College basketball powers Kansas, Villanova have met on the biggest stage before
Elite college basketball programs Kansas and Villanova have each won three NCAA Tournament titles — the Jayhawks in 2008, 1988 and 1952 and the Wildcats in 2018, 2016 and 1985.
The Wildcats of the Big East (8-3), who will meet the Jayhawks of the Big 12 (8-0) in an 11 a.m. tipoff Saturday at Allen Fieldhouse, defeated KU en route to two of their three national championships — in the 2018 Final Four and 2016 Elite Eight.
The Jayhawks, who trail ‘Nova, 4-3 in head-to-head matchups, disposed of the Wildcats en route to one of their three NCAA Tourney crowns — in the Sweet 16 in 2008.
Villanova coach Jay Wright is 2-1 in the tourney versus Bill Self’s Jayhawks and 4-2 overall. In the only game in the series not coached by Self and Wright, the Ted Owens-led Jayhawks prevailed over the Jack Kraft-led Wildcats, 55-49, on March 18, 1968 in an NIT quarterfinal in New York.
Here’s a look at the head-to-head battles between bluebloods KU and Villanova, starting with those all-important games in the NCAAs:
Villanova 95, Kansas 79, NCAA Final Four semifinal, March 31, 2018, San Antonio, Texas: In a showdown between a pair of No. 1 seeds, the Wildcats buried KU amid a barrage of three-pointers.
Villanova hit a Final Four-record 18 threes in 40 attempts. The 18 treys tied for the most three-pointers made against KU in any game. Iowa State cashed 18 against KU in 2017 and Nebraska 18 in 2002.
The Wildcats tied the Final Four record for threes in a game in the first half alone, making 13 in 26 tries in opening leads of 22-4 and 47-32.
Senior forward Eric Paschall, who will start for Villanova on Saturday, scored a game-high 24 points on 10-of-11 shooting. He was 4 of 5 from three. Jalen Brunson, currently a rookie with the Dallas Mavericks, scored 18 points and dished six assists. Omari Spellman, a first-year member of the Atlanta Hawks, scored 15 points and grabbed 13 rebounds.
KU’s Devonté Graham, now a first-year guard with the Charlotte Hornets, scored a team-leading 23 points. He was 4 of 8 from three.
Malik Newman, who now plays for the Sioux Falls Skyforce in the NBA G-League, scored 21 points on 6-of-14 shooting. Overall the Jayhawks were 7 of 21 from three.
“That was just one of those games. We made every shot to start the game,” 18th-year Villanova coach Wright said after the game.
“They got anything they wanted early,” 16th-year KU coach Self said. “It gets to 22-4 and it’s like, ‘Oh my gosh. We’re seven minutes in, and we’re going to have to play just about perfect to get back.’’’
Down by 15 at half, the Jayhawks (31-8), who totaled eight assists to Villanova’s 20, trailed by 22 points with 13:14 to play and 14 points with 9:12 left.
Several players who competed in that game return for Saturday’s contest.
KU’s Lagerald Vick scored eight points in 33 minutes. Marcus Garrett had no points and two rebounds in 18 minutes and Mitch Lightfoot no points and no boards in two minutes.
Udoka Azubuike, who is out of action with a sprained right ankle, scored eight points and grabbed five boards. Silvio De Sousa, who has not played in a game this season as the NCAA looks into his eligibility, scored seven points with seven rebounds in 10 minutes.
Current Villanova starters Phil Booth scored 10 points with six assists in 32 minutes; Collin Gillespie three points in eight minutes and Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree no points in five minutes.
Also, Tim Delaney and Jermaine Samuels each had no points in one minute.
Villanova (35-4) went on to defeat Michigan in the NCAA title game, 79-62, for its second national title in three seasons.
Villanova 64, Kansas 59, NCAA Tournament Elite Eight, March 25, 2016, Louisville: No. 2-seed Villanova keyed on KU forward Perry Ellis and held him to a season-low four points on 1-of-5 shooting. Graham scored 17 points and grabbed seven rebounds, while Wayne Selden and Frank Mason had 16 points for No. 1 seed KU (33-5).
Graham was 5 of 9 from three, while Selden and Mason combined to go 1-for-12. The Jayhawks hit 46 percent of their shots, but just 6 of 22 threes in losing for the first time in their last 18 games. Villanova (33-5) hit 40.4 percent of its shots and was 4 of 18 from three.
Kris Jenkins, Josh Hart and Ryan Arcidiacono scored 13 points apiece for Villanova, which converted 18 of 19 free throws to KU’s 7 of 11.
The Wildcats went on a 10-0 run to turn a 45-40 deficit into a 50-45 lead with eight minutes left. KU cut the gap to two points (50-48) on a Graham three with seven minutes to play.
Graham fouled out on a controversial call with 41 seconds left. He dove into the legs of a Wildcat as he lost possession. A foul on Villanova instead of Kansas would have sent Graham to the line.
Mason fouled Arcidiacono, who hit two free throws to give Villanova a 58-54 lead with 33 seconds left. Mason answered with a three at :25.5 and KU trailed 58-57. Mason committed a turnover with 13 seconds left and ‘Nova up, 62-59. Two free throws with 3.5 seconds left assured victory for the Wildcats, who went on to beat Oklahoma and North Carolina in the Final Four.
“We were very aware of trying to limit his touches,” Wright said of strategy on KU’s leading scorer, Ellis. “We played him mostly straight. We played zone. We played man-to-man, but we mostly just tried to find where he was. We really didn’t double him too many times. I don’t know if we doubled him once.
“That Kansas team is a national championship-caliber team. They made every single correct play down the stretch,” Wright added. “They kept coming until we got a steal at the end. That’s a great team. I have all the respect in the world for Bill and their program. And, specifically, this team this year.”
Graham said the Jayhawks, “were just anxious, extremely hyped and we were shooting it kind of hard, shooting it back rim or over the rim, stuff like that. We just couldn’t knock down shots we normally do. Wayne missed a couple of threes and so did I. We just couldn’t knock them down.”
Villanova 63, Kansas 59, Battle4Atlantis semifinal, Nov. 29, 2013, Paradise Island, Bahamas: Villanova’s Arcidiacono hit a go-ahead three-pointer with 10.1 seconds left to erase a 59-58 deficit and lift the unranked Wildcats to victory over No. 2-ranked KU.
It was Villanova’s only basket in the final seven minutes and Arcidiacono’s first hoop in six attempts.
“I thought I was wide open, so I just pulled the trigger,” Arcidiacono said at the time.
KU used a 13-1 run to erase an 11-point deficit and take the lead on Mason’s three-point play with 33 seconds left. On the ensuing possession, Arcidiacono snapped Villanova’s seven-minute stretch without a field goal by hitting a corner three.
Mason had a chance to regain the lead for Kansas, but missed a deep three with three seconds left.
Darrun Hilliard and Dylan Ennis each scored 14 points, while JayVaughn Pinkston scored 13 points and James Bell added 10 for Villanova (6-0). Mason scored 12 points and Ellis 11 points. Andrew Wiggins and Joel Embiid scored 10 points each for KU (5-1).
“We have a long ways to go,” Self said after the game. “I love our talent. I love our players and all that stuff. But the thing is, there’s a difference between trying hard and actually competing. And we have to learn how to compete. And it’s not going to happen overnight.”
Kansas 72, Villanova 57, NCAA Tournament Sweet 16, March 28, 2008, Detroit: Brandon Rush scored 16 points, Russell Robinson 15 and Mario Chalmers 14 as No. 1 seed KU blasted No. 12-seed Villanova.
Robinson hit three three pointers in the first half and scored 13 points as KU (34-3) rolled to leads of 26-10 and 41-22. Robinson also guarded Scottie Reynolds, who scored just six points the first half and finished with 11 points on 4-of-13 shooting.
Current KU video coordinator Jeremy Case, who entered the game at the end of the half to protect Chalmers, Rush and Sherron Collins, who had two fouls apiece, hit a three to close the first-half scoring.
“Russell carried us the first half,” said guard Sherron Collins, who, suffering from tonsillitis, finished with four points and four assists in 21 minutes. “He did the job on Scottie. Like coach Self said, Russell is the heartbeat of our team. We respect him. He did a great job,” Collins added.
Self was most impressed with senior leader Robinson.
“The key to the game was his defensive play on Scottie,” Self said.
The Wildcats (22-13), who were down by as many as 21 points, never sliced the deficit below 12 the second half.
KU was outscored, 35-31, in the second half partly because Rush and Chalmers picked up their third fouls early.
KU went on to defeat Davidson in the Elite Eight, then beat North Carolina and Memphis in San Antonio for the NCAA title.
Villanova 83, Kansas 62, Jan. 22, 2005, Philadelphia: Allen Ray hit four threes and scored 27 points while Curtis Sumpter hit five three-pointers and netted 25 as unranked Villanova handed No. 2-ranked KU its first loss of the season in 15 games.
The Wildcats (10-4), who led by seven points at halftime, opened the second half on a 15-2 run and after giving up a three, scored 16 straight to bury the Jayhawks (14-1).
Sumpter and Ray combined to hit 15 of 26 shots. Overall the Wildcats were 12 of 19 from three and 15 of 16 from the line.
“We didn’t show much poise at all early in the second half, then it got out of kilter,” KU coach Self said.
Wayne Simien scored 15 points and J.R. Giddens and Sasha Kaun 11 apiece for the Jayhawks ,who committed 22 turnovers overall and trailed by as many as 32 points in the second half.
“It was a guard’s game. It was a post game. I think it would be easier to put it, it was ‘their game,’” Self said.
KU had trouble returning to Lawrence after the 21-point loss. A blizzard dropped more than a foot of snow on Philadelphia, canceling KU’s charter flight after the Saturday night game.
“I remember getting snowed in. Having a bad game and having to stay in the hotel an extra day made it worse. It made it tough,” Kaun recalled.
The following day was even worse.
The Jayhawks arrived at the Philadelphia airport at 7 a.m., only to sit on the plane on the runway for 4 1/2 hours.
It took nine hours of travel time Sunday to return to campus.
“It was snowing sideways. You couldn’t see a foot in front of you,” former KU assistant Tim Jankovich, now head coach at SMU, recalled. “The great part of the whole trip is we always have a bus waiting in Topeka. It turned out our driver had torn his pants at some point and called somebody to meet him to bring him pants. We’ve got to sit on the bus while somebody brought him pants. That’s another good 15 minutes. It was our lovely couple days.”
Kansas 86, Villanova 79, Jan. 2, 2004, Allen Fieldhouse: Keith Langford scored 24 points and Simien 23. David Padgett contributed 15 points and nine rebounds as the No. 13-ranked Jayhawks (8-2) tripped unranked Villanova (8-3). Langford scored seven points in a tiebreaking 23-5 run for the Jayhawks, who hit 35 of 41 free throws.
It was 38-38 at halftime and 43-43 early in the second half following a three by Mike Nardi. J.R. Giddens then hit a three, followed by two free throws from Langford and Simien and KU led by seven.
Jeff Hawkins sank a three and Langford two free throws to cap the big run and give KU a 66-48 lead with nine minutes remaining.
Ray, who had 22 points, led a surge that closed the gap to 80-75 with :55 left. Aaron Miles hit two free throws at :50, then Ray scored to cut the gap to 82-77 with 38 seconds remaining. Miles swished two free throws at :34 to put Kansas ahead 84-77.
Sumpter totaled 18 points for Villanova, while Mike Nardi had 16 and Randy Foye 11.
“The last five minutes we kind of lost our poise and let them back in,” forward Simien said. “They were a scrappy bunch, very athletic. We’re fortunate to come out with a win.”
Noted Self: “I thought offensively we did some really good things. When they started their comeback, we didn’t play very good defense.”
Kansas 55, Villanova 49, quarterfinals, postseason NIT, March 18, 1968, New York: Rodger Bohnenstiehl scored 15 points, Dave Nash 13 and JoJo White 10 for KU.
Johnny Jones scored 11 of his 18 points the first half as Villanova led, 31-25, at the break. However, KU coach Owens switched defenses and the Jo Jo White-led Jayhawks embarked on an 11-0 run to open the final half.
Sammy Sims of Villanova finally scored six minutes into the half as the Wildcats cut the gap to 36-33. KU increased the margin to 47-36 before Jones scored ‘Nova’s next field goal almost eight minutes later.
Joe Crews scored eight points in the final four minutes to make the score reasonably close.
Philly.com noted that “Kansas had been playing basketball since 1898, Villanova since 1920, but until that 1968 NIT game, they’d never met. That night, before an NIT-record crowd of 19,500, the Wildcats blew a halftime lead and couldn’t recover from the 14-2 Jayhawks run that began the second half. The loss left them with a 19-9 record, their third straight season below 20 wins.”
KU (22-8) went on to beat St. Peter’s in the semis, 58-46, then lost to Dayton in the NIT final, 61-48.
