Field Level Media
Mar 11, 2021
Dante Harris scored 18 points, including two free throws with five seconds remaining, to lift eighth-seeded Georgetown to a 72-71 victory over top-seeded Villanova in the quarterfinals of the Big East tournament on Thursday in New York.
Qudus Wahab contributed 17 points, Jahvon Blair added 14 and Jamorko Pickett had 12 for the Hoyas (11-12), who will face fifth-seeded Seton Hall in the semifinals. The Pirates beat St. John's 77-69 in overtime.
Jeremiah Robinson-Earl led 14th-ranked Villanova (16-6) with 26 points and Jermaine Samuels added 20. Justin Moore, who finished with 10 points, had been doubtful for the tournament with a sprained left ankle.
Blair made a 3-pointer with 5:09 remaining to cap a 13-1 run and give Georgetown a 63-62 lead.
Cole Swider's trey with the shot clock winding down and 2:13 left gave Villanova a 67-65 advantage. After an empty Georgetown possession, Robinson-Earl followed with a 3-pointer and the lead was five.
Wahab's three-point play with 40 seconds remaining tied the game at 70. Robinson-Earl sank a free throw with 19 seconds left before Harris made two for the win.
Blair connected on consecutive 3-pointers to give Georgetown a 19-17 lead with 9:52 remaining in the first half.
Samuels, however, came back with a pair of treys to propel Villanova to a 27-22 advantage.
But Pickett responded with a 3-pointer from the corner with 5:52 left to pull the Hoyas within 27-25.
Georgetown led 37-35 at halftime, thanks in large part to 10 points from Wahab.
Samuels paced the Wildcats with 14 points, but the team missed 16 of 19 treys in the opening half.
Chris Arcidiacono was fouled on a 3-pointer early in the second and knocked down all three shots to give a Villanova a 40-39 lead.
Moore soon followed with a trey from wing with 17:43 remaining to give the Wildcats a 43-39 advantage. A layup by Robinson-Earl and a driving basket by Moore pushed the lead to 47-39.
When Harris dropped in a jumper with 13:49 to go, the Hoyas cut the deficit to 49-46.
But Villanova scored the next six points to move back ahead by nine.
Moore received a crisp pass from Arcidiacono and hit a trey with 8:49 left for a 61-50 Villanova advantage.
--Field Level Media