{{pageModel.leagueAbbr}} {{pageModel.subtitle}} | Las Vegas Review-Journal
National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Villanova 66, St. John's 65
When: 7:00 PM ET, Thursday, March 10, 2022
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York, New York
Officials: # Jeff Anderson, # Lamar Simpson, # Nate Farell
Attendance: 19812

Brandon Slater made two free throws with 2.8 seconds left to complete No. 8 Villanova's comeback for a 66-65 victory over St. John's in the quarterfinals of the Big East tournament on Thursday in New York.

Caleb Daniels led the second-seeded Wildcats (24-7) with 19 points, Justin Moore added 15 and Collin Gillespie had 14.

Villanova will face third-seeded and 20th-ranked UConn in the semifinals on Friday. The Huskies defeated Seton Hall 62-52 Thursday night.

Julian Champagnie led the seventh-seeded Red Storm (17-15) with 23 points and nine rebounds, and Stef Smith added 10 points. Smith's halfcourt shot fell short as the buzzer sounded.

Smith hit a 15-foot jumper as St. John's pulled out to a 13-9 lead with 11:34 remaining in the first half.

Villanova missed 17 of its first 20 shots yet trailed by only six.

Joel Soriano threw down a dunk and added a pair of free throws for a 19-10 Red Storm lead.

Daniels responded with consecutive 3-pointers from the wing to close Villanova within 19-16.

St. John's then scored nine straight, capped by Posh Alexander's layup, for a 12-point lead with 5:08 remaining in the half.

Gillespie and Moore each knocked down a 3-pointer and the Wildcats sliced the deficit in half.

The Red Storm led 30-23 at halftime thanks in large part to Champagnie's 13 points. Villanova shot just 7 of 30 (23.3 percent) from the field before the break.

Montez Mathis hit a jumper, Champagnie followed with a jump shot and a 3-pointer and St. John's quickly extended to a 37-23 advantage early in the second half.

Alexander drained a deep 3-pointer from the top of the key for a 44-27 lead with 15:35 left.

Villanova then surged forward with an 18-2 run capped by Slater's three-point play to get within 46-45 with 10:25 left.

Slater made two free throws with 4:04 remaining to give the Wildcats a 61-58 advantage.

Aaron Wheeler then grabbed an offensive rebound and dunked to close the Red Storm within one.

When Smith converted a three-point play with 2:08 to go, St. John's went ahead 65-64.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
St. John's   Villanova
Julian Champagnie 23 Scoring Caleb Daniels 19
Posh Alexander 5 Assists Collin Gillespie 3
Julian Champagnie 9 Rebounds Eric Dixon 9
Julian Champagnie 4 Free Throws Made Brandon Slater 5
Julian Champagnie 4 Steals Eric Dixon 2
Aaron Wheeler 2 Blocks Brandon Slater 1
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
St. John's 65 45.8 4-19 7-11 14 29 4 8 11
Villanova 66 35.7 9-29 17-20 7 37 1 4 13