Villanova and Butler gained Tuesday BIG EAST victories, though the drama was centered on the Wildcats’ campus.

Villanova outlasted Seton Hall 76-74 at Finneran Pavilion.  A free throw by Cole Swider with 1.9 seconds left broke a 74-74 tie.  Collin Gillespie led the third-ranked Wildcats (9-1, 4-0 BIG EAST) with 22 points and Jermaine Samuels added 20 points and nine rebounds.  The Pirates had tied the game after trailing by nine points with seven minutes left.  The Hall’s Sandro Mamukelashvili posted a game-high 23 points, nine rebounds and five assists.  Jared Rhoden netted 19 points.  The last five meetings between the two schools have been decided by an average of 3.2 points.

Butler held DePaul to 25 percent shooting in the first half en route to a 67-53 victory at Wintrust Arena.  The Bulldogs (5-7, 4-5 BIG EAST), who picked up their first road win of the season, made 50 percent of their shots in the first 20 minutes and led 35-17 at the break.  For the game, Butler’s Jair Bolden led all scorers with 21 points.  Bryce Nze controlled interior play with a game-high 14 rebounds.  DePaul freshman Kobe Elvis came off the bench to score a team-high 12 points for the Blue Demons (2-5, 0-5 BIG EAST).

Providence at Creighton is the only game on Wednesday’s schedule.  The tip time has been changed to 7 p.m. ET.  FS1 will televise.  In the first meeting, the Bluejays tipped the Friars 67-65 on Jan. 2 with a basket with less than a second remaining.  Creighton (10-3, 6-2 BIG EAST) will be aiming to bounce back from an overtime loss at Butler, which ended a six-game winning streak.  The Bluejays are ranked 11th in both national polls this week.  The Friars (7-6, 3-4 BIG EAST) have lost their last three games by a total of 13 points and are playing the third of four straight away from home.