wichita State next.

ST. LOUIS—Montel James had 20 points and a career-high 17 rebounds as Loyola pulled away midway through the second half to beat Bradley 74-66 in the opening round of the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament on Thursday night.Donte Ingram had 19 points and Devon Turk chipped in 11 for No. 8 Loyola (15-16), which faces top-seeded Wichita State on Friday.Earl Peterson drilled a 3 to give Loyola a 68-57 lead with 1:07 left and the Ramblers made six free throws down the stretch to seal the win.The game was tied at 29 at the break. Bradley’s Antoine Pittman hit a jumper for a 40-39 lead with 15:01 left. Ingram made a layup to retake the lead 41-40 at the 12:54-mark and Loyola never trailed again.Ronnie Suggs led Bradley (5-27) with 15 points.

NU beats Penn State for 19th win

Northwestern Wildcats (1981 - Pres)

STATE COLLEGE—As Chris Collins and Patrick Chambers watched their players during Thursday’s shootaround, both coaches knew they’d soon be playing for a measure of respect each hoped his team would have already earned by this point of the season.It would have to come at the other’s expense, as Northwestern and Penn State, hopeful this would be the year each could turn a corner in a rugged Big Ten Conference, entered the season’s penultimate game on familiar, ho-hum trajectories.

”We’re at similar junctures,” said Collins, whose Wildcats outlasted the Nittany Lions 71-61. ”We’re in a heck of a league, battling to try to fight for our own program’s respect and notoriety in the league. Anytime we play against Penn State, I know it’s going to be an absolute war and you’re going to have to play incredibly hard to beat them. I thought we did that tonight.”

Tre Demps scored 23 points to lead Northwestern’s effort and Bryant McIntosh added 17 points to help the Wildcats (19-11, 7-10 Big Ten) to their second straight win and third in their last five.Brandon Taylor scored 17 points for the Nittany Lions, who lost their second straight. Shep Garner added 13 points and Josh Reaves chipped in 11 for Penn State (15-15, 6-11), which is still one win shy of its best conference mark under Chambers.Northwestern, ready for a stingy zone defense that slowed the Wildcats in a 71-62 loss in mid-January, started hot. The Wildcats shot 63 percent from the field, making 17 of 27 shots, with Demps scoring 19 points in the first half. Demps made his second field goal 6:41 into the game to give his team the lead for good.Penn State went 0 for 5 over the final five minutes and McIntosh hit a jumper at the buzzer to give Northwestern a 42-27 halftime lead.

”I just felt like they played harder than us in the first half,” Chambers said. ”In the second half, we responded. It was too big of a lead to overcome.”

Both teams struggled through early second-half shooting woes despite finishing with nine 3-pointers apiece. They combined to go 2 of 10 from the field over the first five minutes.As Collins scratched his head along Northwestern’s bench, Penn State fans began to howl when Garner air-balled a shot 3:20 into the half. The Nittany Lions still hadn’t scored nearly five minutes in, and a handful of open looks for Demps, who was especially cold, came up short.With Taylor in foul trouble most of the way, Chambers opted to go with four guards and switch to man defense. It worked. Demps continued to struggle to find the stroke he had in the first half and Penn State began to make shots.Demps missed his first six shots of the second half as Penn State put together a 21-11 run to pull within five with 8:35 to play. The Nittany Lions did so with five 3-pointers from three different players in a span of 5:38 and eventually cut NU’s lead to 55-51 on a pair of Garner free throws with 5:57 left.But the Nittany Lions wouldn’t get any closer and Demps finally broke out of his second-half scoring drought on a drive to the basket that also drew a foul. Demps made his free throw and his 3-point play sparked a 14-10 run the Wildcats used to close out the game.They made 4 of 6 free throws to cap the scoring.

”I thought Tre’s 3-point play when it was a four-point game was probably the biggest bucket of the game,” Collins said. ”We were bleeding a little bit, they had a tremendous amount of confidence, their energy was going.”

When Demps lost his shooting touch midway through, Aaron Falzon chipped in six points to pad his team’s lead while Penn State took off on its big run.The freshman opened the half with a 3-pointer then hit another nearly nine minutes later to snap his team out of a 2-for-13 skid.

”I see a lot of young kids out there getting better,” Collins said. ”Hopefully, that’ll help us as we continue to build our program.”

Meanwhile, McIntosh scored 10 of his 17 points in the second half.

NOTES—The Wildcats turned 13 Penn State turnovers in 23 points…..Northwestern hosts Nebraska on Sunday,Penn State hosts Illinois on Sunday.

 

Maryland leads wire to wire against Illini

Illinois Fighting Illini (2004 - 2013)

COLLEGE PARK—Melo Trimble returned to form, the seniors excelled in their home finale and No. 14 Maryland played its best game in weeks.

”Just a feel-good night,” coach Mark Turgeon said after the Terrapins hammered Illinois 81-55 on Thursday. ”It’s fun to have some like that every now and then.”

Trimble and Jake Layman scored 18 points each for the Terrapins, who never trailed. Maryland (24-6, 12-5 Big Ten) had lost three of four since climbing to No. 2 in the AP poll in early February.Trimble made half of his 14 shots, collected eight rebounds and added five assists. The standout sophomore guard was 11 for 37 from the field over the previous four games, but in this one he turned it around.

”I really needed that. I just needed to see a shot go down, feel myself so happy again,” he said. ”I haven’t been smiling the way I used to in a while. I just had to look in the mirror and see that I had an OK smile. I had to display it today on the court after I made a shot. I just felt good.”

Before the game, Maryland honored seniors Layman, Rasheed Sulaimon, Varun Ram and Trevor Anzmann. Layman made 7 of 11 shots; Sulaimon had nine assists and no turnovers; and Ram and Anzmann came from deep on the bench to team for a crowd-pleasing basket in the final minute.Basically, everyone got into the act.”We got rolling,” Layman said. ”When we’re playing like that, sharing the ball, we’re very hard to guard.”

Jared Nickens and Robert Carter Jr. had 14 points apiece for the Terrapins, who earned a double-bye in the upcoming Big Ten Tournament.

”We feel like we can play with anybody,” Turgeon said.

The Terrapins finished 16-1 at home, the lone defeat against Wisconsin on Feb. 13.Maverick Morgan reached career highs with 21 points and 10 rebounds for Illinois (13-17, 5-12). The junior center made 10 of his 13 field goal tries, but his teammates were a collective 12 for 44, including 5 for 20 from 3-point range.Malcolm Hill, who came in averaging 18.2 points per game for the Illini, finished with 10 after making just one basket before halftime.But it wasn’t so much Illinois’ lack of production as what Maryland did on the other end. The Terrapins made 18 of 27 shots over the final 20 minutes, including 10 of 13 from beyond the arc.

”Obviously what stands out is what they shot from the field in the second half,” Illinois coach John Groce said. ”Not only from 2-point range, but obviously from 3. That was as good an offensive performance in a half that we’ve seen live and in person all year.”

Maryland led 33-25 early in the second half before Trimble, Layman and Nickens drilled successive 3-pointers to boost the margin to 17 points.After Illinois closed to 45-34, Trimble scored six points in a 14-2 spree that put the Terrapins ahead by 23 with 8:33 remaining.

”We did some decent things,” Groce said. ”Unfortunately, it came down to shot-making. And they just made a heck of a lot more in the second half.”

Morgan had 13 points and nine rebounds in the first half, but Illinois went 9 for 26 from the field and trailed 31-21.Illinois missed its first seven shots and trailed 7-0 and 15-7 before whittling the deficit to 19-16. Maryland answered with a 12-3 run that included two baskets by Carter and 3-pointers by Nickens and Sulaimon…..The Illini will finish the regular season without consecutive wins in the Big Ten. … Illinois fell to 1-6 against Top 25 teams. … The Illini’s three-game winning streak against Maryland ended. They are 5-6 all-time against the Terps.

Kane,Panarin,Ladd & Hawks handle Red Wings 5-2

DETROIT—Patrick Kane is having his best season statistically in part because he’s never been better on the power play.Kane had a goal and an assist 1:24 apart on power plays in the second period, helping the Blackhawks rout the Detroit Red Wings 5-2 on Wednesday night.He set up Artemi Panarin for a goal in the third period for the second time in the game. That extended his NHL-leading point total to 88 – his jersey number – and matched his career high set during the 2009-10 season.

”It’s good, it’s nice,” Kane said. ”Having fun playing hockey, that’s for sure.”

Kane has 15 goals on power plays and a league-leading 32 points with a man advantage, setting career highs in each category with nearly 20 games remaining in the regular season.Jonathan Toews has been Kane’s teammate for each of their nine seasons in the league and said consistency is what has allowed him to take his production to another level.

”Everyone has moments when they’re not playing with absolute control and firing on all cylinders, but he still finds ways to contribute offensively,” Toews said. ”I think that’s the biggest sign of a star player when you can do it on your off night, too. That shows how much focus and skill he really has this year.”

Andrew Ladd restored the three-goal lead in the third period in his second game back with the Blackhawks. Panarin scored his second goal 35 seconds later from the top of the left circle off a cross-ice pass from Kane.Corey Crawford didn’t give up a goal until midway through the third period when Brad Richards scored and Gustav Nyquist had a relatively meaningless goal late in the game.Petr Mrazek stopped 28 shots for the Red Wings, who had won three straight.The Western Conference-leading Blackhawks were coming off a win against NHL-leading Washington.And, they looked sharp from the start at Detroit and didn’t let up.Brent Seabrook scored from the top of the right circle, trailing on a play that started with an odd-man rush. Erik Gustafsson tapped his stick on the ice to get the puck passed back from Teuvo Teravainen and Gustafsson set up Seabrook, a fellow defenseman, for the game’s first goal. ”It went through my glove,” Mrazek said.

”That is probably the one that I would want back.” Kane made an across-the-crease pass to assist to Panarin from the bottom of the right circle to the bottom of the left while Toews provided a distraction in front of the net. ”He pretty much creates the whole play,” Kane said of Toews. ”Gets position on that guy, blocks him out without taking an interference penalty and being able to create a seam there for me to pass it across.”

Kane, a four-time All-Star, got into open space a little more than a minute later and flicked a wrist shot from the inside of the left circle that Mrazek simply couldn’t stop.

NOTES—The Blackhawks had nine players and Detroit had seven named to World Cup of Hockey rosters Wednesday. … Christian Ehrhoff played in his first game for the Hawks since it acquired the defenseman last week from the Los Angeles Kings for Rob Scuderi. … Mrazek played after sitting out the previous game, an overtime win at Dallas, with a groin injury. … Panarin leads NHL rookies with 24 goals and Detroit’s Dylan Larkin is second with 19. … Red Wings captain Henrik Zetterberg became the 11th player in franchise history to play in 900 games.

Bulls frustraions(and losing ways)continue in Orlando

Chicago Bulls Logo - Red bull with script above head

ORLANDO—The Magic used a strong defensive effort and a big game from rookie Mario Hezonja to get a relatively easy win over the Bulls.Nikola Vucevic scored 24 points, Hezonja added a career-high 21, and Orlando won 102-89 on Wednesday night.The Magic coasted through the second half with leads as big as 22 points. Victor Oladipo had 17 points and Aaron Gordon added 13 points and 13 rebounds.Orlando led 60-50 at halftime and never saw the advantage go under double digits the entire second half. ”This was definitely a step forward,” Magic coach Scott Skiles said. ”I felt like our energy at the defensive end of the floor was good. ”And Mario had a lot of pop in his step. I thought it was overall his best defensive game. He did a nice job chasing people.” Hezonja, the fifth pick in last summer’s NBA draft, has started three straight games in place of the injured Evan Fournier. Hezonja had 10 points in the first eight minutes of the game, hitting four of five shots, including a 3-pointer. He was matched up against Bulls forward Mike Dunleavy, who had only eight points on 3-for-9 shooting.The Bulls never matched the Magic’s energy at any point in the game. The Bulls, coming off a lethargic effort in a 129-111 loss to Miami the night before, were down by 14 just 10 minutes into the game and never made a serious run at the lead the rest of the game. ”It’s frustrating because we dig ourselves a hole again coming out of the gate,” Fred Hoiberg said. ”It’s a trend that must stop if you want to make any kind of push. They scored at will on us, especially on the fast break. Those are baskets that breed confidence. ”We’ve got 22 games left to figure this out.” Derrick Rose led Chicago with 16 points, all in the first half. Pau Gasol had 12 points and Doug McDermott was the only other Bulls player in double figures with 11. The Bulls have lost four straight games and dropped to ninth in the Eastern Conference standings. ”There are no excuses,” Rose said. ”The season is not over. We still have a shot to be in the playoffs. This is foreign ground to a lot of us. We’ve got to find ways to make it up.” Both teams were on the second game of back-to-backs and it looked it. Orlando hit only 40.2 percent, while the Bulls shot just 38.4 percent from the field.The Magic took a 17-point lead into the fourth quarter and were never seriously challenged. Rose and Gasol didn’t play in the final period and the closest the Bulls’ reserves could get was 90-74 with 8:14 left in the game.The Magic hit five of six shots to start the third quarter, including a 3-pointer by Hezonja that helped Orlando take a 74-54 lead. Payton and Oladipo pushed the pace against the Bulls’ lackadaisical defense and the quick tempo provided plenty of open shots in the 15- to 18-foot range.The Bulls’ offense also stayed on the perimeter, but without much success. Rose was 0 for 4 and they hit only seven of 24 shots (29.1 percent). The Bulls had only one basket the final three minutes and trailed 84-67 going into the final period.The Bulls fourth straight loss left players wondering what is happening to this season. ”Honestly, we have a lot of holes everywhere,” Dunleavy said. ”It’s kind of just across the board. As this thing goes and we continue to struggle, we are not losing too much ground amazingly in the playoff race We just have to hang in there.” Rose added: ”First off, we have to find out what’s the problem? Is it defense? Is it communication? That is something we are trying to figure out.”

 

NOTES—Aaron Brooks was ejected with 6:31 left in the game after receiving two technical fouls for arguing. … F Taj Gibson (hamstring) missed his first game this season. …Jimmy Butler (knee) could rejoin the Bulls for practice Friday, but is not expected to play for another 10 to 12 days. … The Bulls have given up 102 or more points in 15 straight games…..Evan Fournier missed his third straight game with a sore wrist. … Elfrid Payton tied his season high with 12 assists. … Orlando is allowing opponents to shoot 47.8 percent and average 107.1 points in the last 27 games. … Vucevic made his second 3-pointer this season, just beating the shot clock at the 7:09 mark of the first quarter…..The Bulls host Houston on Saturday

Bulls defense remains awful in 129-111 loss to Miami, Gibson hurts Hamstring

Chicago Bulls Logo - Red bull with script above head

MIAMI—All the Miami Heat did was put together the best shooting night in franchise history, an effort that matched the NBA’s top performance from the floor in the last 18 years.This Joe Johnson move already looks like a winner.The Heat shot 67.5 percent, set a season high for points and beat the Bulls 129-111 on Tuesday night. Hassan Whiteside scored a career-high 26 points and had 14 rebounds, and Johnson had 24 points in his Miami home debut.Miami’s 52-for-77 shooting was the best since Utah shot exactly that on Feb. 27, 2010, and no team has done better from the field since the Los Angeles Clippers connected on 69.3 percent of their shots on March 13, 1998.

”The game felt effortless offensively,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. ”We’re not calling specific play calls to say, `OK, this is for you, you get your shot.’ It’s five-man basketball, guys are making the right play and if you see somebody open you follow the fundamental law of basketball and throw it to them.”

Heat guard Dwyane Wade was more succinct. ”I have no idea,” Wade said. Clearly, neither did the Bulls. It was the worst field-goal percentage defense night for THE Bulls since the stat started being charted in the 1983-84 season, and after the Bulls got within 108-102 with about 5 minutes left they got outscored 21-9 the rest of the way – taking a loss that knocked them out of the top eight in the Eastern Conference.

”A terrible defensive effort on our part,” Pau Gasol said. ”We knew that this team was a high-scoring team in the paint, we didn’t force them to take 3s, we didn’t force them to take long shots. They pretty much got everything that they wanted.”

Derrick Rose returned from a three-game absence because of injury and scored 17 points for the Bulls, who lost for the 17th time in 25 games. Gasol had 15 points, nine rebounds and six assists, and Taj Gibson added 13 points – but left in the third quarter with a right hamstring injury, grabbing at it and wincing in pain. ”I liked how I played,” Rose said. No team had shot better in an NBA game this season than the 61.8 percent posted by San Antonio against Philadelphia on Dec. 7. The Heat topped that easily, with Deng, Whiteside and Johnson combining to shoot 26 for 34. Deng scored 20, Wade had 18 and Goran Dragic finished with 17 points and 11 assists.Johnson is now 2-0 with the Heat, his first time winning back-to-back games in nearly three months. ”Great pickup, Heat,” Whiteside said. ”He’s an amazing player and I’m glad he’s on our side.” The Heat improved to 5-2 in seven games since Chris Bosh became inactive because of a blood clot in his leg. Neither Bosh nor the team has offered any specifics or updates on his condition.

 

NOTES—Aaron Brooks scored 16 points. … The change in Bulls defensive numbers are staggering. The Bulls allowed 99.7 points on 41.6 percent shooting in their first 34 games, and in 25 games since have given up more than 106 points on 46 percent shooting. … Rose played 24 minutes, with the Bulls going in saying they would be cautious in his return game…..Johnson passed former Bull Reggie Theus for 50th on the NBA’s career scoring list with his seventh point Tuesday. … Deng, who was with the Bulls for 10 seasons, had warm embraces for several Bulls staffers at halftime. … The Heat paid tribute to longtime team broadcasters Eric Reid and Jose Paneda to commemorate their 2,000-games-called milestones. Reid and Paneda have been with the franchise since its inaugural season…..Whiteside has nine double-doubles in 11 games off the bench for the Heat, while generally playing starters’ minutes. Whiteside has double-doubles in each of his last six games, something no Heat reserve had ever done…..Golfer Matt Kuchar – in town for this week’s World Golf Championship at Doral – made a pair of chips from midcourt during a timeout, earning $10,000 for charity. Also courtside were a pair of retired professional hitters, baseball’s Mike Lowell and boxing’s Floyd Mayweather Jr. Miami clothier Kenny Sager was in the crowd as well, his birthday celebration marked by Heat mascot Burnie covering him with silly string…..The Bulls visit Orlando on Wednesday.

Nova too much for DePaul again

VILLANOVA—No longer at the top of the national poll, Villanova is still No. 1 in the Big East.Stitch another year on the championship banner, the Wildcats are again the class of the conference – a familiar regular-season coronation they can only hope doesn’t produce the same old early March exit.Kris Jenkins scored 14 straight points and a career-high 31 overall, leading No. 3 Villanova to an 83-62 romp over DePaul on Tuesday night and the outright Big East championship.The Wildcats (26-4, 15-2) are Big East champs for the third straight season and had already clinched the top seed for the conference tournament next week in New York. The Wildcats won the tournament in 2015.

”It’s something at the end of the year, we will take great pride in,” coach Jay Wright said. ”We really do take pride in the regular season. We evaluate our program by what we do in the regular season. That’s how we make all our decisions.”

But the ultimate jury is in March, where the Wildcats haven’t advanced out of the opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament since 2009. The Wildcats were eliminated three times over that span as a No. 1 or 2 NCAA seed. ”We know that we get judged publicly by how you do in the tournament,” Wright said. Maybe Jenkins can help change the tourney ending. He scored 20 points by halftime and opened the second with consecutive 3s, topping his previous best of 23. The Wildcats shot 68 percent in the first half and proved they are still a force at any ranking.The Wildcats slipped to No. 3 in the Top 25 after three weeks at No. 1. The Wildcats went 5-1 at No. 1 and lost last week at Xavier.Jenkins, a 6-foot-6 junior forward, averaged 11.9 points in his first full season as a starter and stuffed a game’s worth of production in 3:31. With Villanova leading 11-10, Jenkins buried four straight 3-pointers. He forced a steal and went in for a layup that made it 25-10 and capped his outburst.Jenkins came out for a breather and Ryan Arcidiacono promptly buried a 3 that stretched the lead to insurmountable for DePaul (9-20, 3-14).Eli Cain led DePaul with 14 points.