MBB Minute -- BIG EAST's Three Top-10 Teams March To Victory
The BIG EAST’s three Top-10 teams enjoyed comfortable margins of victory in Tuesday action, while St. John’s dropped a game at home.
No. 2/2 Villanova notched its 26
th straight win in November and its 15
th consecutive victory against a Philadelphia Big 5 rival when it beat Pennsylvania 82-57 at The Palestra. Six Wildcats reached double figures led by Kris Jenkins, who made 6-of-7 from 3-point range, and finished with 22 points. Darryl Reynolds added 12 points and a game-high eight rebounds. Villanova outshot Penn from the floor 55.1 percent to 32.1 percent.
No. 7/7 Xavier broke away from visiting North Dakota State early and posted an 85-55 win. The Musketeers jumped to a 17-4 lead and were never challenged. Trevon Bluiett scored a game-high 23 points. Malcolm Bernard, a graduate transfer who has broken into the starting lineup, added 10 points eight rebounds, three assists and three steals.
No. 10/12 Creighton pulled away in the second half and defeated Buffalo 93-72. Omaha natives Justin Patton and Khyri Thomas led the way with double-doubles. Patton had 21 points and 10 rebounds, while Thomas finished with 18 points and 12 boards. Marcus Foster scored 22 points. The Bluejays shot 50.7 percent from the floor and remain the only team in the nation to shoot 50 percent or better in every game this season.
St. John’s lost 79-72 to Delaware State at Carnesecca Arena. Four Red Storm players reached double figures led by Bashir Ahmed’s 19 points.
Wednesday’s schedule is another four-game slate. FS2 has a doubleheader with Providence hosting New Hampshire at 6:30 p.m. and Marquette meeting Western Carolina at 8:30 p.m. Georgetown plays Coppin State on FSN at 6:30 p.m. and DePaul hosts Drake at McGrath-Phillips Arena, also on FSN, at 8:30 p.m.