The Final Score:

After an uptempo first half in which DePaul kept up with Villanova every step of the way, the second half was a completely different story. The Blue Demons missed their first few shots and the Wildcats were able to turn them into points.

Eventually Villanova got on a 21-10 run and put DePaul’s back against the wall. That wall would crumble and fall as the game went on and things only got worse.

At one point DePaul didn’t score for three minutes in the second half, and in that same time frame Villanova scored 15 points. Donnavan Kirk and Darrel Robertson saw significantly less playing time in the second half because of foul trouble.

Villanova used their size advantage to take control of the paint in the absence of DePaul’s big men. Midway through the half fans started leaving the Allstate Arena in frustration of DePaul’s failures tonight.

There were even negative chants directed towards Demons head coach Oliver Purnell. There were some questionable calls by the officials during tonight’s game, but those calls did nothing to effect the outcome of this contest.

Blue Demons forward Cleveland Melvin gave a valiant effort as he led his team in scoring with 19 points. Jamee Crockett, the other forward finished second with 16.

Brandon Young pitched in with 11, and Worrell Clahar scored 12 which were all earned by three point shots.  Despite decent outside shooting by the Demons, it was the inside scoring and defense that suffered tonight.

Without Kirk and Robertson, DePaul was outscored in the paint 42-10. They were also out-rebounded 33-27. The Wildcats also scored 22 points off of 16 Demon turnovers.

Overall it ended up being another bad night for the DePaul Blue Demons as they drop their seventh in-a-row by the final score of 94-71.  This is the second time this season in which the Demons gave up 90 or more points.

They are now 10-12 overall, 1-7 in the Big East. Villanova breaks their losing streak and they are now 13-9 overall, 4-5 in the Big East. After the game DePaul forward Jamee Crocket said “We were a little exhausted, but that’s no excuse. We didn’t execute, we didn’t follow the game plan, and we didn’t play well”.

Cleveland Melvin told reporters “We can’t think about this game too much. We gotta worry about the next game and get ready for Marquette. We need to just stick to the game plan. If we can get better on defense, our game plan will work.”

DePaul will indeed make the trip up I-94 to take on Marquette this Saturday. Villanova returns to Philadelphia to take on South Florida this weekend. DePaul cannot afford anymore than one more less if they are to have any chance a t postseason berth.

Here are the stats from tonight’s game:

Here the post-game press conferences for both DePaul and Villanova:

Oliver Purnell:

Villanova:

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Cleveland Melvin leads DePaul with 13 points.

DePaul scored the first bucket of the game but then things quickly got out of hand. Villanova went on a 16-10 run and then the game was back and forth from there.

Turnovers by both teams along with multiple foul calls and missed shots really kept this one tight. The first half had seven ties and three lead changes.

At one point ‘Nova led by as much as seven while DePaul’s biggest lead was four. Cleveland Melvin leads the Demons with 13 points, he is the only Demon in double figures so far.

Worrell Clahar has nine points all of which came from three point shots. Ryan Arcidiacono and James Bell lead Villanova as they combined for 18 points and 9-21 shooting.

The Demons defense has looked shaky at times. They have given up easy shots and just as I predicted they also bring it in the paint. Darrel Robertson Jr. is in foul trouble for DePaul already has he has three fouls.

Which is bad for them because he is the biggest player on the roster and DePaul will need him to take on Villanova’s big men down the stretch. It’s been a crazy one so far, let’s see if the Demons and keep up this tempo in the second half.

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Here are the halftime stats:

Both teams are on the floor for early warm-ups.

Tonight the Blue Demons find themselves in a very difficult position. As they take on the Villanova Wildcats in another Big East Conference game, they do so as losers of their last six. All of those losses have been conference games.

Currently DePaul is 10-11 (1-7 Big East) this season. If they are to have any chance of making the NCAA or NIT tournaments, they will have to win at least eight of their next 10 games. It’s easier said than done but not impossible.

Tonight the Blue Demons could pull off the victory. All they need to do is take advantage of Villanova’s own losing streak. The Wildcats from the City of Brotherly Love are coming off of back-to-back losses to Notre Dame and Providence.

Brandon Young, Cleveland Melvin, and Jamee Crockett have been the leaders for this DePaul team. Even though they have lost six in-a-row, the Demons have kept it close in some of these games.

In their last game against Notre Dame, the Fighting Irish needed overtime to put DePaul away. The Blue Demons came from behind late in the second half to take a four point lead late in the game. Just a few days before that at St. Johns, the Demons also forced overtime before that one was said and done.

The Demons have been getting the best from their players, but the issue has been the inability to sustain leads and hold it down on defense. DePaul will certainly be tested tonight as Villanova has quite the size advantage.

The Wildcats have four starters who are 6’6″ or taller while DePaul only has two starters taller than that. Look for Villanova to test the Blue Demons inside early and often in this nationally televised encounter.

Oliver Purnell’s group will need to dig deep, come up big on defense, and limit mistakes if they are going to walk out of Allstate Arena with the win this evening.

If the Demons want to get into the post season, they need to start a winning streak now. At this point it’s now or never.

You can follow me on Twitter for game updates @GabeSalgado82 #Q101Sports