 are the only program in the Top 25 that plays in the shadow of four major pro teams that share a sports complex. Philly is an Eagles city. The Wildcats, even with the 2016 national championship, are just along for the ride. Villanova was forced to play this season at the Wells Fargo Center, home of the NBA's 76ers, because of renovations at its on-campus arena. The Wildcats improved to 7-0 in their temporary digs, even though the 20,000-seat arena was maybe half full. Interest in college hoops doesn't really pick up around town until the Eagles' season is over. The Wildcats might have three more wins if fans don't start paying attention until Feb 5. Eric Paschall led six Wildcats in double figures with 17 points, Omari Spellman had 16 and Jalen Brunson scored 15. What they might have missed is Brunson, a first-team preseason All-American, playing his way into national player-of-the-year contention. The recent funk from Oklahoma's Trae Young could open the door for the Nova guard to take home some postseason hardware. He entered the game tops on Villanova in scoring, third in the Big East in assists and third in the conference in 3-point accuracy. The Wildcats rallied from a nine-point hole in the first half to lead 39-30 at halftime. Donte DiVincenzo and Mikal Bridges hit consecutive 3-pointers to spark the decisive run. Spellman, the preseason Big East freshman of the year, had a three-point play when he tossed the ball up in the lane and it rolled around the rim before falling through the net. The Friars missed eight straight field goals midway through the second half, and Brunson and Paschal hit 3s that stretched the lead and sent the Wildcats on their way to their sixth straight win against Providence. BIG PICTUREProvidence: The Friars' career record vs. No. 1 teams fell to 2-15 and they dropped to 1-3 against Top 25 teams this season. Rodney Bullock was the top scorer with 16 points. Villanova: Outside of their 22-2 run, the Wildcats didn't really shoot that well. But the Wildcats entered tops in the Big East in scoring defense (64.8 points), and they kept Providence to 37 percent shooting from the floor. UP NEXTProvidence plays the middle of three straight road games Jan. 31 at Seton Hall. Villanova plays Sunday against Marquette.---More college basketball: https://collegebasketball.ap.org and https://twitter.com/-Top25)
Time: 6:30 PM EST PHILADELPHIA -- The top-ranked Villanova Wildcats completed their non-conference schedule with a perfect 13-0 record. The Wildcats (18-1, 5-1) will look to continue their stellar play with a return to Big East action as they will host Providence (14-6, 5-2) Tuesday at the Wells Fargo Center. Jalen Brunson scored 23 points, Donte DiVincenzo added 17 and Villanova blitzed Connecticut 81-61 Saturday at the XL Center. Villanova bolted to a 39-18 halftime advantage and dominated the Huskies on the boards by a wide 48-32 margin." The mentality is to stay confident and keep shooting," Brunson told reporters. "The guys did a great job inside rebounding and kicking it back out to us." The Wildcats are so talented and can beat teams in a variety of ways. Even though they shot just 37 percent in the first half, the huge rebounding advantage awarded them extra shots. In the second half, Villanova started making more shots and the rout was on." I thought the key to the game for us was our rebounding," Villanova head coach Jay Wright told reporters. "We haven't been doing that well until recently and I thought it created a lot of second and third shots when we weren't making shots early." Villanova wound up shooting 15 of 40 from beyond the arc as Brunson led the way with a 5-for-11 performance. This was the eighth time in the last nine games that Villanova hit at least 10 3-pointers." It was nice to play well here and rebounding like that was big for us," Wright said. "We're getting better." The Wildcats have won the last five meetings against Providence including both games last season. Wright is 20-8 all-time against Providence. Providence (14-6, 5-2) captured its fourth straight win Saturday following an impressive 85-71 victory over visiting Creighton. Alpha Diallo led the way with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Kyron Cartwright added 20 points and seven assists, Isaiah Jackson contributed 11 points and Rodney Bullock had 10." Creighton didn't shoot the ball like they normally do and hopefully that was because our defense was just OK," Providence coach Ed Cooley told the Providence Journal. "The whole emphasis was trying to take away their 3s. It's all predicated on how you guard the ball screen." Diallo was the difference in this game and that's exactly what the Friars are hoping for when they visit Villanova." Coach tells me I'm a mismatch nightmare," Diallo told the Journal. "Playing against different defenders I can put smaller guys in the post or, if they're bigger, slower guys, I can drive and take them off the dribble." Providence holds a 2-14 mark in program history against the No. 1-ranked team. The last time the Friars played a top-ranked team on the road came when Villanova defeated them 78-68 at the Wells Fargo Center a year ago. Providence has been hampered by injuries all season. Senior forward Emmitt Holt is already out for the season with an abdominal injury. Freshman center Dajour Dickens hurt his back and has missed the last 16 games. Sophomore guard Maliek White suffered a leg injury in a win over Brown on Dec. 6. White missed 10 games but returned play against Creighton.
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