It’s probably too early in the conference season to call it a showdown, but Villanova and St. John’s met Tuesday night with first place on the line. The Wildcats trailed 67-62 with 4:07 to play, but closed the game with a 14-4 run and earned a 76-71 victory against the Johnnies at Finneran Pavilion.
Villanova, 3-0 in the standings and already the only unbeaten team in league play, is 12-4 overall. St. John’s, which broke into the national polls this week -- No. 24 in the AP poll and No. 23 in USA Today -- is 2-2 in the BIG EAST and 14-2 overall.