doesnt necessarily mean theyll be better players, o

VILLANOVA, Pa. -- Patrick Farrell missed his first free throw, and was off on his second. With only 19 seconds left in the game, the pressure was on for Farrell to make the third. The Villanova fans stood and cheered, and his teammates were stoked, yelling from the bench at the sophomore forward that the final one would be good. Farrell practiced his motion, took a breath, released, and watched as the basketball bounced twice around the rim before it plopped through the net. The eighth-ranked Wildcats went wild, celebrating Farrells first point of the season like a game-winner, and not just the finishing touches of a 67-48 victory over Butler on Wednesday night. For a team that played about 30 minutes of basketball to forget, that moment of team bonding for the deepest of deep reserves was one to remember. "I love that," coach Jay Wright said. "Thats whats special about this team." The Wildcats (25-3, 13-2 Big East) survived one of their worst halves of the season to win for the ninth time in 10 games. They needed almost the first 10 minutes of the game to score 10 points, missed eight of their first nine 3-point attempts, and didnt have a player reach double digits in scoring until midway through the second half. "Youve got to find a way to grind against them," Wright said. "Ill take that." Darrun Hilliard and James Bell led them with only 11 points each and the Wildcats put up the kind of numbers that usually lead to a loss. Not against the lowly Bulldogs (12-16, 2-14). Butler was even worse, shooting only 26 per cent in the first half, and the Bulldogs lost their seventh straight game. The Wildcats had a small hot streak at the end of the first half, making 5 of 6 shots, to build enough of a cushion and slowly pull away. The Wildcats fell shy of their 79.9 points per game average and played for about 35 minutes looking nothing like the team that has become one of the best in the Big East. Each team took turns trading clunkers and clangers in the first 10 minutes, one reason the Wildcats only led 10-4. With 6 minutes left in the half, the Bulldogs and Wildcats combined for only 26 points. And no, Bo Ryan wasnt coaching either of the teams. The Pavilion had all the atmosphere of an art museum on a sleepy Sunday morning, making this one feel more like a bad NBA preseason game than the final on-campus home game of the season. Wright did let senior reserves Nick McMahon and Tony Chennault start -- though McMahon played only 20 seconds before he was benched for Ryan Arcidiacono. McMahon couldnt have been worse than the rest of the offence. Villanova missed 12 of its first 15 shots, most from 3-point range. The Wildcats were determined to keep shooting 3s until they fell. Bell and Arcidiacono did hit two straight near the end of the first half for a 28-15 lead. Butlers Kellen Dunham buried the shot of the game with a high banker for 3 that cut it to 34-20 at halftime. He led Butler with 12 points. Hard to believe these teams needed overtime before Villanova pulled out the win in their first matchup. "We didnt have it tonight," coach Brandon Miller said. "When you keep getting the results you dont want, it weighs on you a little bit." Bell was the lone senior regular for the Wildcats and exchanged an emotional hug with Wright after he checked out for the final time. "It was tough," Bell said. "I dont see my mom that much. My dad works a lot, doesnt really get the chance to get down that much. That was probably the toughest part, seeing my mom crying. Other than that, it was time to play." Pick a stat in the first half and both teams probably wish the number could be wiped from the record book. Butler missed 8 of 10 3s; Nova missed 12 of 16. Butler had two starters who went scoreless in the half. The Wildcats shot 38 per cent from the field. But theres a reason the Wildcats have spent most of the season in the Top 25, and they showed why in the second half, going more than 25 minutes without a turnover during a 16-3 run that stretched the lead to 24 points. Butler scored six baskets in the first half, and didnt reach seven for a second-half total until there was 1:51 left. While the Wildcats are in the hunt for a top-three seed in the NCAA tournament, the Bulldogs need a shocking conference tournament championship to have any shot at returning for some March Madness. "This is a really good group to coach," Wright said. "Its been a pleasure all year. But it cant let that prevent us from driving them and them driving themselves to get better." Discount Air Max 95 . Adam LaRoche will take that. "I like our position in the standings and I like how our team is playing," LaRoche said after Washington swept a day-night doubleheader from the Cubs on Saturday. Air Max 95 Outlet . Though the 26-year-old said he was able to participate, coach Dwane Casey kept Johnson out as a precaution. http://www.airmax95sale.com/ . Third-place Madrid fell behind and settled for a 2-2 draw earlier at Osasuna in a match both sides finished with 10 men, and Barcelona didnt let the chance escape. Barcelona, still without the injured Lionel Messi, again turned to Neymar after his hat trick against Celtic in the Champions League on Wednesday to convert a penalty on the half-hour mark and restore the lead in the 68th after Villarreal levelled. Air Max 95 Sale . Chris Capuano. Shane Greene. And now, Esmil Rogers. Wholesale Air Max 95 For Sale . - First-timer Chris Harris Jr.MISSISSAUGA, Ont. -- Sam Bennett isnt accustomed to being last in anything. First among North American skaters in NHL Central Scoutings final 2014 draft rankings, the Kingston Frontenacs centre finished dead-last in one category during Saturdays fitness testing at the annual combine. Bennett couldnt do a single pull-up. "I was definitely disappointed with myself," Bennett said. "I was wanting to do the best I can in every test. But, I guess, ultimately games arent won or lost if you can do a pull-up in the gym." Bennett likely wont take much of a hit from being 12 pull-ups behind the leaders. If anything, his showing could help whichever team takes him early in the first round June 27 in Philadelphia. "The fact that he can play the game the way he plays the game, I think the teams feel that hes a pretty complete package," NHL Central Scouting director Dan Marr said. "This is what the whole combines about: The team thats going to get Sam Bennett knows what work lies ahead and theyll be able to put him on the proper path for development." Bennett finished ahead of Barrie defenceman Aaron Ekblad, Kootenay centre Sam Reinhart and two other potential top picks, Prince Albert winger Leon Draisaitl and Oshawa winger Michael Dal Colle because of what he developed into on the ice. With his fathers favourite player, Doug Gilmour, overseeing his progress as Kingstons general manager, the Holland Landing, Ont., native had 36 goals and 55 assists in 57 OHL games this past season. But just like with pull-ups, Bennett doesnt want to be defined by numbers alone. "I think (what sets me apart) really just a combination of my hockey sense along with my compete level," he said. "I think I compete as hard, if not harder, than anyone else." Bennett isnt the only one trying to compete to go first overall, or in the top five, the first round or in the draft, period. Over a hundred fellow prospects joined him at this weeks combine with the aim of impressing NHL teams. Well before the physical grind that was Saturdays fitness testing, players gathered outside of Toronto to meet with NHL teams. Marr likened the entire process to a giant conveyor belt as these teenagers went through the mental trials of often answering the same questions over and over. Most dont mind it. Top European skater Kasperi Kapanen -- son of former NHL forward Sami -- called it "natural&quoot; to sit around and talk to people, and Draisaitl didnt want to downplay the week, either.dddddddddddd "I think its really important for them to know what kind of a guy I am and how I work off the ice," said Draisaitl, the only German-born player at the combine. "Thats a really important part of it. Its not only everything about the ice." Teams have spent countless hours watching these players on the ice, and thats not what the combine is about. Despite talk among general managers about adding on-ice testing, there is nothing of the sort, and individual teams arent allowed to invite prospects to their cities to skate. At the annual GM meeting in March, commissioner Gary Bettman said there was some discussion to see "what needs to be done to make the combine as effective as possible." After consultation with strength coaches, Marr said that new, more "dynamic" tests were put in this year to better gauge players physical abilities. One change was pull-ups replacing push-ups because it meant players had to lift their own body weight. While Bennett couldnt do one, Brandon centre Jayce Hawryluk and Czech winger David Pastrnak each did 12. Of course that doesnt necessarily mean theyll be better players, or that theyre closer to being NHL-ready. "This isnt a pass or fail type of test," Marr said. "It just allows the NHL teams to see where these players are in their current state of development." Bennett, who turns 18 in June, conceded that hell need to work on his upper-body strength in the gym this summer. As Marr knows, thats not unusual for junior-aged players. "(At age) 17, 18, 19, if you go back in history with some of the players in the game, theyll find that there was one summer that really made a difference in their physical development," he said. "So maybe at this stage he just hasnt had that summer of development, and itll come." By then, Bennett will more than likely be a top-five pick. If he goes first to the Florida Panthers -- or whoever makes that selection -- itll be clear that on-ice potential is worth tons more than a lack of pull-ups. "It would be pretty special," Bennett said. "At the end of the day it is just a number, and everyones going to be in the same spot come training camp, trying to make the team. Obviously it is every kids dream to go as high as they can get into the NHL." ' ' '