Collin Gillespie scored 17 points, Eric Dixon added 15 points and seven rebounds, and host Villanova defeated St. John’s 73-62 on Saturday.
Caleb Daniels had 15 points for the No. 14-ranked Wildcats (16-5, 9-2 Big East), who won their third game in a row.
Montez Mathis led St. John’s (11-8, 3-5) with 14 points, and Julian Champagnie added nine.
The Red Storm shot only 19 percent (4 of 21) from 3-point territory.
Gillespie hit a 3-pointer with 11:02 left in the first half to tie the game at 13. Tareq Coburn responded with a dunk for St. John’s on its next possession.
Villanova went ahead 20-17 with eight minutes remaining when Moore hit a 3-pointer as the shot clock was about to expire.
Brandon Slater made two free throws with 4:18 left to give the Wildcats a 25-19 advantage.
Coburn was fouled on the Red Storm’s next possession, but he missed both free throws.
Villanova took advantage as Daniels scored, Justin Moore added a 3-pointer, and Daniels contributed a trey to cap a run for a 33-19 lead with 2:53 left.
Villanova led 40-26 at halftime thanks in large part to Daniels’ 10 points.
Mathis paced St. John’s with seven in the half. The Red Storm struggled from beyond the 3-point arc, going 2 of 12.
The tempo was a bit ragged through the first few minutes of the second half as St. John’s trailed 43-30 after Posh Alexander’s layup. Alexander had missed his first six shots before connecting.
Daniels continued to hit clutch shots, and his 3-pointer with 12:42 remaining gave the Wildcats a 49-34 lead.
Dixon hit two free throws with 7:51 to go as Villanova’s lead ballooned to 59-40.
The Red Storm continued to struggle from 3-point territory and still trailed 66-49 with 3:14 left. However, Stef Smith’s 3-pointer with 2:10 remaining completed an 8-0 spurt and cut the deficit to 66-57.
But Gillespie responded with a 3-point play to help seal the win.
–Field Level Media
