After Waitng a Year, Omari Spellman Helps the Villanova Wildcats Remain on Top of the BIG EAST

PHILADELPHIA –  Omari Spellman had to wait a year before he could showcase his enormous offensive skills for Villanova.

The 6-8, 240-pound forward, who sat out last year as an academic red shirt, has been nothing less than a revelation for the top-ranked Wildcats, scoring 26 points, grabbing 11 rebounds and blocking three shots in his first matchup against Seton Hall’s 6-10 senior all league center Angel Delgado yesterday as Villanova defeated the Pirates, 92-76, in a Big East game at the Wells Fargo Center.

Spellman shot nine-for-12 and made six of seven three-point attempts in 35 minutes as the Cats improved to 22-1 and maintained first place in the conference with a 9-1 record.  Delgado, the Big East’s all-time leading rebounder, finished with 18 points on 9 of 15 shooting with nine rebounds.

But Spellman was more productive in this game.

“I thought he was really intelligent,’’ Villanova coach Jay Wright said. “I think Delgado, because he’s a senior, is one of the most intelligent big men in the country. So, when you go against a young guy who’s excited to play against you, you can take advantage of his inexperience. I think Omari played like a veteran.’’

Wright, whose 2016 team won a national championship, has never had a player like this, a complete big man with size, strength and a smooth shooting stroke. “When we recruited him, he was a perimeter player,’’ Wright said. “So, this isn’t any surprise to us. He grew after we recruited him and grew into a big, strong rebounder and post player.

“Earlier if Omari just needed to defend and rebound, he was OK with it. But now when we need him to step up in a game like this, when we have a great big guy in Delgado and you want to get him away from the basket, he’s willing to do it.’’

Spellman looks like he could be the missing piece as the Cats need attempt to make another run at a national title.  He was restricted to a practice player last year

The NCAA ruled Spellman had not completed his initial eligibility requirements before the graduation date of his class. Spellman started ninth grade at a public school, but transferred to The Hokkam School, a private school near Albany, two months later and was reclassified as an eighth grader. Spellman never played basketball that year and had no knowledge of eligibility rules. He graduated from St. Thomas More in Connecticut in 2016 with solid grades, but the NCAA determined his status to be an academic redshirt.

Villanova beat out Indiana and Arizona for Spellman, appealed, but the NCAA wouldn’t budge. “When coach Wright told me, I broke down in tears,’’ Spellman said. “I didn’t really know how to handle it, but I knew we had to handle it. Life goes on.

“It was just hard for me because I wanted to help my teammates win. I just really wanted to be there on game day.  I was there for them, just not in the same way.’’

The Cats, who are basically down to a six-man rotation ever since guard Phil Booth broke a bone in his hand who weeks ago, needed a huge effort from Spellman to get by the Hall (17-6, 6-4), who shot 50 percent, committed just 10 turnovers and played the Cats even for 30 minutes before Villanova, which scored 51 points in the second half, went on a 31-2 run to close out the game.

Junior point guard Jalen Brunson had 21 points and six assists for the Cats, who made 12 three points and only turned the ball over seven times.  Redshirt junior forward Mikal Bridges added 17 points and all five starters scored in double figures.

Villanova has two more home games this week against St. John’s and Butler before finishing the regular season with four of the last six games on the road. Three of them, Xavier, Creighton and the Hall, have a combined home court record of 50-3.

If the Cats want to get their momentum alive they will have to keep all of their remaining players healthy. Brunson, Villanova’s most important player, threw a temporary scare into the home crowd when he chased down a loose ball near the Hall bench and went flying into a chair. He returned to the game unfazed.