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NEW YORK, N.Y. - Senior guard Darrun Hilliard got Villanova going with a 3-point field goal from the top of the arc in the game's first minute and the No. 4/3 Wildcats never looked back en route to an 84-49 victory over Marquette (13-19 overall) in a BIG EAST Tournament quarterfinal contest played here Thursday.

The Wildcats (30-2 overall) advance to a Friday night semifinal date for the first time since 2009. No. 4 seed Providence will provide the opposition. With the win today, Villanova matched a school record for single season victories with 30 (30-8 in 2008-09).

Hilliard's early triple was the first of 17 on the day, tying both a Villanova and BIG EAST Tournament record for most 3-pointers in a game. The Wildcats previous high water mark had come in a November 2005 triumph over Lehigh.

"This was a good start for us," stated Villanova head coach Jay Wright. "Obviously, that was a good start to the game. Marquette played zone, which was very effective last night against a good shooting Seton Hall team, and we just came out and we just made threes consecutively early. I thought that set the tone for the game."

Villanova jumped out to an 18-8 advantage after a Daniel Ochefu lay-up with 14:05 to play in the first half. But the Golden Eagles put together an 8-0 run to pull back within 18-16 with 11:27 remaining in the first period.

Hart, named the BIG EAST's Sixth Man of the Year earlier in the week, then altered the game's dynamic with his offensive burst. He provided the first 11 points of what would become a 17-0 surge that gave the `Cats a double-digit lead they would not surrender the rest of the day.

By halftime, Villanova had built a 39-21 lead over the Golden Eagles.

Hart was 5-of-5 from the field in the first 20 minutes, including 4-of-4 from outside the 3-point arc.

"We're a good shooting team," noted Wright. "So when you have (days) like that, you're going to win most games. But when you're a shooting team, there's going to be some nights where you don't make those shots, and you can't be afraid to let them fly. You've got to be able to do other things when you're not making shots.

"That's why I thought it was so important that we hit shots early against that zone. Early in the first half, we took a lot of threes. If we're missing those and they're getting out in transition, it's a different game. So, when you make them, it makes a big difference."

Part of the reason Villanova prospered was its work at the defensive end of the court. The Wildcats forced 22 turnovers on the day and enjoyed a 25-13 edge on points scored off of turnovers. Marquette connected on .391 of its field goal attempts and leading scorer Matt Carlino finished with five points on the day, converting 2-of-11 field goal attempts.

Wright liked what he saw defensively from his unit.

"Today was good," stated Wright. "We haven't been consistently this good defensively. We can be. That's what we're trying to do here at the end of the season is really be this team is not one of our better defensive teams. It's really not. It's good, but we can be a lot better."

The Wildcats stretched the lead out in the later stages of the second half against a Golden Eagles' group that advanced past Seton Hall Wednesday night. No Villanova starter logged more than 28 minutes on the day.

"I thought our depth helped us there," said Wright.

Villanova connected on 30-of-57 (.526) from the floor and 17-of-29 from distance (.586). Hilliard ended the day with 13 points, eight assists, three rebounds, and two steals. Junior Dylan Ennis added 12 points and four caroms.

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