There were times it was pretty, others that were head-scratching and while the Villanova Wildcats were resilient — coming back twice when it looked like Providence was on the brink of pulling away and burying them — the Friars had an answer for every counter punch and Villanova run.
The Friars weathered the storm and a couple of momentum-changing runs, before ultimately pulling away and hanging on to an 85-72 win at the Amica Mutual Pavilion on Saturday night.
“Thought Providence came out and really set the tone with how hard they played and how tough they were,” Villanova coach Kyle Neptune said.