Since Dan Hurley took over the position of head coach in Connecticut three years ago, he has navigated many injuries. But he’ll have top scorer James Bouknight on the ground for Saturday afternoon’s showdown in Villanova.
Bouknight played for the first time in more than a month in a win against Providence earlier this week, scoring 18 points in 25 minutes of the Bank. For the season, he’s pouring 20 points per game with at least 18 points in six of his seven games played.
The resurrected Huskies offense faces a Villanova defense, 217th in the country in points per possession and 313rd in 3-point shooting defense rated so opponents can shoot 37.8 percent from a distance.
Villanova’s offense is based on perimeter shooting, which ranks 24th nationwide in 3-point shooting percentages, and 38.9 percent of the Wildcats points come from 3-pointers, which ranks 25th.
In games that Bouknight has played, opponents make 27.8 percent from the 3-point range versus 44.9 percent in games without him. And with the Huskies in sixth place in the nation in blocks per game, Villanova will have problems on both sides of the pitch on Saturday.
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