Eric Dixon scored a career-high 24 points and added a game-high 12 rebounds, leading the No. 12 Villanova Wildcats past the No. 17 Connecticut Huskies, 85-74, in a Big East game on Saturday afternoon in Philadelphia.
Wildcats point guard Collin Gillespie, the Preseason Big East Player of the Year, scored 19 points but injured his right ankle with 6:53 left in the game. He got hurt trying to close out a three-point shooter and did not return, but No. 12 Villanova (17-6, 10-3) held on and improved to 9-1 at home.
The Wildcats are 10-2 in their past 12 games overall. Dixon made 10-of-15 shots. Gillespie made 6-of-13 shots, including 4-of-7 on three-pointers.
No. 17 Connecticut (15-6, 6-4) lost its second straight contest, a skid that has followed a five-game win streak.
Connecticut, just 3-3 on the road, was led by R.J. Cole, who had a game-high 25 points. Tyrese Martin and Adama Sanogo added 14 points each for the Huskies.
Meanwhile, the Wildcats have won five straight games in their series against UConn. The Huskies’ most recent win against Villanova was in the 2014 NCAA Tournament’s second round as UConn was on its way to a national championship.
Villanova on Saturday was without guard Justin Moore, who suffered an ankle injury in Wednesday’s loss to Marquette. He is second on the team in points (15.1) and assists (2.5) while leading in steals (1.2).
Caleb Daniels replaced Moore, getting his first start of the season. Daniels scored 16 points and had a game-high three steals.
Early on, there were three lead changes in the first half. However, Villanova took control on Chris Arcidiacono’s layup with 12:20 left in the half and never trailed again, leading 40-29 at the break.
Things could’ve been worse for UConn, but Cole hit a half-court shot at the halftime buzzer.
Villanova shot 56.0 percent in the first half, thanks in part to Dixon’s 14 points on 5-for-8 shooting. UConn was held to 36.4 percent, getting 10 points from Martin.
Early in the second half, the Huskies cut their deficit to seven points on four occasions. But Villanova pushed back each time, and UConn never got that close again.
For the game, Villanova shot 59.2 percent from the floor, 54.5 percent on three-pointers (6-for-11) and 95.5 percent on free throws (21-for-22).
–Field Level Media
