National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Villanova 81, Rutgers 65
When: 1:00 PM ET, Sunday, January 2, 2011
Where: The Pavilion, Villanova, Pennsylvania
Officials: # Jeff Anderson, # James Breeding, # John Gaffney
Attendance: 6500

Corey Fisher led the way with 19 points and seven assists and Corey Stokes added 23 points as No.8 Villanova took over in the second half en route to a 81-65 victory over Rutgers on Sunday.

Maalik Wayns finished with nine points, nine assists and eight rebounds for the Wildcats (12-1, 1-0 Big East), who dominated the glass, 36-17.

Villanova was up, 25-19, with 5:46 left in the first half when the Scarlet Knights began to make a push, taking the lead when Dane Miller broke free for a dunk and converted a three-point play with 1:37 on the clock and pushing through to take a 37-33 lead at the break. The Wildcats shot just 10-of-28 and turned the ball over nine times in the first 20 minutes.

But Villanova took control out of the break, getting 3-pointers from both Stokes and Fisher during an 8-0 run to begin the second half. The Wildcats never looked back, extending the lead to double digits when Fisher drained another 3-pointer with 8:00 to play.

Winner of seven straight, Villanova gets South Florida and Cincinnati over the next week before jumping into the teeth of the Big East slate with No. 20 Louisville on Jan 12.
Top Game Performances
 
Rutgers   Villanova
Jonathan Mitchell 17 Scoring Corey Stokes 23
Mike Coburn 8 Assists Maalik Wayns 9
Jonathan Mitchell 5 Rebounds Dominic Cheek 8
Jonathan Mitchell 8 Free Throws Made Corey Stokes 9
James Beatty 3 Steals Corey Stokes 2
Dane Miller 3 Blocks Mouphtaou Yarou 3
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Rutgers 65 41.7 3-13 22-28 13 17 7 9
Villanova 81 43.4 8-15 27-35 17 36 4 7