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No. 2 Villanova beats No. 23 Creighton, clinches Big East regular season title

By The Sports Xchange

VILLANOVA, Pa. -- When the final buzzer sounded, the sellout crowd of 6,500 stood and applauded as Villanova celebrated a fourth consecutive Big East regular season championship.

Yet the second-ranked Wildcats are far from being satisfied this season.

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Eric Paschall scored 19 points, Josh Hart added 16 points and seven rebounds and Villanova defeated No. 23 Creighton 79-63 Saturday at The Pavilion.

Kris Jenkins scored 15 and Mikal Bridges had 11 points and eight rebounds for the Wildcats (27-3, 14-3 Big East).

"We're not done yet," Jenkins said. "We have a lot more to accomplish."

Villanova competed in the last game in The Pavilion, which opened Feb. 1, 1986. The arena will undergo a major renovation beginning in June and is scheduled to re-open in the fall of 2018.

Shortly after the milestone victory, the deluge outside began leaking at half court.

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"The Pavilion ended with a big puddle at half court," Villanova coach Jay Wright said. "This was definitely the building's last day."

The Wildcats bounced back from Wednesday's 74-66 home loss to No. 22 Butler, which snapped a program-best 48-game winning streak at The Pavilion.

The Wildcats struggled from 3-point territory (4 of 19), but made up for it at the charity stripe, knocking down 17 of 22 free throws and outrebounding the Bluejays, 33-28.

"Nothing changes," Hart said of the team's demeanor. "Whether we win or whether we lose, we go back to work the next day and focus on getting better."

Marcus Foster paced the Bluejays (22-7, 9-7) with 25 points while Khyri Thomas contributed 17 and Zach Hanson had 10. They had won three straight games over top 25 opponents before Saturday.

But Creighton dropped its second in a row after losing 68-66 to visiting Providence Wednesday night.

"Our inability to guard without fouling and 16 turnovers was too much to overcome," Creighton coach Greg McDermott said.

Foster kept the Bluejays close by hitting 8 of 18 from the field, including 6 of 9 from beyond the arc, to go along with eight assists and five rebounds.

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It wasn't quite enough.

"They always play hard," Foster said of Villanova. "They're fundamentally sound. To beat a great team like that, you have to limit mistakes."

Villanova played without senior forward Darryl Reynolds for the fifth straight game. Reynolds, out with a rib injury, was honored before the game along with seniors Hart and Jenkins. The trio has been a part of four Villanova teams to post an impressive 124-16 record, four Big East regular season titles, four Big 5 championships and one national championship.

And the Wildcats don't believe they're done.

"This game isn't about the seniors," Hart said. "It's about the next step on our journey. We fight and we battle and I'm proud of that."

With the game tied at 45, Villanova went on a 20-9 run to take a 65-54 advantage with 6:17 remaining. Paschall's offensive rebound and basket gave the Wildcats that 11-point cushion and sent the sellout crowd into a frenzy.

It was enough of a lead to propel Villanova to a home victory and clinch yet another title.

Villanova surged to a 10-point advantage on two occasions late in the first half before the Bluejays responded. Foster's fourth 3-pointer of the half tied the game at 33 with less than 30 seconds remaining and that was the score as both teams entered their respective locker rooms.

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Foster led all first-half scorers with 14 points. Paschall paced the Wildcats with nine points.

NOTES:

-- Creighton G Marcus Foster eclipsed 10 points for the 12th straight game.

-- The Bluejays fell to 4-32 all-time against top five teams.

-- Villanova is off until next Saturday for the regular season finale at Georgetown.

-- Creighton will conclude its regular season portion with two games -- Tuesday against St. John's and Saturday at Marquette.

-- Villanova coach Jay Wright earned his 503rd career victory.

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