Villanova routs DePaul behind Daniels

Caleb Daniels scored 18 points as Villanova beat DePaul 81-65 on Wednesday night.

Daniels shot 7 for 10, including 4 for 5 from beyond the arc for the Wildcats (11-13, 5-8 Big East Conference). Cam Whitmore scored 17 points and added seven rebounds. Justin Moore finished with 17 points.

The Blue Demons (9-16, 3-11) were led by Umoja Gibson, who posted 18 points. Javan Johnson added 18 points and two blocks for DePaul.

Da’Sean Nelson also had nine points and six rebounds. The loss was the Blue Demons’ sixth in a row.

Villanova took a 28-22 lead in the first half with a 16-1 run. Led by nine first-half points from Moore, Villanova carried a 37-34 lead into the break. Villanova took the lead for what would be the final time on Daniels’ 3-pointer with 9:26 remaining in the second half. His team would outscore DePaul by 13 points in the final half.

Houston 80, Tulsa 42

HOUSTON >> Marcus Sasser scored 25 points and had five 3-pointers, Emanuel Sharp added 13 points and No. 2 Houston routed Tulsa 80-42 on Wednesday night for their fifth straight win.

Sasser scored 19 points on 8 of 13 shooting in the first half as the Cougars (23-2, 11-1 American Athletic Conference) built a 46-18 halftime lead. The senior guard had the first 12 points in a 24-2 run that gave Houston a 31-12 lead with six minutes remaining in the first half.

Providence 74, Georgetown 62

PROVIDENCE, R.I. >> Bryce Hopkins scored 17 points and No. 20 Providence beat Georgetown 74-62 on Wednesday night.

Devin Carter and Ed Croswell had 12 points apiece as the Friars (18-6, 10-3 Big East) won for the fourth time in five games. Noah Locke added 11 points, shooting 3 of 5 from 3-point range.