National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Villanova 81, DePaul 64
When: 4:00 PM ET, Saturday, January 10, 2015
Where: The Pavilion, Villanova, Pennsylvania
Officials: # Jim Burr, # Pat Driscoll, # Matt Potter
Attendance: 6500

No. 6 Villanova 81, DePaul 64: Darrun Hilliard II and Ryan Arcidiacono combined for 35 points on 13-of-18 shooting as the Wildcats used a big first half to defeat the visiting Blue Demons.

Hilliard and Arcidiacono each knocked down four 3-pointers as Villanova (15-1, 3-1 Big East) went 13-of-29 from outside the arc as part of a 53.6 shooting performance. The Wildcats struggled through a bizarre 8-of-18 effort from the free-throw line, but finished with 23 assists - 16 more than the Blue Demons.

Tommy Hamilton IV had a team-high 12 points for DePaul (9-8, 3-1), which entered with a 3-0 record in the Big East for the first time since joining the conference in 2005-06. The Blue Demons received 39 points from their bench, which combined to shoot 12-of-22, while their starters struggled to the tune of 25 points on 8-of-27 shooting.

Villanova shot 62.1 percent in the first half - including 7-of-12 from outside the arc - and committed only two turnovers while forcing 10 miscues by DePaul. Arcidiacono made a jumper just before the halftime buzzer to give him 11 points, one more than Hilliard, who made all four of his first-half shot attempts as Villanova took a 45-24 lead.

The Wildcats dominated with their defense early in the second half, holding the Blue Demons without a field goal for about 8 1/2 minutes as their lead increased to 62-30 when Hilliard made a 3-pointer and a layup on back-to-back trips. Hilliard finished 8-of-12 from the field and 4-of-8 from 3-point range, while Arcidiacono was 5-of-6 overall, going 4-of-5 from long range.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Arcidiacono entered shooting 31.3 percent, including 2-of-12 in the last two games. ... Wildcats F Kris Jenkins had 10 points and seven boards off the bench. ... Hilliard had four of his team's seven steals.
Top Game Performances
 
DePaul   Villanova
Tommy Hamilton IV 12 Scoring Darrun Hilliard 21
Billy Garrett Jr. 3 Assists Dylan Ennis 7
Aaron Simpson 7 Rebounds Kris Jenkins 7
Tommy Hamilton IV 7 Free Throws Made JayVaughn Pinkston 3
Durrell McDonald 2 Steals Darrun Hilliard 4
Jamee Crockett 1 Blocks Darrun Hilliard 1
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
DePaul 64 39.2 6-16 18-21 7 26 3 7 15
Villanova 81 53.6 13-29 8-18 23 31 3 7 12