Spring Break
A quiet night for Reynolds
Kevin Duffy
Issue date: 1/22/09 Section: Sports
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in check
In his first two seasons at Villanova, it's safe to say Scottie Reynolds owned UConn.
Two years ago, in an 89-75 Wildcat win, Reynolds torched the Huskies to the tune of 40 points, a Gampel Pavilion record. Reynolds scored team-high18 points in last season's 67-65 victory as well.
Last night, the third time appeared to be the charm for the Huskies.
A combination of Jerome Dyson, A.J. Price, Craig Austrie and Kemba Walker held Reynolds in check for the entire game, limiting him to 14 points on 4-for-11 shooting from the field and 1-for-5 (shooting) from 3-point range.
"It just wore him down," Dyson said. "I feel like he got a little frustrated because we weren't giving him any open shots, we were trying to make everything difficult for him. We just tried to get the ball out of his hands and not let him push the ball up the court."
Reynolds, who, according to UConn assistant coach George Blaney, uses his body "better than anyone in college basketball," was bothered by the athleticism of the Huskies' backcourt. At one point, Reynolds was called for an up-and-down - a violation rarely commited beyond the elementary level of basketball - when a pull-up shot was on the verge of being rejected by the 6-foot Walker.
Villanova's leading scorer, senior forward Dante Cunningham, struggled for most of the game as well. The 6-foot-8, 230-pound Cunningham, who averages 17.7 points and 7.4 rebounds per game, scored just six points and grabbed three boards in 14 minutes of action. He fouled out with 8:16 remaining in the game.
"That was a big loss for us, especially on the defensive glass," said Villanova coach Jay Wright. "He's usually a guy who can go inside and [draw] some fouls, so we ended up just being a jumpshooting team without him in the game."
Robinson comes up big
Stanley Robinson's stats certainly won't wow anyone.
Robinson scored just two points and pulled down two rebounds in UConn's 89-83 victory over Villanova Wednesday night. And he committed three turnovers.
But, as senior forward Jeff Adrien noted, basketball isn't always about the box score.
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