Dominant Villanova Rides Mikal Bridges Past Collin Sexton, Alabama

It doesn't take the Villanova Wildcats long to go from middling to NBA Jam levels of on fire.

That's the lesson Collin Sexton and the No. 9 seed Alabama Crimson Tide found out Saturday in second-round play of the NCAA men's basketball tournament. The Wildcats ran the Tide out of the gym in the second half en route to an 81-58 win to get to the Sweet 16.

After a competitive first half, Villanova unleashed a barrage of scoring that buried Alabama's upset bid. Nova finished 17-of-41 (41.5 percent) from three-point range.

As ESPN Stats & Info noted, the Cats have been on a near-record-setting pace from distance:

Mikal Bridges—the No. 3 player on B/R NBA draft analyst Jonathan Wasserman's NCAA tournament big board—was the star for Villanova. After a quiet first half, he scored 22 second-half points to propel the Wildcats.

Sexton finished with 17 points in a performance that simply wasn't enough against a more talented squad.

Adam Zagoria of the New York Times summed up the Cats' second-half effort nicely:

Jay Wright's squad showed everyone why it's considered the favorite to win the tournament, per OddsShark. In addition to the killer offense, the defense was in lockdown mode as well.

Sam Vecenie of The Athletic noted Villanova's excellent defense in the second half:

The Wildcats' team approach will make them a tough out. With the way they move the ball and their confidence in one another, it's difficult to stop the onslaught, as Brian Snow of 247Sports pointed out:

Pat Forde of Yahoo Sports described just how dangerous this team can be when the shots are falling:

The Wildcats have Donte DiVincenzo to thank for setting up their incredible second-half run. Villanova shot 34.6 percent in the first half, but he put up 18 points on 5-of-9 shooting from three before the break.

The performance had Wasserman breaking down the sophomore guard's game:

The Crimson Tide's best shot to pull off the upset was to get a Herculean effort from Sexton. The point guard is the No. 13 player on Wasserman's NCAA tournament big board and showcased his skills at times—including a slick alley-oop pass in the first half—but starring against the Wildcats is a tough order.

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The Cats on Friday will play the winner of Sunday's West Virginia Mountaineers-Marshall Thundering Herd game for an Elite Eight berth.

Villanova has already surpassed last year's tournament run, as it was upset in the second round by Wisconsin.