It was quite a Wednesday night in the BIG EAST with the league’s two ranked teams taking a loss and a head coach achieving a milestone victory.
St. John’s used a swarming defense to knock off No. 3 Villanova 70-59 at Carnesecca Arena. The win gave the Johnnies (12-7, 6-6 BIG EAST) a five-game league winning streak, their longest since 2014-15. Posh Alexander was the catalyst with 16 points, six assists, four rebounds and three steals. Julian Champagnie, who did not score in the first half, finished with 14 points and 13 rebounds. The Wildcats (11-2, 6-1 BIG EAST), who had a nine-game winning streak end and went into the contest leading the nation in fewest turnovers per game, committed 17.