March Madness 2018: Villanova vs. West Virginia matchup, pick, predictions

Jevon Carter-Jalen Brunson-032018-GETTY-FTR

Villanova and West Virginia represent the two teams that have experienced the least drama in their respective tournament runs — but that should change when the two finally meet up for the first time this season.

The 1-seed Wildcats and 5-seed Mountaineers have combined to beat their two tournament opponents by an average score of 24.5 and 20 points, respectively. Villanova represents one of the nation's best 3-point teams, while West Virginia has the power and defensive dominance to make this game interesting.

MORE SWEET 16 GAME PREVIEWS: 
Loyola (Ill.)-NevadaTexas A&M-Michigan 
Kansas St-KentuckyFSU-Gonzaga 

In all, it promises to be an exciting game. Here's everything you need to know about their Sweet 16 matchup:

March Madness matchup:
Villanova vs. West Virginia

How to watch

The Villanova-West Virginia Sweet 16 game begins at 7:27 p.m. ET. It will air on TBS and can be live-streamed via the March Madness Live app.

No. 1 Villanova

Coach: Jay Wright (20th year)
Overall record: 32-4
Scoring leader: Jalen Brunson (19.1 ppg)
Rebounding leader: Omari Spellman (7.9 rpg)
Assists leader: Jalen Brunson (4.7 apg)
Famous non-athlete alum: Bradley Cooper

No. 5 West Virginia

Coach: Bob Huggins (11th year)
Overall record: 26-10
Scoring leader: Jevon Carter (17.4 ppg)
Rebounding leader: Sagaba Konate (7.6 rpg)
Assists leader: Jevon Carter (6.6 apg)
Famous non-athlete alum: Steve Harvey

Best storyline

At least one of these teams will finally experience some drama, right? The Wildcats have been the most boring team of this tournament, which has been anything but boring in just about every other instance. Villanova calmly dispatched Radford by 26 in the first round and drubbed upstart Alabama 81-58 in the second. In all, Villanova spent the first two rounds trailing its opponents for just 122 seconds, and its biggest deficit has been a mere three points. The Mountaineers had more of a scare early against Marshall in the second round, but still have only trailed for a little more than nine minutes in this tournament, and never in the second half.

If the Mountaineers are to make this an exciting one — and certainly if they’re to win — they’ll need to catch Villanova having an off day shooting. West Virginia is an excellent interior defensive team, but struggles to guard the perimeter, allowing opponents to shoot a hefty 37.5 percent from the arc. The Wildcats are the 12th-best team in the country from the 3-point line, making 40.2 percent, and have made 45.6 percent so far in the tournament.

MORE SWEET 16 GAME PREVIEWS: 
Clemson-KansasSyracuse-DukeTexas Tech-Purdue 

Best individual matchup

Point guards Jalen Brunson and Jevon Carter have a history together, playing on the same AAU team, NLP, in Chicago. Carter is an ideal Bob Huggins player, a gritty defender (he was the NABC Defensive Player of the Year in 2016-17) who has risen to the occasion in the tournament with 21 points in the opener and 28 points in the Mountaineers’ second game. He figures to make things difficult on Brunson, Sporting News' Player of the Year, who comes in having scored only 28 points in the tournament while resting for much of Villanova’s two blowouts. He will be eager to impress in Boston — his father, Rick Brunson, starred for nearby Salem High School.

Most eye-popping stat

67.9. In its two tournament games, Villanova has made 56 baskets, and 38 of them have come on an assist. That’s a ridiculous percentage, but it speaks to how finely tuned the Wildcats are running at this stage of the year. As good as West Virginia’s pressing defense has been, it can be beaten with good passing, and that’s a strength for Villanova.

MORE: Updated odds to win it all

Get to know …

West Virginia's Sagaba Konate. He could well be the best rim protector in all of college basketball. He averages 3.2 blocks per game, an impressive number for a guy who is only 6-8. But Konate has a great instinct for defense, and has recorded four or more blocks 14 times this season — including in a win at Baylor in which he blocked nine shots. Konate — a native of Mali who only began playing basketball four years ago — is a raw player offensively. Defensively, though, he can dominate, and Villanova will have to choose whether to attack him and hope he gets into foul trouble or avoid him by keeping the ball out of the paint.

The pick: Villanova

West Virginia’s defense can muck this game up and keep it close, and Carter could do a number on Brunson. Problem is, Villanova has too many weapons, including wing Mikal Bridges, who has scored 20 points in seven of his last 10 games, averaging 22.1 points and 52.1 percent 3-point shooting in that span. Expect Villanova to pull away in the second half.

Author(s)