Final Score: UConn 66, Villanova 59
 
Overview
 
UConn used a 23-6 closing kick over the game's final 10 minutes to rally past Villanova 66-59 on Tuesday evening at Hartford's XL Center. Villanova falls to 15-12 overall, 8-8 BIG EAST while the Huskies improved to 18-8 overall, 10-5 BIG EAST.
 
"Down the stretch," said Villanova head coach Kyle Neptune, "they made plays. We weren't able to make them. A lot of credit goes to those guys for earning the win."
 
UConn's multiple presses disrupted Villanova over the final minutes.
 
"They came after us," Neptune stated. "It was a press they hadn't used as much. They did a good job coming after us, being physical. They took us out of what we wanted to do."
 
Locked In
 
Both teams leaned on their defenses early. UConn misfired on its first five attempts from the field and had just free throws from Alex Karaban to show for points over the game's first 4:04. A fast break that resulted in a Josiah Moseley bucket helped give Nova a 4-2 lead at the first official timeout of the evening. The Cats were just 2-of-7 from the field in the opening minutes.
 
Fueled by a pair of Eric Dixon 3-pointers and a transition basket from Jordann Dumont, the Wildcats used a 9-0 burst to claim a 16-6 lead with 11:36 to play in the first half.
 
Pace Quickens as Huskies Rally
 
The game's tempo picked up in the middle part of the period as UConn got its transition offense going. An 8-0 run in a tidy 1:38 shaved the Wildcats' lead to 20-18 at the 8:48 mark of the period.
 
But Villanova steadied itself with a couple of stops and some free throws from Dixon. When Jordan Longino sank a deep 3-pointer near the end of the shot clock, the Wildcats lead was 27-22. UConn scored on its next possession to cut the deficit to 27-24 with 2:47 left on the first half clock.
 
Longino was while in the act of sinking a deep two-pointer and added a free throw as part of a final flurry to the half that saw Villanova take a 34-26 lead into its locker room at halftime. Longino's 13 points led the way for Villanova while Dixon added 12 points. Nova limited UConn to .400 shooting for the half, including a 1-of-9 effort from long range.
 
Act Two
 
UConn scored the first five points of the second half to close to within 34-31 before a two Dixon free throws settled the Wildcats at the offensive end. A Tyler Perkins 3-pointer was followed by a Jhamir Brickus steal, score and free throw to push the lead to 42-31 before UConn answered with a Solo Ball 3-pointer.
 
With 15:49 to play in the second half, Villanova was on top 42-34.
 
Liam McNeeley scored on a drive and added a free throw after he was fouled to close to within 42-37. Then came a flurry of moves from Wooga Poplar, igniting a 9-2 burst that gave the Wildcats a 51-39 lead at the 12:21 mark of the second half.
 
UConn kept the pressure on, however, and a 7-0 surge midway through the period drew it to within 53-46 with 7:55 remaining in regulation. That burst grew to 13-2 to pull the Huskies to within 55-52 as the clock dipped below the five minute mark in this one.
Poplar provided a huge 3-pointer from the left wing to double the lead to 58-52. There was 3:49 to play in the second half. Liam McNeeley sank two free throws for UConn to make it 58-54.
 
A missed 3-pointer and UConn rebound led to another foul that sent McNeeley back to the line, where he dropped in two more with 3:38 to go. A short while later Tarris Reed Jr., scored just before the shot clock expired to tie the game at 58.
 
There was 2.42 left to play.
 
UConn got another stop and was fouled on a scramble for a loose ball. Two more McNeeley free throws gave the Huskies the lead back at 60-58 with 1:42 to play. Reed followed with a slam that pushed the edge to 62-58 with 1:02 left.
 
Dixon added another free throw but that was as close as the 'Cats would come. The final count was 66-59.
 
Up Next
 
No. 16 Marquette will be at the Wells Fargo Center this Friday night as the Wildcats wrap up the South Philadelphia portion of their 2024-25 schedule. Tipoff is set for just after 7 p.m. with the contest set to air on FS1 and the Villanova Sports Network on IHeart (Fox Sports Philadelphia).