INDIANAPOLIS -- With the outcome hanging in the balance Sunday night at Hinkle Fieldhouse, No. 11 Villanova asked its best player -- junior guard Josh Hart -- to win an important Big East showdown with No. 18 Butler.

That was exactly what Hart did, scoring 10 of the Wildcats' final 14 points in a 60-55, come-from-behind victory.

"At the end, I was just playing Villanova basketball, which is all about attention to detail," said Hart, who made 10 of 15 field-goal attempts and finished with 22 points and 11 rebounds.

"We had the ball in (point guard) Ryan Arcidiacono's hands -- he is our rock -- and my teammates did a great job finding me when I was open."

Hart had 14 second-half points for the Wildcats (14-2, 4-0 Big East). Villanova outscored the Bulldogs 39-28 in the final 20 minutes, limiting Butler to 37.5 percent second-half shooting (9-for-24).

Butler guard Jordan Gathers had a chance to tie it at 58 with 13 seconds remaining, but his 3-pointer from the right corner was long. Villanova forward Daniel Ochefu iced the outcome by sinking two free throws with 11.1 seconds to play.

Guard Roosevelt Jones led Butler (12-4, 1-3) with 20 points, and guard Kellen Dunham added 13.

"This was just another example of how good this league is in that it is always about the next game," Villanova coach Jay Wright said. "Butler is as good as anyone in this league. This game came down to defense, which is at the core of each of these teams. I loved it. We really faced a great player tonight in Jones. He played a hell of a game."

Consecutive layups from Jones pulled the Bulldogs within 54-49 with 2:34 to go after Hart scored eight consecutive points to give the Wildcats a 54-45 lead.

Two Dunham free throws cut the Villanova lead to 46-45 with 6:23 to play, but consecutive Hart layups gave the Wildcats a 50-45 advantage with 5:24 to go.

Another Hart layup with 4:06 remaining pushed the lead to 52-45.

Villanova built a 42-34 advantage with 10:27 to play, but a three-point play from forward Tyler Wideman and two layups from Jones pulled Butler within 42-41 with 8:21 left, prompting a Wildcats timeout.

With Butler leading 31-24 after a Dunham 3-pointer, Villanova began a 14-0 run, seizing a 38-31 lead with 13:27 remaining on forward Darryl Reynolds' layup.

"Villanova made enough plays and played with poise throughout," Butler coach Chris Holtmann said. "We played good defense in spurts, but it was not good enough to beat a really good team. I guess I continue to be frustrated by our lack of ball movement.

"We need to move the ball better. Villanova makes it tough, because they are very good defensively and very good at switching on the ball and off the ball."

Jones said the 14-0 Villanova run early in the second half should not have happened.

"We have had some lapses to start the second halves, and that's my fault, because I am a leader, and I have to be sure we have better starts to the second half," Jones said.

Butler's three Big East losses have come at the hands of three teams ranked in the Top 15 -- Xavier, Providence and now Villanova.

"If something like this beats us down, we are not ready to play in the Big East," Holtmann said. "We have to get a lot better. We were more sound defensively today, but they still shot 50 percent (13-for-26) in the second half."

Villanova quickly erased a six-point halftime deficit, getting 3-pointers from Arcidiacono, guard Phil Booth and guard Mikal Bridges during the first 4:15 of the second half to seize a 32-31 lead.

Butler outscored Villanova 16-10 during the final 9:26 of the first half to lead 27-21.

Dunham had seven first-half points and Jones added six for the Bulldogs.

NOTES: Butler played its third Top 25 opponent in the past four games. ... Villanova improved to 6-0 all time against Butler. ... Villanova was the coaches' preseason pick to win the Big East, receiving nine of 10 votes. ... Four of the Wildcats' five starters were averaging in double figures, and F Kris Jenkins came in at 9.9 points per game. ... Despite a sprained left wrist (non-shooting hand), Butler senior G Roosevelt Jones (14.3 points per game) was in the starting lineup. ... The Bulldogs came in shooting 49.5 percent from the field, and the Wildcats were at 47.5 percent.