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VILLANOVA, Pa. (AP) — Eric Dixon He scored 18 of his 23 points in the second half and Villanova held on for a 68-66 victory over No. 9 University of Connecticut Wednesday night after the Huskies Alex Karaban He missed two free throws with 3.1 seconds left.
Poplar Wooga He added 18 points for Villanova (11-5, 4-1 Big East), which led by as many as 12 points in the second half.
Solo ball scored 16 points to lead UConn (12-4, 4-1). The Huskies had won eight in a row since losing all three games at the Maui Invitational in November.
The Huskies played without star rookie Liam McNeeley, out with a right foot injury.
UConn had several chances to take the lead late, the last when Karaban went long on both free throw attempts after being fouled by Jordan Longino. Karaban finished with 10 points.
The teams played on Villanova’s campus in front of fans for the first time since January 5, 1995. They met at the Villanova Pavilion on February 20, 2021 without fans during the pandemic. Normally, the matchup is played at the home of the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers.
Takeaway meals
UConn: The Huskies weren’t likely to go undefeated in the Big East, especially without McNeeley. UConn remains the class of the conference.
Villanova: After missing the NCAA Tournament each of the last two seasons under coach Kyle Neptune, the Wildcats are back in the conversation.
Key moment
The game was tied at 59 when Poplar hit a three-pointer with just under five minutes left to put Villanova ahead for good.
Key Statistics
Dixon shot 12.5% in the first half as he missed 7 of 8 field goals. Dixon came in shooting 53.4% from the field and leading the country in scoring with 25.9 points per game. Dixon’s teammates shot 57.1% (12 of 21) in the first 20 minutes.
Next
UConn: At Georgetown on Saturday.
Villanova: At St. John’s on Saturday night.