Villanova vs. Xavier: Score and Reaction from 2017 Regular Season

Two hours before the Villanova Wildcats (24-2, 11-2) tipped off against the Xavier Musketeers (18-7, 8-4) at Cintas Center on Saturday afternoon, they were named the No. 1 overall seed in a preliminary NCAA tournament bracket released by the men's basketball selection committee. 

Once the proceedings got underway, the defending national champions validated that status with a 73-57 drubbing of the 24th-ranked Musketeers. 

Jalen Brunson paced Villanova's vaunted offense with 17 points and seven assists, while Kris Jenkins poured in 12 points on 4-of-7 shooting from three. 

That performance—which included a big triple from way downtown in the second half, as Fox Sports documented—was encouraging considering Jenkins hadn't topped 10 points in four of his last five outings: 

Redshirt freshman Donte DiVincenzo added 17 points (5-of-7 shooting) off the bench, and those numbers kept a key trend alive, according to Scout.com's Evan Daniels: 

Josh Hart (11 points) and Mikal Bridges (10 points) also finished in double figures, and Bleacher Report's C.J. Moore was blown away by Villanova's collective composure and smooth demeanor that appeared to permeate through the offense: 

The same couldn't be said of Xavier. 

With point guard Edmond Sumner (torn ACL) out for the season, the Musketeers were already at a disadvantage in terms of star power. 

Thus, it was especially bad news when Trevon Bluiett (zero points) came up gimpy midway through the first half with an apparent right ankle injury. Xavier's leading scorer proceeded to exit for a few minutes, which opened the door for Villanova to seize control with a 9-0 spurt. 

But even when he returned, Bluiett didn't look himself, as Yahoo Sports' Pat Forde observed: 

The Musketeers entered halftime down 12 as shots repeatedly fell short, and it would have been worse if they hadn't controlled the boards.

With Villanova big man Darryl Reynolds (ribs) absent, Xavier controlled the glass to the tune of a 19-13 edge in the first half, including a 9-3 advantage on the offensive end. 

Thanks to that determined disposition in the rebounding department, Xavier cut in to the Wildcats' lead and reduced the deficit to as few as seven against the reigning national champs' stingy defense. 

However, the Musketeers didn't have enough firepower to keep pace later. 

Hart, Brunson, Jenkins and DiVincenzo were too hot from beyond the arc, and they made Xavier pay after Musketeers head coach Chris Mack stressed the importance of limiting clean looks from distance, per the Cincinnati Enquirer's Patrick Brennan: 

Now winners of five straight, the Wildcats will set their sights on a sixth consecutive win on the road Monday against the DePaul Blue Demons.  

The Musketeers, however, will be off until Wednesday, when they will attempt to get back on track with a triumph over the Providence Friars. 

Postgame Reaction

After the win, Villanova head coach Jay Wright spoke to Fox's Shannon Spake about hitting a personal milestone: 

"This league is becoming a war of attrition," Wright later told reporters, per Reuters' Jeff Wallner. "I feel bad for Chris (Mack) with Sumner and now Bluiett out."

Speaking of Mack, Xavier's head coach later told reporters that Bluiett did, in fact, tweak his ankle: "I didn't want to put a guy out there playing on one leg," he said, per Wallner. 

However, Mack was ultimately encouraged by his team's effort despite being down two studs. 

"Our effort was really, really good and it didn't waver," he said, per WCPO.com's Shannon Russell. "But they're really good."