ON SUNDAY afternoon at Pittsburgh, Villanova had given up a 22-2 run late in the first half, trailed by 18 points early in the second half and yet had a chance to tie things late before losing by nine.
Last night at the Pavilion against Providence, the Wildcats allowed an 18-2 run to close out the first half, and fell behind by 19 with 14 minutes left.
Once again, they came back. Only this time, they made it all the way.
The Wildcats, who had a 19-1 spurt midway through the second half despite losing leading scorer Maalik Wayns (three points) with a left knee injury, came away with a 74-72 win after being behind by five with under 2 minutes remaining. But they would score the last seven, all by freshman JayVaughn Pinkston, who finished with a career-best 28 points to go with a career-high 14 rebounds. He tied it on a breakaway dunk off a midcourt turnover with just over a minute showing, then put his team ahead for the first time since 28-26 with a layup at 23.5 seconds.
At the other end, Maurice Sutton blocked a runner by Gerard Coleman (16 points), and a hurried three-pointer by Bryce Cotton (20) at the end glanced off the front of the rim.
Pinkston, who scored Villanova's final nine, including three free throws, had 17 in the second half on 8-for-9 shooting. He also played 34 minutes, 10 more than his average.
"My team needed me," said the 6-6 forward. "I had to step up. Tonight was my night.
"We just went out there and do what we do, play how we play. I saw some openings. When I do, I'm taking the drive. I just go out there and play."
And when it mattered most, he was the obvious difference.
"It just shows how hard that kid's worked," said coach Jay Wright. "You just get special guys sometimes."
Did we mention that Pinkston wore a No. 53 jersey in the second half after taking some stitches over his left eye following an inadvertent collision that left blood on his No. 22?
It was a game that matched the 14th- and 15th-place teams in the 16-strong Big East. So, how many would have predicted that when the schedule came out?
Providence, which had lost five of its last six and nine of 11, maybe.
Villanova, which had dropped three straight and eight of 11, probably not so much. But for whatever reasons, it's turned into that kind of season for a program that's made seven consecutive NCAA Tournaments.
