Community Picks: Miami Florida 0% vs Villanova 0%

When second-seeded Villanova throttled fading Iowa on Sunday afternoon, a Sweet 16 matchup with Miami wasn't the Wildcats' only reward.  They also no longer have to answer more questions about their inability to survive the NCAA tournament's opening weekend. Villanova advanced to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2009 with a dominant 87-68 victory over an Iowa team in the midst of a late-season implosion. The Wildcats led by 25 at halftime and by as many as 34 in the opening minutes of the second half before showing mercy and easing their foot off the gas pedal. Aggressive defense from Villanova was the catalyst on Sunday as the Wildcats overplayed passing lanes, switched ball screens and generally made it difficult for Iowa to even run its sets. Twelve of Iowa's 13 turnovers came in the game's first 25 minutes, many of them resulting in easy transition opportunities for the Wildcats at the other end. When Villanova wasn't scoring in transition in the first half, the Wildcats were usually bombing away from behind the arc. Deep 3-pointers from Kris Jenkins, Phil Booth and Jalen Brunson were among the shots that helped spark the Wildcats' game-changing 37-10 surge during the middle of the game.  The decisive victory had to be cathartic for a Villanova team that has experienced more than its share of opening-weekend heartbreak in recent years. In 2014, a 29-win Villanova team had the misfortune of running into sizzling seventh-seeded UConn in the round of 32. Last March, a 33-win Wildcats team crumbled against talented, physical eighth-seeded NC State at the same stage.  Excellent balance and chemistry gave Villanova the chance to exorcise those demons this year, but a more favorable draw didn't hurt either. After cracking the top five in the polls in early February, Iowa ended the regular season with four losses in its last five games, fell to woeful Illinois in the opening round of the Big Ten tournament and needed an Adam Woodbury put-back at the buzzer on Friday to survive 10th-seeded Temple in overtime. Stars Jarrod Uthoff and Peter Jok both scored in double figures on Sunday, but most of their damage came long after the outcome was no longer in doubt. They didn't get much help from supporting players either as only Nicholas Baer made an impact off the bench.  As Iowa was left to assess how a once-promising season went so horribly wrong, TV cameras caught Jay Wright fist pumping and grinning as he entered the Villanova locker room. No longer is Villanova the team that can't escape the NCAA tournament's opening weekend. Now the Wildcats can play pressure-free next week and see if they can't do some more damage. - - - - - - - Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at daggerblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @JeffEisenberg Continue to Article

March 20, 2016 2:34:pm EST

NEW YORK (AP) -- Ryan Arcidiacono scored 14 points, including a buzzer-beating 3 at the end of the first half, and Daniel Ochefu had 17 points inside as second-seeded Villanova beat UNC Asheville 86-56 Friday to roll into the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Continue to Article

March 18, 2016 3:03:pm EST

Looking ahead to Friday's NCAA Tournament action and the best of Thursday's games: Continue to Article

March 18, 2016 3:02:am EST