Villanova survives Howard, Marquette, snaps losing streak
RADNOR » Villanova entered Wednesday night’s showdown with No. 18 Marquette riding a three-game losing streak.
The No. 15 Wildcats were determined not to make it four in a row.
Villanova held high-scoring Marquette guard Markus Howard in check and used an early 12-point cushion to snap its three-game slide with a 72-71 victory over the Golden Eagles at the Pavilion.
The victory, coupled with Creighton’s 87-82 victory over league-leading Seton Hall, created a two-way tie for second place in the Big East between the Wildcats (18-6 overall, 8-4 league) and the Bluejays (19-6, 8-4).
Freshman Jeremiah Robinson-Earl racked up his eighth double-double to pace a balanced attack that got Villanova back on the winning track. He finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Collin Gillespie (14), Jermaine Samuels (14) and Saddiq Bey (10) also reached double figures.
But it was Villanova’s defense, specifically on the high-scoring Howard, that was the difference.
Howard, the nation’s leading scorer, came into the game averaging 28.5 points in Big East play and 28.75 points versus the Wildcats in the last four meetings, and needing 22 points to become the all-time leading scorer in Big East Conference games.
The explosive senior had a conventional three-point play early, but never developed an offensive rhythm until late. With a threepointer at the buzzer that left his team a point short, Howard did finish with 24 points to move past Laurence Moten of Syracuse for most points in Big East games with 1,408. He shot 8-for-20 from the field and 5-for-11 from 3-point range, and came on late to make things interesting.
Howard hit a 3-pointer to get Marquette (17-7, 7-5) within 71-68 with 40 seconds to play, and had a chance to make it a one-point game, but he missed two free throws with five seconds remaining.
Robinson-Earl hit the back end of a two-shot foul to give the Wildcats a 72-68 advantage.
Sacar Amin (14), Jamal Cain (13) and Koby McEwen (12) did their best to keep the Golden Eagles (17-7, 7-5), but it was an uphill fight after Villanova went on a 12-2 run to take an early 19-7 lead. That burst enabled the Wildcats to take a 38-29 advantage into the locker room at half.
That lead grew to 49-31 before the Golden Eagles made a late run, but the Wildcats were able to hold on and get back on the winning track.