Villanova suffers blowout loss to Providence | Villanova vs. Providence Recap

PROVIDENCE, RI—Villanova never held the lead against Providence at Amica Mutual Pavilion on Saturday night in a must-win game for the Wildcats.

It was a continuation of the what-ifs for Villanova as the Wildcats dropped another game against an opponent with a losing record.

Providence (12-14, 6-9 Big East) defeated Villanova (15-11, 8-7), 75-62. Wooga Poplar and Jordan Longino led Villanova with 18 points each, while Eric Dixon added 15 points on six-for-15 shooting. Villanova converted 43% of its field goals but only 26% of its three-point attempts.

Villanova’s head coach, Kyle Neptune, discussed Providence’s early start in his postgame press conference.

“I thought they threw a hard punch at us to start the game, and we just never recovered,” Neptune said. “Offensively, their gameplan, they made a lot of adjustments from the last game.”

The Friars used a 14-3 run in the first half to outscore Villanova, 36-24, in the first twenty minutes. Providence held Villanova to its lowest-scoring half of the season. The Friars continued their efficient offense and great defense in the second half to dominate Villanova from start to finish in Rhode Island.

Providence did not let Villanova score in the first five minutes of the second half. After the game, Coach Neptune talked about the Friars’ tough and physical defense.

“They’re just very physical,” Neptune said. “It doesn’t show up on film how physical they are. They’re with you at all times. They’re always bumping you. They just do a really good job.”

Providence converted 52% of its field goals. The Friars made 13 of their 27 three-point attempts for a 48% success rate. Jayden Pierre led all scorers with 19 points, including five threes. Bensley Joseph, a senior transfer from Miami, finished the game with 17 points, six rebounds, and six assists.

Providence accumulated 17 assists and established its three-point shooting with excellent ball movement.

Both teams grabbed 30 rebounds. However, Providence was more efficient from the field and behind the arc. The Friars’ bench outscored the Wildcats’ bench, 17-0. They also finished the game with 14 fast-break points compared to Villanova’s zero fast-break points.

Key Takeaways

Home Sweet Home

The Wildcats’ road struggles continued on Saturday in Providence. Villanova fell to 2-6 in road contests in 2024-25. The Wildcats have been outscored in away games, 594-554.

Villanova’s Perimeter Struggles

Villanova’s perimeter defense had a difficult evening against the Friars. Providence converted 56% of its three-point attempts in the first half and finished the game with 13 threes in 27 attempts. Six Friars made at least one three against Villanova.

Brickus reaches 1,500 points

Jhamir Brickus, a graduate guard from Coatesville, PA, reached 1,500 points in his college career on a three-pointer with 8:42 left in the second half. He accumulated nine points on three-for-eight shooting from the field, including two-for-three from behind the arc. It was Brickus’ first game with at least nine points since January 24^th.

At-Large Bid Chances

With a Quad 2 road loss against Providence, Villanova’s 11^th loss of the season should officially end its hopes at an at-large bid for March Madness. The Wildcats’ chances were already low entering Saturday’s contest, but this blowout loss makes things worse for Villanova, who continues to struggle against teams with losing records.

The Road Ahead leads to the XL Center

Villanova will face another tough road test on Tuesday against UConn (17-8, 9-5) at the XL Center. Tuesday’s battle starts at 6:30pm. The game can be watched on FS1.