Final Score: Villanova 68, UConn 66
 
Overview
 
Villanova and No. 9 UConn staged a BIG EAST battle that won't soon be forgotten by the 6,501 at Finneran Pavilion Wednesday night. The Wildcats built a 46-34 lead early in the second half before UConn came storming back, riding a 17-of-29 performance from the field over the final 20 minutes, including 7-of-15 from deep, to regain the lead.
 
Eric Dixon, held to only five first half points, scored 15 in the second 20 minutes, including nine free throws, to help pull the Wildcats through. He got a helping hand from senior Wooga Poplar who added 18 points (now at 994 for his college career) and Jordan Longino 912 points, three rebounds and two steals).
 
The Wildcats had to fight off three bids by the Huskies in the final 30 seconds – including a pair of free throw attempts with 3.1 seconds left – to hold on for the win.
 
"That's what it's about," said Dixon. "Going out there, defending and rebounding, getting stops against a great program like UConn and seeing where you're at. "
 
Villanova has won eight of its last nine.
 
Others Stepped Forward
 
UConn grabbed a quick 5-2 lead before a 6-0 run on 3-pointers from Longino and Jhamir Brickus allowed the Wildcats to take the lead. The Wildcats held an 8-7 edge after 4:12 of the first half.
 
The Huskies expended great energy on denying and double-teaming the nation's leading scorer Dixon and the strategy held the fifth-forward to 1-of-8 shooting from the field over the game's first 17 minutes. But the rest of the Wildcats helped carry the scoring load, connecting on 10-of-17 from the floor to grab a 25-23 lead with 2:51 remaining in the period.
 
When Tyler Perkins picked up a Poplar steal and finished the fast break at the other end by finding an open Poplar, who sank a 3-pointer, the Wildcats were up 28-23.
 
"The energy in here," stated Villanova coach Kyle Neptune, "was great."
 
Dixon was fouled on the final offensive possession of the period for the Wildcats. When he sank both, Villanova took a 32-25 lead with them into the locker room at halftime.
 
Turnovers Turned the Tide
 
The key to Villanova's surge over the final five minutes of the period was its defense. The Huskies missed their final four field goal attempts in the half and committed nine turnovers over the first 20 minutes. Nova enjoyed a 10-4 edge on points off turnovers over the first 20 minutes.
 
By evening's end, the Wildcats would own a 15-4 edge in points off turnovers.
 
Points Began Flowing in the Second Half
 
Six points in the first two minutes of the second half by Dixon helped Villanova build a 46-34 advantage over the Huskies five minutes into the period.
 
UConn, however, reeled off eight straight points, including a pair of 3-pointers, to shave the gap to 46-42 with just over 13 minutes to play in the second half. Two Dixon free throws pushed the lead to 48-42 but when Solo Ball drained a contested 3-pointer from the top of the key, the Huskies were within 48-47.
 
A Dixon drive and score pushed the 'Cats lead to 50-47 at the 11:07 mark of the half.
 
The Huskies sank 10-of-13 from the field, including seven in a row, over the first 10 minutes of the half to cut the margin to 51-49.
 
When Ball sank a corner 3-pointer, UConn was back on top 57-55. At that point the Huskies were 13-of-17 from the floor in the half.
 
7:51 remained in the second half.
 
Down The Stretch
 
The final minutes were an instant classic with the teams' trading blows. Poplar sank a huge 3-pointer to give Villanova the lead back at 62-59. Dixon sank one with 3:27 left on the clock to make it 65-59. UConn got its own 3-pointer from Alex Karaban to close the margin to 67-64 with 2:07 left. A Husky layup with 1:20 left closed the deficit to 67-66.
 
That set up a wild final 80 seconds.
 
After a missed Dixon jumper, UConn was twice stopped by the Wildcats only to retain possession. On their third bid, Karaban drove to the goal and a foul was whistled on Longino with 3.1 seconds left. However, Karaban missed both free throws. Poplar then sank 1-of-2 at the line with 1.4 seconds left and a final UConn heave was off target.
 
Villanova improved to 10-0 this season when holding an opponent to fewer than 70 points.
 
What They Said
 
Villanova head coach Kyle Neptune: "We have a lot of respect for the UConn program and what they have accomplished this season and in past seasons. I was proud of the way our guys came out defensively in the first half and then took a bunch of punches from them in the second half and down the stretch. I thought it was fitting we got stops down the stretch. I thought that propelled us to the win."
 
UConn head coach Dan Hurley: "That was a really hard-fought game. Credit to Nova for finding a way to win it. Obviously, the turnovers hurt us. We were pretty efficient offensively when we didn't turn the basketball over. We knew this would be a hard game."
 
 
Up Next
 
Villanova heads on the road up the New Jersey Turnpike into New York City for a Saturday night duel with St. John's at Madison Square Garden (CBS Sports Network and the Villanova Sports Network on IHeart). Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.