Nov. 11, 2001

VILLANOVA, PA. - In the exhibition finale for the Villanova women's basketball team on Sunday, Nov. 11 at The Pavilion, the Wildcats rolled to a 73-54 victory over the visiting Houston Jaguars. Villanova shot over 48 percent from the field for the game, and dished out 24 assists to only eight turnovers. The Wildcats finished the exhibition season with a perfect 2-0 record.

Villanova opened up an 18-9 lead in the first half as guard Trish Juhline scored nine early points. The Jaguars used a 9-0 run to tie the game at 18-18 with 9:40 remaining in the half, led by consecutive three-pointers by Tora Suber and Erin Buescher. The Wildcats regained control from there and outscored Houston 21-10 the rest of the half to take a 39-28 advantage into intermission.

Juhline led the way with 12 points and three assists in the first half for the `Cats. Villanova shot 53.6 percent from the field before intermission (15-for-28) and out-rebounded the Jaguars 21-13.

The Wildcats picked up right where they left off, beginning the second half on a 21-15 run to extend their lead to 61-43 with 8:24 remaining in the contest. Villanova cruised from there, going on for a 73-54 victory.

Juhline led the Wildcat offense on Sunday, shooting seven-of-12 to finish with 16 points. She also dished out a game-high seven assists without turning the ball over. Scoring in double figures as well for Villanova was senior guard Mimi Riley and sophomore forward Kelly Nash. Riley shot a perfect five-for-five from the floor to finish with 12 points, while Nash scored 10 points on three-of-four shooting.

Winding down the Wildcat scoring were Nicole Druckenmiller and Courtney Mix with eight points apiece, Stephanie Baker with seven points, Katie Davis with five points, Sarita Hatcher, Jana Rediger and Jeanine Johnson with two points apiece, and Jennifer Hilgenberg with one points.

For Houston in the loss, Tatum Brown scored a team-high 14 points and added a game-high 13 rebounds. Suber and Katrina Colleton added 10 points apiece for the Jaguars.

Villanova will open up the regular season on Friday, Nov. 16, traveling to Penn State to face the 19th ranked Nittany Lions at 7:00 p.m.