Final Score: Villanova 73, Butler 65
 
Overview
 
Villanova used a 22-1 spurt over the final 6:03 to rally past Butler on Wednesday night at Hinkle Fieldhouse. The Wildcats had trailed by as many as 14 points midway through the second half.
 
Eric Dixon scored 28 points for the 'Cats while Wooga Poplar added 18 points and 15 rebounds. The 15 caroms by Poplar were the most by a Wildcat since Jeremiah Robinson Earl, who grabbed 16 in a win at Butler in 2021. Reserve Kris Parker helped change the game with his defense in the second half. Enoch Boakye contributed 14 rebounds.
 
Early Burst
 
The stat sheet showed that these are two of the BIG EAST's more potent offenses and that's how the early moments played out. Triples by Jhamir Brickus and Dixon staked Villanova to a quick 8-3 lead but Butler responded with its own 8-0 run to move on top 11-8 through the first five minutes of the period.
 
Four points from Poplar gave Villanova a 12-11 lead but it was a temporary advantage. Butler limited Nova to 1-of-10 shooting over a 2:11 stretch, taking particular care to shadow Dixon's every move. That put Butler up 17-12 before Dixon sank a 3-pointer and then followed with another to push the 'Cats on top 18-17.
 
D Takes Hold
 
Midway through the first half, points became much harder to come by for both sides. Villanova's offense took a hit when orchestrator Brickus went to the sidelines with 5:35 remaining in the period after he was whistled for his second foul. Yet Nova hung tough, and regained the lead on a Tyler Perkins floater at 24-23.
 
However, Butler got a 3-pointer from Finley Bizjack to move back up, 26-24 at the final media break of the period. Jahmyl Telfort picked up a basket to stretch the margin to 28-24 as the clock dipped below the three-minute mark.
 
A streak of five straight made field goals gave Villanova back the lead at 30-28 before another Bizjack 3-pointer gave the Bulldogs a 31-30 edge at intermission.
 
Dixon (11 points) and Poplar (10 points) combined for 21 of Villanova's 30 points in a half where the Wildcats were 12-of-31 from the field (.387). Butler attempted 11 first half free throws to just two for Villanova.
 
Second Act
 
The two teams traded early blows in the opening minutes of the second half. Butler got a pair of triples before Villanova answered with 3-pointers from Poplar and Dixon. Villanova held a 41-39 lead with 15:23 to play in the second half.
 
Brickus, however, picked up his third foul while reaching for a steal near midcourt.
 
Midway through the period Telfort put together an impressive stretch, scoring seven straight points to expand a one-point Bulldogs lead to 52-44 with 11:25 left in the second half. By the time Villanova called for a timeout, the lead had grown to 58-48 at the 8:53 mark of the second half.
 
Meanwhile, the Wildcats struggled to regain an offensive flow. Another Butler basket made it 60-48. A Poplar triple ended that drought before the Bulldogs picked up another Telfort basket, giving him 25 points with 7:05 to play.
 
Then everything changed.
 
A 6-0 run – sparked by a series of defensive stops and points from Dixon and Poplar – shaved the deficit to 64-57 with 3:50 to play in the second half. Another stop and a pair of Kris Parker free throws closed the gap to 64-59. Jordan Longino sank a 3-pointer off an offensive rebound from Poplar to cut it to 64-62.
 
The clock ticked below two minutes to play. Dixon then drained a step-back triple to re-take the lead at 65-64. A steal and Longino layup made it 67-64 with 1:03 on the second half clock.
 
The game ended with a 20-1 run for the Wildcats.
 
What They Said
 
Villanova head coach Kyle Neptune: "Butler came in with a great game plan and made it really tough for us to score. Fortunately, our guys strung together some stops in the final minutes and it made the difference."
 
Neptune: "I think we got something like nine straight stops. This is the Big East. We knew it was going to be a dog fight on the road. I'm really proud of our guys.
 
"This is a great win for our program. We've got a lot of older guys, but we've also got some young guys that are finding their way in big time moments. I'm really proud of those guys. This is good but now we've got to move on and get ready for DePaul."  
 
Up Next
 
It is a quick turnaround for the Wildcats, who were scheduled to return to Philadelphia following the game. They'll host DePaul Saturday at noon at Finneran Pavilion (FS1 and Villanova Sports Network on IHeart.)