Collin Gillespie, No. 5 Villanova Beat Creighton to Win 2022 Big East Championship

Second-seeded Villanova continued to assert its dominance in the Big East with a 54-48 win over fourth-seeded Creighton on Saturday at Madison Square Garden to capture the men's conference title for the fourth time since 2017 and the sixth time overall.

Saturday's game was the first time Villanova and Creighton had met in the Big East title game since 2017, a game the Wildcats won 74-60. The Bluejays have never won a Big East Championship and are now 0-4 in the big game.

Villanova now has the third-most Big East title wins with six, breaking a tie with Syracuse, who has five. The Wildcats reached the Big East Championship with wins over No. 7 St. John's and No. 3 UConn.

Saturday's game got off to an extremely slow start, with Villanova entering halftime up 19-18. And while the second half was far more entertaining, both teams struggled to score, specifically from deep.

Villanova made just eight of 32 three-pointers, while Creighton made just three of 29. In addition, the Wildcats shot just 33.3 percent from the floor, while the Bluejays shot 32.8 percent.

Villanova never seemed to lose control in this game, especially down the stretch, thanks to Big East Player of the Year Collin Gillespie, who finished with 17 points, seven rebounds, five assists and two steals. He was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament.

Justin Moore also had a sensational performance for the Wildcats, finishing with 16 points and six rebounds. It was his best game of the tournament.

Creighton, however, had the best player on the floor, with Ryan Kalkbrenner finishing with 19 points, eight rebounds and one assist. His performance just wasn't enough, as the Bluejays' second-best player was Alex O'Connell, who finished with just 10 points, three rebounds, two assists and one steal.

With Saturday's win, Villanova punched its ticket to the NCAA tournament for the ninth straight year, excluding the 2019-20 season when no postseason was held because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Wildcats are looking for their first national title since 2018 and third since 2016.