No. 3 ’Nova outlasts Maryland

WASHINGTON - The third-ranked Villanova Wildcats emerged from their bench with 13 minutes, 31 seconds remaining tonight and found something bizarre awaiting them - a tight game.

It ended quickly from there, however. The Maryland Terrapins endured the same fate as the other seven teams that faced the Wildcats this season.

After a time-out, Villanova went on an 8-0 run en route a 95-86 victory in the BB&T Classic at the Verizon Center.

The Wildcats have begun the season with an 8-0 record for the second straight year.

The victory also gives Villanova a 3-1 all-time edge over Maryland (5-3). Before tonight, the last meeting in the series was on Feb. 1, 1986.

The Wildcats made a season-high 16 three-pointers en route to shooting 41 percent (16 of 39) from beyond the arc. In the process, Villanova set a school record for the most three-point attempts. The previous record of 38 was set against Minnesota on Nov. 25, 1994.

Eleven of Villanova's three-pointers came in the first half.

Junior guard Corey Stokes made 5 of 11 three-pointers and scored 18 points before fouling out. Junior guard Corey Fisher (20 points) made four three-pointers. Senior guard Scottie Reynolds (25 points) and sophomore forward Taylor King (13 points) had three apiece. Freshman guard Maalik Wayns made one, accounting for his only points.

Sean Mosley led Maryland with 26 points.

It didn't take long to realize Villanova would benefit from its three-pointers.

The Wildcats led by 17-6 after Reynolds made their fifth trey with 13:48 remaining in the first half. Their 10th three - made by Stokes - made it a 40-29 contest with 4:30 left before intermission.

However, 'Nova struggled offensively at the start of the second half, and the Terrapins made four of six three-pointers during that time. Their fourth one by Eric Hayes closed the gap to 61-58 with 13:31 remaining.

But Fisher responded with a three-pointer after the time-out. After Reynolds made two foul shots, the senior scored a layup. Then Antonio Pena's foul shot expanded the lead to 11 points.

Maryland pulled within six points late in the contest.

This game was a homecoming for the Wildcats' Reynolds (Herndon, Va.), freshman forward/center Maurice Sutton (Largo, Md.) and freshman forward Isaiah Armwood (Baltimore).

Freshman center Mouphtaou Yarou, who is out after contracting Hepatitis B, was a high school teammate of Armwood last year at Montrose Christian (Baltimore).