PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – No. 23 Providence outscored Villanova 15-8 over the final 7:59 to outlast the Wildcats 70-65 Sunday afternoon at the Wells Fargo Center before a crowd of 15.053.
 
The game marked the season debut of senior guard Justin Moore, who missed the season's first 20 games as he recovered from April surgery to repair an Achillies tendon tear he suffered in the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight victory over Houston.
 
Moore logged 31:01 in his return, contributing five points, four rebounds and four assists. Freshman Cam Whitmore led Nova with 21 points and nine rebounds.
 
Guard Jared Bynum provided 19 points for the Friars, 17 of them after halftime. He connected on 7-of-8 field goal attempts, including 3-of-4 from beyond the point arc over the final 20 minutes.
 
"I give Providence a lot of credit," stated Villanova head coach Kyle Neptune. "Down the stretch they just made more plays than we did. They were a little tougher than we were and came out with the win."
 
Moore picked up his first two points of 2022-23 as part of an 11-6 burst by Villanova over the game's first 5:23. Even though the Wildcats cooled off a bit from the field over the next four plus minutes they retained a 13-10 edge on the Friars thanks to sturdy defense of their own as the contest hit the midpoint of the first half.
 
"It was last week," stated Moore of the decision to return to game action after having resumed practice on Christmas night. "I knew we had a long break coming up and I could really prepare myself for coming back."
 
Providence moved in front 16-15, thanks to the work on the interior of forwards Ed Croswell (six points) and Bryce Hopkins (four points) at both ends of the floor. A pair of free throws by Brandon Slater put Nova back on top, 17-16, at the 7:50 mark of the first half.
 
When Caleb Daniels dropped in a short jumper with 3:39 remaining in the period, Villanova held a 28-22 advantage. When Daniels added a free throw after being fouled, it capped an 8-0 run for the Wildcats. It provided the impetus for what became a 31-28 halftime lead.
 
Whitmore and Slater each scored seven points over the first 20 minutes for the Wildcats. Croswell led all scorers with 10 points in the period.
 
Providence scored eight of the first 10 points in the first three minutes of the second half to move on top, 36-33. A free throw by Moore was followed by another Providence basket, making it 38-34. Whitmore answered with a 3-poiner and it was a one-point deficit after five minutes of the second half.
 
Villanova then held Providence to 1-of-7 over the next 3:46 and regained the lead after a Whitmore 3-pointer and Dixon deuce in the post. Another Whitmore bucket pushed the lead to 49-42 but the Friars reeled off a quick 8-0 burst in response with all the points being scored by Bynum.
 
Providence led 50-49 with 8:47 to go in the second half.
 
The game seesawed back and forth with a Daniels 3-pointer giving VU a brief lead before Providence moved back in front 58-55. A Dixon scored inside closed the gap to 58-57 with 5:42 left in the period. But another big 3-pointer, this one by Corey Floyd, allowed the Friars to craft a 64-60 advantage with 2:44 remaining.
 
A Whitmore 3-pointer with 1:32 left shaved the lead to 66-65. However, Bynum made scored on a short jumper with 25 seconds left to extend the margin to 68-65 and the Wildcats were stopped on their next offensive possession. Two Bynum free throws made it a 70-65 final.
 
"I felt good," Moore said. "Of course, I haven't played a game in 10 months so I have to get back in rhythym. It was just great to be out there with the guys competing again."
 
Villanova (10-11 overall, 4-6 BIG EAST) travels to Milwaukee to face another ranked team on Wednesday when they battle Marquette at 8:30 p.m. (FS1 and the Villanova Sports Network).