Philadelphia: The eyes of the College Basketball world came to the Wells Fargo Center as the Number 1 team in College Basketball Kansas Jayhawks took on number 18 Villanova Wildcats. Villanova came into the game off a win over Delaware on December 14 while the Jayhawks walked into South Philly off a win over Kansas City also on December 14.
Notes:
Kansas beat Villanova last year. Villanova took down Kansas in the 2018 Final Four and also beat them in the 2016 South Regional Final.
Villanova beat the number 1 team in the nation at the Wells Fargo Center in 2006 when the Wildcats beat Uconn.
The last two trips for Kansas at the Wells Fargo Center have not gone well, with losses to Villanova & Temple.
Villanova would take down Number 1 Kansas 56-55.
How the game went:
In the first Half, Kansas went on a run, amassing a 7 point lead at 14-7 and the Wildcats would slowly fight their way back. The Wildcats took the lead at 15-14 with 7:53 left. Both teams had golden chances to blow this game open but defense would be the story. Villanova would have a lead of 3 at 21-18 and Kansas bounced back to make things interesting. The game was tied at 23 at halftime.
In the second half, Villanova came out and pushed the lead up to 6 at 33-27. The Jayhawks showed why they are the number 1 team in the nation and fought their way back and this would be very tight for the rest of the game. Both teams made some big shots down the stretch. Villanova’s Jermaine Samuels would hit monster shot for 56-55 lead late in the second half.
JERMAINE. SAMUELS.@J_Swizz23 hits the CLUTCH three to put @NovaMBB on top ?? pic.twitter.com/S8eKVaFiWe
— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) December 21, 2019
The Wildcats defense made the final stop and it was time to celebrate as Number 1 goes down
TV Call by Gus Johnson:
Kansas came THIS CLOSE to hitting the winner against Villanova ? pic.twitter.com/dpt8ekjw9X
— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) December 21, 2019
How it looked in the Arena:
It's over #Villanova takes Down Number 1 Kansas #NOVAvsKansas @PhiladelphiaSN pic.twitter.com/orA9GOZ3HE
— David Malandra Jr (@David_Malandra) December 21, 2019
With Villanova win over Kansas, this is the fifth Number 1 team to lose before Janaury.
What comes Next:
Villanova will now head into Conference Play when they take on Xavier on December 30 at Finneran Pavilion while Kansas will try to Rebound from this game as they take on Stanford on December 29.
Stats:
Jermaine Samuels lead the Wildcats with 15 points while Devon Dotson lead Jayhawks with 15 points.
Video:
Villanova Coach Jay Wright:
Kansas Coach Bill Self:
Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
