"In the first half, when they got it to around 36-18, I was just wondering if they could keep it up for 40 minutes, and they did," Villanova coach Jay Wright said.
The frantic pace of play benefitted the guards who could penetrate or shoot from outside in transition.
"It was a track meet out there," said VU guard Scottie Reynolds, who led all scorers with 21 points and made play after play to keep the Cats in contention. "For them to keep it up for 40 minutes and for us to stay with them, I think that was impressive."
The Wildcats shot 50 percent from the field for the game, and a whopping 64 in the second half compared to Clemson's 25. Nova was also perfect from 3-point range in the closing half, going 4-4.
They now turn their attention to Siena tomorrow in a matchup of 12 and 13 seeds. The Saints defeated fourth-seeded Vanderbilt earlier Friday.
"(Siena) played a heck of a game just before us," Reynolds said. "That's about all I know."
The Saints should know plenty about the Wildcats though, as Andrew Francis, an assistant at Nova last season, is now at Siena.
"That's probably going to be the best scouting that anybody's going to get," Reynolds said.