’Nova ‘Stoked’ up for the Holy War

Nova Nation was talking about Corey the entire offseason. Corey Fisher.

But it’s another Corey, Corey Stokes, who has been stellar for No. 12 Villanova through the first six games.

The senior sharpshooter — 16-of-41 (.390) from beyond the arc this season — had 16 points in a win over UCLA and 11 in the NIT championship game loss to Tennessee at Madison Square Garden. Stokes showed a deft ability to get open against two of the better defensive teams in the country.

He’ll get another chance to prove his mettle when the Wildcats (5-1) host city rival Saint Joseph’s Friday night at the Pavilion. This is the “Holy War.”

“The Big East is huge, but these city games against St. Joe’s is something these kids don’t need to get up for,” said Villanova coach Jay Wright. “Believe me, they’ll hear from me enough about it.”

Stokes circled this game on the calendar before the season started.

“The crowd will be fired up — and so will I,” Stokes said. “I look forward to this game every season. It’s exciting and the intensity level is so high, man. We want it so bad. You never want to lose to a big rival. I don’t want to hear about it all summer if we don’t win. We’ll be ready for this game.”