Photography by Lynn Kirshbaum

This year, Vox is taking a page from Deadspin and New York’s books and giving you a guide for rooting against each of the Hoyas’ Big East opponents. In preparation for tomorrow’s game against Villanova, here are three reasons to hate the Wildcats:

Before we get to the Wildcats, make sure to reserve a little extra hate for the snow. No matter how much comes down over the next 24 hours, the game will go on. According to both Sports Information and JTIII, all the principals—the Wildcats, the refs, the TV crew, and possibly even the Hoyas—will be staying in a hotel near the Verizon Center.

Payback

I missed hating on ‘Nova the first time around, which may have been a good thing, because the Wildcats are even more deserving of your vitriol after last month’s 82-77 loss in Philadelphia. That was a winnable game for the Hoyas, and a waste of Greg Monroe’s career game. The big man will want payback after his 29 point, 16 rebound effort was squandered. Frontcourt mate Julian Vaughn will want payback after being held scoreless and fouling out in just 17 minutes. Chris Wright will want payback after a 1-for-7 shooting effort that limited him to just six points. Hollis Thompson will want payback after an 0-for-7 afternoon that made Wright look good. And Henry Sims will want payback after Villanova forced a turnover that ruined what was otherwise a perfect trillion.

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Tomorrow’s noon game against the Villanova Wildcats may be in Philadelphia, but that’s not going to keep Vox from being there. Starting at 11:30 a.m., Tim Shine will be on the sidelines with top-notch game coverage, so tune in!