VILLANOVA, Pa. -- Villanova's stranglehold on the Big East Conference got perhaps its strongest challenge of the season Wednesday night from a young but talented Marquette squad.

The Golden Eagles, led by freshman big man Henry Ellenson, were ahead at halftime by a point -- the first time the Wildcats trailed at halftime of a Big East home game in nearly three years -- but couldn't hold on as No. 6 Villanova pulled away for an 83-68 win.

Junior forward Kris Jenkins led five Villanova players in double figures with 20 points, going 6-for-12 from the floor and 3-for-6 from 3-point range. Freshman guard Jalen Brunson added 14 for the Wildcats.

Villanova (15-2, 5-0) earned its 20th consecutive victory against Big East opponents, including last year's conference tournament championship run.

"Teams are going to come in here and give us our best, and I think guys are starting to realize that," Villanova coach Jay Wright said. "It's one game at a time, but what's happening here is you can see teams really get fired up to play against us."

Over the past three seasons, including postseason play, the Wildcats are 40-5 (.888) against the rest of the league.

However, they are not letting the success get to their heads.

"It's been a grind ever since I got here," said Jenkins, who has helped Villanova to a 77-10 record since arriving on campus for the 2013-14 season. "I don't think it's going to let up, even when I leave. Every game is a grind, you've got to bring it."

After leading by between one and five points over the opening 10 minutes of the second half, Villanova put the game away with a 13-0 run that lasted nearly six minutes.

Marquette missed 10 consecutive shots from the field during that time, and by the time sophomore guard Duane Wilson hit a pair of foul shots for the Golden Eagles (12-5, 2-3) with 4:27 remaining, it was a 70-53 Villanova lead.

The Wilson foul shots started a 10-0 run for Marquette that made it an eight-point game with three minutes left, but the Golden Eagles could get no closer. As a team, Marquette shot just 29.6 percent in the second half (8-for-27).

"Against a team like this, you have to put two halves together of good defense and good offense," Marquette coach Steve Wojciechowski said. "In the second half, we had some really good shots, and they just didn't go in. That puts a lot of pressure on your defense, especially against a team like Villanova that does a great job scoring the ball and getting to the foul line."

Ellenson, a 6-foot-11 forward from Rice Lake, Wis., finished with 12 points and eight rebounds while matched up mainly with Villanova senior big man Daniel Ochefu, who only had four points but grabbed 13 boards.

Freshman wing Haanif Cheatham had 17 points to pace the Golden Eagles, who had won two straight after losing their first two conference games.

"As a group, we have to put together 40 minutes," Wojciechowski said. "You can't have lulls, defensively, offensively, against a team as good as Villanova and hope to win."

An Ellenson put-back gave Marquette a 38-37 lead at the half after an opening 20 minutes filled with runs.

Villanova utilized the 3-point shot early, hitting six of eight from beyond the arc to open a 26-11 lead over the first 10 minutes. The Wildcats then cooled off quickly, missing their next seven long-range shots, and Marquette used that opportunity to come back.

The Golden Eagles hit seven straight from the floor at one point to help them tie it up at 29-29 on a 3-pointer by guard Traci Carter with 3:37 left in the opening period.

"We were lucky to be able to recover from that," Wright said. "Probably if we're on the road, we don't recover from that."

NOTES: Marquette freshman G Traci Carter, a Philadelphia native, played his first collegiate game back near his hometown, and he scored 10 points. The Life Center (N.J.) graduate spent his first two high school years at Roman Catholic in downtown Philadelphia. ... Chicago Bulls stars Joakim Noah and Jimmy Butler, a Marquette alum, were sitting courtside. The Bulls play the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday night. ... Villanova's No. 6 ranking in the Associated Press poll, a five-spot improvement from the week prior, is the Wildcats' highest ranking of the season.