Winning Atlantis title good sign of things to come in 2017-18 for Villanova basketball
By Dan Parzych
On Friday, the Villanova Wildcats basketball team defeated Northern Iowa 64-50 in the Battle 4 Atlantis championship game.
When looking at the expectations surrounding the Villanova Wildcats basketball team at the beginning of the season, it was easy to see why Jay Wright’s was one of the favorites to come out on top to win the Battle 4 Atlantis title. Thanks to Friday’s 64-50 win over Northern Iowa, the Wildcats continue to live up to the early season hype for their sixth win of the season.
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Mikal Bridges led the way for Villanova in the championship game after scoring 18 points on on 8 of 14 shooting while playing 40 minutes. When considering the junior has been averaging just under 19 points per game on the season, seeing Bridges make this kind of impact throughout the tournament (21 points in the previous game against Tennessee), Friday’s performance shouldn’t really come as that much of a surprise.
Even though there were some concerns early on in the tournament against Western Kentucky, the Wildcats deserve plenty of credit for the way they looked on their way to the championship, and the best part is Wright’s team showed plenty of potential when it comes to being one of the top teams to beat in college basketball this season. Keep in mind there’s a reason why Villanova started off at No. 6 in the USA TODAY Coaches Poll back in October, and after their early exit in last year’s NCAA Tournament, the Wildcats hope for different results this time around.
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Up next, the Wildcats head back home from the Bahamas to take on a familiar face in Pennsylvania, who are coming off a recent win against UMKC a few days ago. This may not seem like the most challenging matchup against the Quakers on paper, but every win will be important moving forward when it comes to making sure the Wildcats remain near the top of the polls. Plus, with a future contest scheduled on Dec. 5 against Gonzaga that will be a major test for the Wildcats, winning this tournament in the Bahamas seems like the perfect confidence booster for this team when it comes to proving they belong in the top 10 this year.