Villanova and Marquette picked up tournament wins and Providence won a home game at the buzzer in Wednesday BIG EAST action.
Villanova, No. 5 in this week’s Associated Press poll, defeated Western Kentucky 66-58 in the first round of the Battle 4 Atlantis. Jalen Brunson scored a game-high 18 points and Mikal Bridges added 17 points. Bridges also had eight rebounds and five steals. The Wildcats used a 12-4 run early in the second half to take control.
Providence’s Kyron Cartwright provided the dramatics of the day with a 3-pointer at the buzzer that gave the Friars a 66-65 win over Belmont at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center.