On Tuesday, Nov. 25, Villanova women’s basketball (4-2) secured its place in the Big 5 Classic championship game with a 66-54 victory over La Salle (5-1). The Wildcats have taken wins over both of their Big 5 “pod” opponents leading up to the Classic. In its other Big 5 matchup this season, Villanova defeated Temple in a 30-point blowout last Saturday, Nov. 22. Villanova’s leading scorer on the night was junior forward Brynn McCurry, with 18 points, and sophomore guard Jasmine Bascoe, who closely trailed with 16 points. McCurry was the player of the game for the Wildcats, as she also led the squad with seven rebounds and five assists. Freshman guard Kennedy Henry brought defensive heroics throughout the game, as she finished the night with four steals and four blocks. Villanova found most of its offensive success in the first half, which it ended with a 36-21 advantage. The Wildcats controlled the pace from the jump ball, racing to a 18-6 lead by the end of the first quarter. Villanova shot 38. 9% from the field, while La Salle only shot 15. 4%. The Wildcats also shot 4-for-10 from the long range in the first quarter. Two of those three-pointers came from Bascoe. She continues to lead the Wildcats in points, averaging 16. 7 per game. McCurry did a little bit of everything in the first half, scoring a team-high 10 points, while also adding five boards and three assists to her stacked statline. Meanwhile, the Explorers had trouble on offense, conceding 12 turnovers in the first half and struggling to get set up in their sets. Henry was responsible for two of the La Salle turnovers in the first half, in which she added seven points to go along with a pair of steals. Henry leads the Wildcats in steals, averaging 2. 1 a game. In the second quarter, La Salle senior guard Ashleigh Connor found a way to get the team good looks on offense. Connor, who leads the Explorers with 18. 2 points per game, took over the second quarter with some tough buckets over the Wildcats. She scored all eight of her first-half points in the second quarter. Explorers junior guard Aryss Macktoon also added four points to help cut the deficit down at the half. La Salle went on an 11-4 run over five minutes to start the third quarter, cutting Villanova’s lead to eight. Connor continued her dominant night, scoring with a pull-up jumper. Explorers sophomore forward Kiara Williams hit a hook shot in the paint, and sophomore guard Joan Quinn nailed a corner three to add to the run. However, Bascoe helped dismantle La Salle’s comeback at the end of the third quarter. She checked back in the game after dealing with foul trouble all night, receiving four whistles. In the last four minutes of the third quarter, Bascoe hit two back-to-back threes, both off assists from McCurry. Villanova profited off seven La Salle fouls in the fourth quarter to secure a double-digit lead. The Wildcats added 14 points from the free-throw line in the final 10 minutes. With the win, for the second year in a row, Villanova will be playing in the Big 5 championship game on Sunday, Dec. 7 at the Finneran Pavilion. Next, the Wildcats will go on the road to play their first ranked opponent of the season, No. 21 West Virginia, on Monday, Dec. 1 (7 p. m., ESPN+).
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Villanova Heads to Women’s Big 5 Classic Championship With 66-54 Win Over La Salle
