Villanova Makes 1st Trip to Final Four Since 2018

After four years of waiting, the Villanova Wildcats are heading back to the Final Four. The Wildcats punched their ticket to the national semifinals with a 50-44 victory over the Houston Cougars.

Nova built themselves a seven-point lead at halftime, relying on shutdown defense to limit the Cougars’ offense. Houston chipped away at the lead, getting to within two points of the Wildcats with just over five minutes to go. It was all for naught, as the Cougars would score just four points over the final 5:28 en route to the loss.

Jermaine Samuels led the way for the Wildcats, putting up a double-double with 16 points and 10 boards in 33 minutes of action. Caleb Daniels was second in scoring, putting up 12 points with six rebounds and two assists.

The Wildcats await the winner of the Kansas Jayhawks vs. Miami Hurricanes. The betting market at FanDuel Sportsbook likes the Jayhawks’ chances of advancing, installing them as -6 favorites over the Hurricanes. The total is set at 147.5.