The nation’s top team will be on the road when the No. 8 Villanova Wildcats (6-0) head to Michael J. Hagan ’85 Arena to square off against the Saint Joseph’s Hawks (4-1). The game begins at 7:00 pm ET on Tuesday, Dec. 1 and can be seen on CCS.
The Hawks barely escaped Old Dominion 66-64 the last time they played. DeAndre’ Bembry played a pivotal role, recording his first double-double this season with 15 points and 10 rebounds. The Wildcats are coming off a 69-52 win over Georgia Tech in their last outing. Jalen Brunson played well for Villanova, accounting for 13 points, three rebounds, and two steals.
Villanova is favored by 12 points over Saint Joseph’s and the Over/Under (O/U) is 141 points. The Hawks have gone 4-1 Straight Up (SU) and 2-3 Against The Spread (ATS). The Hawks have really locked down opponents on the defensive end, ranking 25th in the country with a .365 opponent field-goal percentage.
On the other side, Villanova has a SU record of 6-0 and an ATS record of 4-1. The Wildcats rarely make costly errors handling the ball. They have the 16th-best assist-to-turnover ratio in the country at 1.70. The Villanova defense as a whole has been firing on all cylinders so far, ranking third in Division I with only 53.5 points allowed per game. The Villanova defense has been a problem for competitors, allowing only .325 shooting from the field to its opponents.
This game marks the first time these teams will play this season. The last time Saint Joseph’s and Villanova played, Villanova won, moving its SU record against the Hawks to 8-2. The teams have an even record ATS, 5-5.
Predictions: SU Winner – Vill, ATS Winner – Vill, O/U – Under
Notes
Saint Joseph’s is 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games.
Saint Joseph’s is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Saint Joseph’s last 6 games.
Saint Joseph’s is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games at home.
The total has gone UNDER in 10 of Saint Joseph’s last 12 games when playing Villanova.
Saint Joseph’s is 6-11-1 ATS in its last 18 games when playing Villanova.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Saint Joseph’s last 6 games when playing at home against Villanova.
The Villanova Wildcats have a defensive rating of 79.1 (ranked fourth), while the Saint Joseph’s Hawks have an offensive rating of 105.1 (ranked 184th).
The Saint Joseph’s Hawks average 71.0 possessions per game and 1.051 points per possession, while the Villanova Wildcats earn fewer possessions (67.8) but more points per possession (1.148).
The Saint Joseph’s Hawks rank higher based on their field goal percentage (159th) than their effective field goal percentage (217th). The Villanova Wildcats rank higher based on their effective field goal percentage (110th) than their field goal percentage (146th).
Villanova ranks 66th in assists, recording 16.2 per game. Saint Joseph’s performs worse at 248th with 12.2 assists per game.
Saint Joseph’s, the 11th-ranked team in blocked shots, registers an average of 6.4 per game. Villanova ranks 87th with 4.5.
The Saint Joseph’s Hawks average 4.0 steals per game. The Villanova Wildcats are undefeated at 5-0 when they allow at least 4 steals.
