In a battle of ranked teams on Sunday night, Villanova turned away multiple rallies by Butler and gained a 60-55 victory at Hinkle Fieldhouse. The Wildcats used a 14-0 run early in the second half to grab the lead before holding on for the win. Josh Hart led Villanova with 22 points and 11 rebounds. Ryan Arcidiacono added 11 points. Roosevelt Jones scored a game-high 20 points for the Bulldogs.
BIG EAST action continues on Tuesday with an FS1 doubleheader. Xavier hosts DePaul at 6:30 p.m. ET followed by Providence at Creighton at 8:30 p.m.
Xavier’s 14-1 record is the best in school history after 15 games. The Musketeers are still unbeaten (8-0) at the Cintas Center this season. DePaul is led by Billy Garrett, Jr., who is averaging 14.7 points and 3.9 assists. He became the school’s 49th 1,000-point scorer in Saturday’s loss at Georgetown.
In Monday’s AP and USA Today polls, Villanova, Xavier, Providence and Butler remain ranked. Villanova moved up to No. 6 in the AP and No. 7 in USA Today. Xavier moved up to seventh in AP and eighth in USA Today. Providence is 12th and Butler is 23rd in both polls.