Justin Simon contributed 16 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists in the victory.
MBB Minute – St. John’s Wins at No. 1 Villanova; Marquette, Creighton also Grab Road Wins
On a Wednesday night when all three BIG EAST road teams picked up victories, St. John’s toppling of No. 1 Villanova probably turned the most heads.
St. John’s got its first league win with a 79-75 triumph over Villanova at Wells Fargo Center for its second straight win over a top-five opponent. Last Saturday, the Johnnies beat then-No. 4 Duke 81-77. Shamorie Ponds led St. John’s (12-13, 1-11) with 26 points, five rebounds and five assists. Justin Simon contributed 16 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. Leading by nine points with two and a half minutes to go, the Johnnies held off a furious comeback by the Wildcats. Villanova’s Jalen Brunson, who finished with a game-high 28 points, scored 14 points in the final 2:24. Villanova (22-2, 9-2) was without forward Eric Paschall, who missed the game because of concussion protocol.
In a game where all 10 starters scored in double figures, Marquette ended its four-game losing streak with an 88-85 victory at Seton Hall. Markus Howard had a game-high 32 points to push the Golden Eagles (14-10, 5-7) past the Pirates (17-7, 6-5). Sam Hauser added 16 points and 10 rebounds. Desi Rodriguez led Seton Hall with 21 points. Both teams made 20 free throws, but Marquette was 20-of-23 while Seton Hall was 20-of-33.
At DePaul, Creighton’s Marcus Foster connected on a 3-pointer with 14.4 seconds remaining to lift the Bluejays to a 76-75 win over the Blue Demons at Wintrust Arena. The basket also gave Foster exactly 2,000 career points. Khyri Thomas added 18 points for the Bluejays (18-6, 8-4). For the second straight game, Marin Maric led DePaul (9-14, 2-9) in scoring, tallying 23 points. Eli Cain helped with 18 points, six assists and only one turnover in 35 minutes.
All 10 league teams are in action on Saturday afternoon. FOX has a doubleheader starting at noon ET with Butler at Villanova followed by Xavier at Creighton at 2:30 p.m. Also at noon, Marquette meets St. John’s at Carnesecca Arena on FSN. Seton Hall visits Georgetown at 4 p.m. on CBS Sports Network. Also at 4 p.m. DePaul plays at Providence on FSN.