Benched at start, Ochefu sparks No. 6 Villanova

PROVIDENCE, R.I. - Daniel Ochefu again was a missing person when Villanova's starting lineup was introduced Wednesday night, but he made an impression that had most of the Dunkin' Donuts Center crowd of 12,410 remembering him by game's end.

Ochefu was benched at the start for the second straight game because of being late for class, but he still got on the floor for 29 minutes, contributed 19 points and nine rebounds, and helped lead the sixth-ranked Wildcats to their fifth straight victory, 74-68, over Providence.

When Jay Wright was asked about Ochefu after the game, the 6-foot-11 junior turned and whispered something to his coach.

"He's off double-secret probation now," Wright said with just the trace of a smile.

"It's a simple thing. We talk about it all the time, just teaching. If it was bad, I wouldn't play him. It's a little thing. Starting is a privilege in our program. And it comes with more responsibility than anybody else has. So you've got to be held accountable. He understands it, he's great. You can tell by the way he played."

Ochefu, who also didn't start Saturday in the win over Georgetown, called it "a learning experience."

"My teammates and coaches are behind me and supporting me," he said. "I've just got to learn from it and keep growing up."

Ochefu, who made all seven of his shots from the field, came off the bench with 14 minutes, 36 seconds left in the opening half. He led the Wildcats at halftime with 10 points (5-for-5 shooting) and five rebounds and helped his team to a 29-26 lead.

Holding a tenuous 37-34 lead with just over 13 minutes to play, Villanova broke the game open with an 11-0 run over a stretch of more than 21/2 minutes, with Ochefu and Josh Hart combining for all the points.

Ochefu knocked down two free throws and converted a three-point play. Hart, who spent Tuesday night in the campus infirmary with flu symptoms and flew into Providence Wednesday morning, connected on a pair of three-pointers from the right corner.

Hart's second three-ball gave the Wildcats their largest lead of the night, 48-34, with 8:15 remaining. Villanova managed just two field goals from that point but wore out the Dunk's floor boards with a continuous parade to the free-throw line, going 22 of 30 in the final 6:22.

Ryan Arcidiacono, who led 'Nova with 20 points, sank nine consecutive foul shots, his final two with 48.9 seconds to play giving the visitors their last double-digit lead at 69-58.

Darrun Hilliard added 16 points for the Wildcats. LaDontae Henton, the Big East's leading scorer, was held to two points in the first half but finished with 23. Kris Dunn, a conference player-of-the-year candidate, shot just 7 of 20 and had 17 points, eight assists, and four steals.

But in the end, Ochefu loomed big for the Cats.

"There's no doubt that we back up Coach Wright and we back up Daniel, and we're here for him," Arcidiacono said. "We know that it's very important for the program. We know Daniel is going to give effort whether he starts or comes off the bench."

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