MBB Minute – In Friday’s lone contest, St. John’s rallied from a 16-point deficit in the first half to win 72-70 at Providence. Zuby Ejiofor’s follow-up basket at the buzzer gave the Johnnies the victory.
 
St. John’s (10-2, 2-0 BIG EAST) trailed 38-22 late in the first half before mounting its comeback. Ejiofor posted game highs of 19 points and 10 rebounds. Bensley Joseph led Providence (7-6, 1-1) with 17 points and eight boards. 
 
A four-game Saturday includes three league contests. At noon ET, No. 9 Marquette visits Xavier on FOX. The Golden Eagles (10-2, 1-0 BIG EAST) won at Butler 80-70 on Wednesday while the Musketeers (8-4, 0-1) lost 94-89 in overtime at UConn. Marquette will be Xavier’s third straight ranked opponent.
 
Also at noon, Butler hosts UConn on Peacock. The No. 11 Huskies (9-3, 1-0) own a five-game winning streak and have not lost to the Bulldogs (7-5, 0-1) in nine previous meetings. UConn will be Butler’s fourth ranked foe in the last five games. The two teams met in the 2011 national championship game with the Huskies winning 53-41.
 
Two games tip at 4 p.m. FS1 will carry Villanova at Creighton. The Wildcats (8-4, 1-0) have a five-game winning streak after a 79-67 victory versus Seton Hall on Tuesday. Eric Dixon is tied for the nation’s scoring lead with a 25.7 average. The Bluejays (7-5, 0-1) lost 81-57 at Georgetown on Tuesday. They have won 20 of the last 22 games after losing by 20 or more points.
 
The other 4 p.m. start has DePaul finishing its non-conference slate when it visits Northwestern on the Big Ten Network. The Blue Demons (8-3, 0-2) lost 89-61 at St. John’s on Tuesday.