NCAA: No. 10 seed Saint Mary’s leads Villanova 38-31 at half; Samhan has 15 points, 6 rebounds

NCAA: Saint Mary’s leads Villanova 38-31 at half

Every time the Wildcats go on a run, energizing a crowd in Providence that heavily favors Villanova, Omar Samhan comes through inside. His three-point play after Nova closed within 33-29 quieted just about everybody in the building.

And the big guy certainly recognized it, pulling a Dikembe Mutombo and putting his finger to his lips in the universal “Shhhh!” signal. The referees warned Samhan for taunting.

Samhan finished the half 7 of 9 from the field for 15 points, along with six rebounds — both of those totals roughly half of Villanova’s entire team. The Gaels lead 38-31 at the break, which could have been more lopsided if Corey Stokes didn’t get a gift foul on a loose ball with 4 seconds remaining and hit both free throws.

Scottie Reynolds missed his first five shots before making a layup with about 5 minutes left in the first half against Saint Mary’s. He was still Villanova’s leading scorer early, with five points thanks to three free throws.

Reynolds went 2 for 15 in the opener but did plenty of damage from the foul line. His struggles go back to Madison Square Garden, where he managed only 10 points in a loss to Marquette during the Big East tournament.

Omar Samhan is getting a breather, and the Gaels subbed in another big guy in Ben Allen.

Allen scored 20 points against Gonzaga in the West Coast Conference title game, the kind of performance that served as something of vindication for him. He began his career at Indiana but struggled to get on the court, so he transferred about 9,000 miles west. The change was stark, going from a school with 38,000 kids to one with fewer than 4,000, but perhaps the greatest irony is that the basketball is better in California.

Saint Mary’s is playing in the second round of the NCAA tournament, after all, while the Hoosiers labored to a 10-21 finish with just four Big Ten victories.

Omar Samhan hasn’t stopped playing hard despite his two fouls. He’s 6 of 8 from the floor and is scoring at will inside. His 12 points and six rebounds have pushed the Gales back to a 27-19 lead, forcing Villanova coach Jay Wright to call a timeout.

Nova went on a quick spurt to knot the game, but Saint Mary’s answered back with a 10-2 run: 3-pointers from Mickey McConnell and Matthew Dellavedova sandwiched between two gimme’s inside from Samhan. The Gales have a 12-2 advantage in the paint.

Villanova continues to struggle from the field, where it is just 6 of 19. The Wildcats had similar troubles in squeezing by Robert Morris in the first round.

Omar Samhan picked up his second foul with 11:25 left in the first half, a charge under the basket. He went to the bench with 8 points and four boards. That’s good news for smaller Villanova, which has started to push the tempo with their stellar guard play.

The Wildcats trailed 17-11 until Scottie Reynolds used his veteran savvy to force a foul on a 3-point shot. He made all three free throws — after going 15 of 16 in the opening round — to get Villanova back within three. Moments later, Dominic Cheek added a 3-pointer off the bench to knot the game 17-all.

Just that quickly.

President Barack Obama correctly predicted 13 of 16 winners Friday after getting 12 right on the opening day, which means he was in 160,161st place on ESPN’s game. Doesn’t sound good until you realize the First Fan is in the 96.6th percentile.

The Big East has been a big bummer for the commander in chief. Four of his seven losses have been by teams from the conference that received a tournament-high eight bids. His Final Four is still intact, though, with Kansas, Kansas State, Kentucky and Villanova.

He has Villanova beating Saint Mary’s in the opening game Saturday, and also has Baylor and Butler winning later in the day.

Now, about that health care business.

Omar Samhan is already causing problems for Villanova, with six points on 3-for-4 shooting in the first 5 minutes. He also has three rebounds, after going for 29 points and 16 boards in the Gaels’ opening win over Richmond.

The Wildcats are hoping to use speed rather than trying to match Samhan’s size, going with four guards in the starting lineup. Corey Stokes replaced forward Antonio Pena.

Villanova coach Jay Wright also started guards Scottie Reynolds and Corey Fisher, who were benched in the opening minutes of their first-round game for an unspecified “teaching moment.”

Saint Mary’s has a chance to keep the double-digit mojo going from the first round of the NCAA tournament. Eight teams seeded 10th or higher won a game in the first round, matching last year’s total and one off the record set in 2001.

The Gaels will be joined later by Murray State, Old Dominion, Washington and Ohio, which felled third-seeded Georgetown in the biggest upset of the first two days.

“This is what happens in March Madness,” Murray State freshman guard John Jenkins said.

Indeed.

Villanova and Saint Mary’s open the second round of the NCAA tournament, and the key to the game could be the Wildcats’ porous defense. They have allowed 72.9 points per game this season, better only than Seton Hall and Providence in the Big East, and ranked 278th out of 334 Division I teams nationally in points allowed.

Villanova also has very little size to deal with the Gaels’ 6-foot-11 twin towers, Omar Samhan and Ben Allen, which means youngsters Maurice Sutton and Mouphtaou Yarou had better grow up in a hurry.

The opener will be followed by a couple of upset-minded teams going for their second straight stunner: 13th-seeded Murray State against fifth-seeded Butler, and 14th seed Ohio against No. 6 seed Tennessee.

The evening games begin with Northern Iowa against overall No. 1 seed Kansas, and a couple of 3-11 games: New Mexico against Washington and Old Dominion against Baylor. The nightcaps will feature second-seeded Kansas State against Jimmer Fredette and BYU, and No. 1 seed Kentucky against Wake Forest.

Time for tip-off in Providence.