Box Score PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – No. 14 Connecticut applied suffocating defense to lift it past Villanova 71-59 in the BIG EAST regular season finale for both teams Saturday night before 16,264 at the Wells Fargo Center.
 
The Huskies took control over the final eight minutes of the first half, when they held the Wildcats to a single field goal, turning a two-point deficit (19-17) into an eight point halftime advantage (32-24). Villanova connected on 20-of-55 field goal attempts on the night, including 7-of-28 from beyond the 3-point arc (.250).
 
Justin Moore's 17 points led Villanova (16-15 overall, 10-10 BIG EAST).
 
"We played a (very) good team," stated Villanova head coach Kyle Neptune. "They came out, set the tone, and played the game on their terms. Hats off to them. I thought they did a good job.
 
"I thought they got into us. They make you miss. There's a reason why their defensive numbers are where they are. They take away 3's and did a good job tonight."
 
The game was deadlocked at seven after the first 4:14 of action at the Wells Fargo Center. The Huskies then converted five of their next attempts from the field to craft a 14-9 lead but five consecutive points from Caleb Daniels allowed Nova to tie the contest again, this time at 14 with 11:31 left in the first half.
 
A Mark Armstrong drive for two put VU up 19-17 before an Adama Sanogo answer tied the contest yet again. That's where the count stood with 6:37 to play in the period.
 
The Huskies held Villanova without a field goal for 5:04 and in the process built a 27-20 lead as the game clock dipped below the four minute mark in the first half. Sanogo and Jordan Hawkins both came up with points after offensive rebounds.
 
A Whitmore driving basket ended the drought and brought the 'Cats to within 27-22 with 2:14 left in the half. But an Alex Karaban jumper on the final shot of the half dropped just before the buzzer sounded to give the Huskies a 32-24 lead at intermission.
 
Karaban and Sanogo led UConn with nine points while Whitmore's six points topped the Wildcats. UConn held Villanova to one field goal over the final seven minutes of the half.
 
An Andre Jackson, Jr., 3-pointer extended the UConn lead to double digits, 35-24 in the first minute of the second half. When Hawkins drained a 3-pointer at the 16:41 mark, the Huskies had built a 42-28 lead. Another Jackson Jr., triple came after Moore sank his second 3-ball of the half and kept the margin at 14, 45-31 with 14:46 on the clock.
 
The Wildcats came up with a series of defensive stops but the Huskies defense continued to bottle them up at the offensive end. Villanova went through another field goal drought of more than three minutes and trailed 46-35 at the 11:49 mark of the second half after Eric Dixon swished a pair of free throws.
 
When Whitmore scored in transition while being fouled, the deficit stood at 52-43 with 7:35 on the clock. But another UConn offensive rebound and basket – this one by Hawkins – gave the Huskies back their double digit lead at 54-43.
 
The Wildcats got to within 65-57 on a Whitmore 3-pointer with 50.2 seconds but the Huskies were steady at the line down the stretch each time Nova fouled them. In fact, UConn sank all 10 of its free throw attempts in the final two minutes to secure the victory.
 
Villanova now turns its attention to the BIG EAST Tournament which gets underway for them Wednesday night at 8 p.m. with an opening round matchup with No. 11 seed Georgetown. UConn (24-7 overall, 13-7 BIG EAST) will be either the fourth or fifth seed in the event and opens play Thursday afternoon in a quarterfinal.
 
"Our mindset all year has been a game by game mindset," said Neptune. "We've got to go out and prepare for one team and then hopefully prepare for another team and then hopefully another team. I know that a lot of people focus on winning four games but for us, we go practice by practice by practice and game by game.
 
"I thought we had our moments tonight. Unfortunately, when you play against really good teams the margin for error is pretty low."