Villanova Knocks Off No. 9 St. John’s; Tyler Perkins the Hero

Villanova Men’s Basketball picked up their second top ten win of the season on Wednesday, Feb. 12, taking down No. 9 St. John’s 73-71 on a go-ahead three from Tyler Perkins with 8.7 seconds to play.

Down near the baseline and trailing by a point, Jhamir Brickus threaded a bounce pass to the sophomore transfer, whose casual catch-and-shoot put the Wildcats ahead for good. St. John’s guard Simeon Wilcher’s last second three-point try missed, and Villanova escaped victorious.

The Red Storm came to town winners of ten in a row; now, it’s the Wildcats cradling a three game winning streak that puts them at 15-10 (8-6 Big East) with a glimmer of hope that seemed all but crushed less than two weeks ago.

While Tyler Perkins ended up the hero, Wooga Poplar helped put him in a position to win it, dropping a game high 22 points (tied with Red Storm senior Aaron Scott), including 10 points in the first eight minutes to help Villanova survive an early onslaught.

A 7-0 run from the Wildcats late in the first half put them ahead by double digits, but St. John’s immediately closed the gap with a 10-2 span that sent Villanova to the locker room clinging to a two-point lead.

Villanova Survives Second Half Swoon

Following a 42-42 deadlock early in the second half, a 9-2 run punctuated by a trio of dunks — two from popular, one from Enoch Boakye — gave Villanova breathing room. The Wildcats led 59-48 after another Perkins triple, but St. John’s wasn’t anywhere near finished, scoring the next 14 points to take the lead. Eric Dixon scored seven Villanova’s next nine points, including a pair of threes to help the Wildcats snap out of their funk.

Wilcher sank a three with 28 seconds to go to give the Red Storm a one point lead, but Perkins managed to call game… and Villanova’s defense hung on.

Up next, Villanova will hit the road to face the Providence Friars, with the opening tipoff set for 6 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 15.