Perkins leads Villanova against Xavier after 20-point showing

Xavier Musketeers (14-16, 6-13 Big East) at Villanova Wildcats (23-7, 14-5 Big East)

Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania; Saturday, 12 p.m. EST

BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Wildcats -11.5; over/under is 153.5

BOTTOM LINE: Villanova hosts Xavier after Tyler Perkins scored 20 points in Villanova’s 76-57 victory over the DePaul Blue Demons.

The Wildcats have gone 12-3 in home games. Villanova is 20-2 when it wins the turnover battle and averages 9.3 turnovers per game.

The Musketeers are 6-13 in Big East play. Xavier has a 7-7 record in games decided by 10 or more points.

Villanova averages 9.6 made 3-pointers per game, 2.1 more made shots than the 7.5 per game Xavier allows. Xavier has shot at a 44.5% rate from the field this season, 0.5 percentage points below the 45.0% shooting opponents of Villanova have averaged.

The teams meet for the second time in conference play this season. Villanova won 92-89 in the last matchup on Feb. 17. Acaden Lewis led Villanova with 21 points, and Tre Carroll led Xavier with 28 points.

TOP PERFORMERS: Lewis is averaging 12.5 points, 5.1 assists and two steals for the Wildcats. Perkins is averaging 15.7 points over the last 10 games.

Jovan Milicevic is shooting 43.4% from beyond the arc with 2.0 made 3-pointers per game for the Musketeers, while averaging 12 points. Carroll is averaging 18 points and 5.8 rebounds over the past 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Wildcats: 8-2, averaging 76.6 points, 28.7 rebounds, 16.0 assists, 8.7 steals and 2.3 blocks per game while shooting 44.7% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 73.0 points per game.

Musketeers: 3-7, averaging 78.1 points, 30.6 rebounds, 14.9 assists, 5.5 steals and 3.7 blocks per game while shooting 46.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 84.6 points.

___

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.

Federal News Network Logo
Log in to your WTOP account for notifications and alerts customized for you.

Sign up