D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera, Georgetown
MBB Minute: Villanova Stays Unbeaten, Smith-Rivera's 33 Leads Georgetown at MSG
In a game of streaks on Wednesday, Villanova stayed undefeated in BIG EAST play at 5-0 with an 83-68 win over Marquette. Georgetown’s D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera dropped 33 points at Madison Square Garden to help Georgetown beat St. John’s and slide into second place with a 4-1 record.
Villanova began its game with a 23-7 run before Marquette rallied with an 18-2 spurt to take 38-37 lead at halftime. The Wildcats started quickly in the second half and built a 70-51 advantage before the Golden Eagles got back in the game with a late 10-0 run.
Kris Jenkins led VU with 20 points. Haanif Cheatham scored a team-high 17 points for MU.
The Wildcats have won 20 straight BIG EAST games, which includes three games in last year’s BIG EAST Tournament.
Smith-Rivera’s point total is the highest by a BIG EAST player in any game this season. He shot 11-of-16 from the field, 5-8 from beyond the arc and 6-of-6 from the foul line. Reggie Cameron added 15 points for the Hoyas.
For St. John’s, Ron Mvouika scored all of his 15 points in the second half.
Villanova and Georgetown meet Saturday at the Verizon Center. CBS Sports will televise at 1 p.m. ET. The other three league games are part of an FS1 tripleheader: St. John’s at Butler at noon, Xavier at Marquette at 2 p.m. and Seton Hall at Providence at 4:30 p.m.
In this week’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.