NEWARK, N.J. – An explosive display of offense helped No. 14/12 Villanova upend No. 8/7 Seton Hall 79-77 in a thriller played before 16,863 at the Prudential Center Wednesday night.
 
The Wildcats (23-7 overall, 12-5 BIG EAST) built a 14-point lead early in the second half on a flurry of 3-pointers – they would finish with 13 on the night- and then withstood repeated challenges from the Pirates. The latest of those came in the final minute. The Hall got to within 78-77 after a pair of Shavar Reynolds free throws with five seconds left.
 
But Jermaine Samuels – who ended the game with 19 points and seven rebounds – sank 1-of-2 free throws with 3.4 seconds on the clock and a final bid for a game-winner by the Pirates came after the final horn had sounded. Villanova prevailed 79-77, thereby earning a split of the season series (Seton Hall downed VU 70-64 on Feb. 8 in Philadelphia).
 
Saddiq Bey's 20 points led Villanova and Justin Moore added 19 points, including a series of critical 3-point goals. Sandro Mamukelashvili led Seton Hall (21-8 overall, 13-4 BIG EAST) with 20 points and 10 caroms.
 
"What a great college basketball game," stated Villanova head coach Jay Wright. "We've played Baylor, we've played Kansas and I think they're right up there with those guys. Therefore, that's a heck of a road victory against a team we have great respect for. To come in here and do that is a great effort by our guys.
 
"Every experience for this group is a good one. That kind of environment, that kind of pressure for Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, Justin Moore and even Saddiq Bey. He's a sophomore and he hasn't been a go-to guy before. This is a really good experience for our guys to have in their back pocket when we go into tournament time."
 
Villanova leaped out to a 10-4 lead over the Hall in the first four minutes of the contest as freshmen Robinson-Earl and Moore each dropped in a 3-pointer. The Pirates charged back with Myles Powell and Mamukelashvili leading the way to draw even at 12 before a Collin Gillespie fueled spurt put the Wildcats back on top at 17-14 eight minutes into the period.
 
Quincy McKnight sparked the Pirates with his forays into the lane, connecting on four field goals, including a corner 3-pointer, to help Seton Hall gain a 27-22 advantage before Moore answered with another 3-ball to answer. It was a 27-25 lead for the Hall with 3:39 to play before halftime. A 3-pointer by Saddiq Bey at the 1:32 mark of the period gave the 'Cats the lead back at 28-27.
 
A deep 3-pointer and a reverse layup by Samuels with 2.3 seconds left in the period helped Villanova take a 33-30 lead into the locker room at halftime. Gillespie and Moore each tallied eight points for the Wildcats while Bey added seven. McKnight's 10 points led the Hall.
 
After a Romaro Gill dunk brought the Pirates to within 35-34 early in the second half, 3-pointers on consecutive possessions from Samuels and Moore helped Villanova extend its lead to 41-34. Seton Hall called for a timeout with 17:08 to play in the second half. A Bey 3-pointer off a feed from Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree – who had grabbed an offensive rebound – was accompanied by a foul. Bey sank the free throw and the Wildcats' lead was 45-34.
 
The Hall scored the next six points to close within 45-39 before an 8-0 Nova burst was keyed by long distance baskets from Robinson-Earl and Samuels helped it move out to a 53-39 advantage. Then came 3-pointers from Mamukelashvili and Powell on consecutive possessions and the Pirates had narrowed their deficit to 53-45 with 13:28 to play in the period.
 
Moore's fourth 3-pointer of the evening helped Villanova get the lead to 60-52 but a transition bucket and free throw by Mamukelashvili closed the gap to 60-55 at the 7:51 mark.
 
The pattern would continue the rest of the way. The Wildcats appeared able to exhale when Samuels dropped in two free throws with 37 seconds left to make it 76-68. But the Hall kept scoring and the Wildcats were just 4-of-11 from the line in the last minute.
 
"Before the Providence game I think we were the No. 1 free throw shooting team in the Big East," stated Wright. "We work on it every day. Some nights you've got to be able to do other things. You can't be afraid to miss. If you miss, you've got to sleep in the streets. And we could have slept in the streets tonight. We missed free throws."
 
With Creighton's victory over Georgetown Wednesday, the Bluejays and Wildcats are tied for second in the BIG EAST, one game behind Seton Hall. Creighton hosts Seton Hall Saturday while
the Wildcats wrap up the 2019-20 regular season on Saturday when they meet Georgetown at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. That contest will tip off just after noon and air nationally on Fox Sports (Fox 29 in Philadelphia) and on 610 ESPN Radio in the Delaware Valley.
 
The 2019-20 season – Villanova's 100^th college basketball campaign – is presented by Hartford Funds and Coca-Cola.