UConn-Villanova: Kemba Walker and Huskies Down Wildcats at Home

In a word, Walker. In two words, Kemba Walker. In multiple words, kid played like Walker Texas Ranger.

He was the difference in the ballgame for the Huskies.

I’m not saying the 29 points Walker poured in were a sign that he was channeling Chuck Norris, although they did help quite a bit. What was of paramount importance was his masterful job of controlling the tempo of the game and neutralizing, almost single-handedly, the Wildcat defensive backcourt.

Sure, the 29 points were huge, but running the show for nearly 40 minutes and giving up the ball once is like a round house kick to the jaw. Say it with me: There is no such thing as an endangered species list, just a category of animals that Walker allows to live.

Walker’s, and to a lesser extent Jerome Dyson’s, handling of the basketball allowed the Huskies to exploit their size advantage on the glass and then set their defense against the talented ‘Nova guards.

The solid guard play enabled the Husky bigs tandem of Robinson and Edwards to dominate the glass, winning that important battle 36 to 22. Valuing the basketball also gave UConn the ability to set its defense on most possessions, and the bigs took full advantage.

Edwards, Oriaki, and Robinson used their length to take away driving lanes and erase layups, which forced the Villanova guards into the uncomfortable mid-range game if they wanted buckets.

The result for Villanova was 40 percent from the field and a paltry eight assists as a team.

It was a brilliant defensive performance that didn’t yield many easy points.

There was no patented Villanova transition feeding frenzy or huge 16-2 run, and that’s all Walker and Dyson taking care of the basketball and slicing and dicing the Cat defense.

As for the Big East race, nothing has really changed for the top two teams. It’s going to be Syracuse and Villanova for all the marbles, including a No. 1 seed.

For the Huskies, it gives them an outside chance to get to the tourney if they can get to .500 in conference and win a couple in the Big East Tourney. If they get backcourt play like they did today, I woudn’t bet against UConn pulling a deep run in The Garden.

This article was written by Kevin Berger of March To March

Follow Kevin on Twitter: @MarchToMarch