After playing Robin to Anfernee Simons' Batman on the opening night of the UAA finals, Nova target Elijah Weaver was much more an equal co-star on Thursday afternoon with an improved performance. After a hot start, it looked as though Weaver might take on the lead role for Team Breakdown for the day, and despite cooling down, he still had a productive day.

Weaver began the day by hitting three of his first four shot attempts, but after cooling down a bit he finished 5-14 from the floor, 1-5 from three, and 5-7 from the line. He scored 16 points to go along with five steals, three rebounds, and an assist.

After shooting just 1-7 from the floor and 4-9 from the line in Wednesday's opener, Weaver was still struggling with his shot on Thursday, although he improved, particularly from the foul line. His 3-4 start showed that the shooting touch is there, even if he is struggling to find it at the moment. Most impressive on Thursday was his ability to be disruptive on the defensive end, as his five steals demonstrates.

Jahvon Quinerly will be in action later this afternoon.

The two remaining priorities for Nova's 2018 recruiting class went head to head on Wednesday night as Jahvon Quinerly's Sports U took on Elijah Weaver's Team Breakdown. Unfortunately, the stream of the game I was watching cut out in the 4th quarter, with Weaver's Team Breakdown holding a big lead thanks to a strong second half.

Weaver had struggled mightily to the point the stream cut out, shooting 1-7 from the floor and 4-9 from the free throw line for six points. He spent a large portion of the game playing off the ball. Team Breakdown didn't need Weaver to be on his A game as teammate and Louisville commit Anfernee Simons was in control.

Meanwhile Quinerly had 11 points, two assists, and a rebound when the stream cut out, spending stretches of the second half on the bench, perhaps saving his legs for the rest of the tournament as the game got out of hand. But while he was on the floor, his skills were on full display, He got to the rim at will and was adept at drawing fouls. He demonstrated an impressive range, as well as great vision.

Increasing the frustration of losing the stream is the fact that the UAA site hasn't archived the box score, but I plan on posting each player's final stats once I can verify them.

Ochefu and Wayns once again started for the Wizards. Ochefu scored six points to go with five rebounds, two blocks, an assist, and a steal while shooting 3-4 from the field. He played 17 minutes. Wayns had two points, three assists, a steal and a rebound in 14 minutes. Kris Jenkins did not play.

Arch earned another start for the Bulls. In 31 minutes he scored seven points, dished three assists, grabbed two rebounds, and had a steal.

James Bell and the Clippers had the night off, while Josh Hart sat out the Lakers contest with the Sixers as he continues to nurse a turned ankle.

Four of the six Wildcats taking part in the summer league were in action in one game on Tuesday, as the Wizards took on the Bulls. Three of the four started the game (Arch, Ochefu, Wayns).

For the Bulls, Arch played 28 minutes, scoring two points to go along with five rebounds, three assists, and a steal.

Meanwhile for the Wizards, Ochefu had nine points, 10 rebounds, two assists and a steal in 19 minutes. Maalik Wayns chipped in seven points, three assists, and two rebounds in in 22 minutes, but shot just 2-8 from the floor. Kris Jenkins had five points, three rebounds, and a block in 13 minutes.

Ochefu's nine points were good for third on the team, while his 10 boards where a team high. Wayns' three assists were a team high as well.

Kris Jenkins had five points and a rebound in 12 minutes of action. He shot 2-2 from the field and 1-1 from three. Daniel Ochefu had six points on 3-3 shooting, adding two rebounds, two blocks, and an assist. Maalik Wayns did not play.

Josh Hart was a DNP for the Lakers as he nursed an ankle injury.

Arch had four points, a rebound, and an assist in 19 minutes for the Bulls.

James Bell earned a start for the Clippers, scoring five points, grabbing two rebounds, and dishing an assist.

Tomorrow evening Arch and the Bulls will play Jenkins, Ochefu, Wayns and the Wizards at 6 PM on NBA TV.

Via CSN Philly's Mitchell Gladstone, Arch is heading to Italy to play for Juve Caserta in the top division of Italian basketball. His contract contains an out clause should an NBA opportunity pop up.

Full story here: http://www.csnphilly.com/villanova-...eferrer&utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=quiboat

The new and updated 2018 Rivals 150 has been released, and Nova commit Cole Swider saw one of the biggest rises in the class, climbing to 40. Brandon Slater came in at 52.

Complete list here: https://n.rivals.com/prospect_rankings/rivals150/2018

Sunday's slate of summer league games was relatively quiet in terms of Villanova products with the Lakers, Wizards, and Bulls all having the day off. The lone Wildcat in action was James Bell, who had himself a solid day with the Clippers. Bell scored 10 points on 4-7 shooting and 2-4 from three in 17 minutes. He added two assists and a rebound.

The Clippers, Lakers, Bulls, and Wizards are all in action tomorrow.

After starting off the tournament with a win on Saturday, SuperNova was eliminated on Sunday after being upset by Team Fancy. The Nova alumni were doomed by a poor first half in which they shot just 32% from the floor and and 27% from three. SuperNova was also outscored 25-11 from the free throw line, and a second half rally wasn't enough. Reggie Redding lead the team with 19 points, while Corey Fisher and Malcolm Grant chipped in 15 apiece. Instead of an interesting matchup with the Syracuse alumni in the super regional, SuperNova will be watching the rest of the tournament.

Nova alumni on team SuperNova opened The Basketball Tournament with a 97-72 win. They will take on Team Fancy on Sunday afternoon.

https://www.thetournament.com/news/south-jamaica-kings-fall-supernovas-move

Josh Hart had a much better day, scoring 15 points on 6-13 shooting while chipping in five rebounds and an assist. His 15 points where good for second on the team.

Meanwhile, Daniel Ochefu had 13 points, 10 rebounds, three assists and five blocks for the Wizards, while shooting a perfect 7-7 from the line. Maalik Wayns added six points, two rebounds, and an assist in 11 minutes of action. Kris Jenkins did not play.

Arch failed to register a stat in five minutes for the Bulls. He missed his only shot attempt.

Skilled scorer Koby Issac is hoping to see his recruitment take off during his junior season. While there is a long way to go with his recruitment and with his relationship with Villanova, he could become an option for the Wildcats as things begin to take shape with the class of 2019.

https://villanova.rivals.com/news/a-chat-with-2019-guard-koby-isaac

Josh Hart got his NBA career underway tonight in the Las Vegas Summer League. He had a bit of a quiet debut as he struggled with his shot, scoring five points on 2-8 shooting and 0-4 from three. He added three rebounds.

James Bell added five rebounds and an assist for the Clippers.

Josh Hart, Lakers
Darryl Reynolds, Sixers
Daniel Ochefu, Wizards
Kris Jenkins, Wizards
Maalik Wayns, Wizards
James Bell, Clippers

There was also a report of Arch with the Bulls, but I haven't been able to verify that.

Regardless, plenty for Nova Nation to watch during the summer league, particularly with the Wizards.

David Aldridge is reporting the Wolves are in active discussions to move PG Ricky Rubio. He speculates this could be ahead of trying to get Lowry. Would be interesting to see Lowry with Butler, Wiggins and Towns. Something to keep an eye on.

Former Villanova big Darryl Reynolds will be heading to Utah to play with the Sixers summer league team July 3-6. It remains to be seen if he will continue on to the Las Vegas league, but still a great opportunity for Reynolds and another point of interest for Nova fans in the summer league.

In a bit of a surprise, rising wing Cole Swider has picked Villanova over Syracuse, Duke, and Xavier. Widely considered a Duke-Xavier race down the stretch, this is a nice change of pace for a Villanova program who has seen some players they were considered the favorites for go elsewhere, and a welcome reversal of the trend of the past week that saw several of Nova's targets head elsewhere. Story coming.

Nova target Cole Swider will make his announcement Friday afternoon. The latest news on Swider hasn't been great for Nova, with pundits proclaiming this a Duke vs. Xavier battle. The fact that Swider visited Duke, Xavier, and his other finalist Syracuse over the past week while skipping Nova doesn't seem to be a good indicator either. But you never know, and perhaps he just felt he was already familiar enough with the Cats based on his unofficial visits. Either way, it looks like we should have some more clarity on the 2018 class tomorrow.

With three Nova targets coming off the board in quick succession and some rumors flying around about some of the Cats other remaining targets, the hot takes are flying fast and furious. While it was a bit shocking to watch three targets go off the board so quickly, it is far from panic time in Nova Nation.

https://villanova.rivals.com/news/relax-recent-recruiting-flurry-is-no-reason-to-panic

5 star big man Jalen Smith has committed to Maryland, via his twitter account.

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It's been a rough few days for Nova, with some of their key targets flying off the board to other programs. More on Smith's decision and an updated look at Nova's 2018 recruiting scene coming soon.

In Rivals' Eric Bossi's latest Starting Five column there was plenty of Nova related news, not all of it particularly encouraging. In summary:

Nova, along with Virginia, appear to be pulling away from the pack in the recruitment of five star point guard Jahvon Quinerly.

Swider may come down to Duke and Xavier. Nova is the only school in Swider's final four that he has not yet visited, and while he has maintained he would like to get in a visit to each school before deciding, that may not end up being the case.

Jalen Smith visited Maryland over the weekend, and they may be emerging as the clear favorite to land him. The Baltimore Sun published an article quoting Smith as saying he was "pretty close" to committing to the Terps. At the moment, it appears that Smith is sticking with his stance that he would like to visit Nova before deciding, and that could give the Cats one last chance to sway the elite big man.

Here's a link to the full column for those interested...

https://basketballrecruiting.rivals.com/news/starting-five-summer-visits-abound

Rivals' Corey Evans has the latest on five-star, top 10 2019 guard Scottie Lewis, who was in town for team camp number two. Nova appears to be firmly entrenched in the group of early leaders.

https://basketballrecruiting.rivals.com/news/five-star-scottie-lewis-has-busy-summer-planned

Rivals' Corey Evans has the latest on the top 50 guard.

https://basketballrecruiting.rivals...ence-a-year-makes-for-four-star-pg-david-duke

https://basketballrecruiting.rivals.com/news/providence-secures-four-star-wing-aj-reeves

Reeves had recently cut his list to four, including Villanova. That Cats may have had a sense that this was coming, and it may have played a role in their involvement with Ohio State decommit Dane Goodwin. With Reeves off the board, Nova's interest in Cole Swider should increase as well.