Jeremiah Robinson-Earl had 25 points, seven rebounds and six assists to lift No. 7 Villanova past visiting Saint Joseph's 88-68 on Saturday.

Robinson-Earl was 8 of 14 from the field despite playing with a protective mask on a broken nose, which was suffered in Wednesday's win over Butler.

Caleb Daniels added 19 points, Justin Moore contributed 18 and Jermaine Samuels had 12 for the Wildcats, who improved to 7-1 overall after their fifth straight win. They also defeated the Hawks for the ninth consecutive time.

This game was originally scheduled for Nov. 30 but had to be rescheduled when St. Joe's had COVID-19 issues. When Villanova's game against No. 17 Virginia -- originally set for Saturday -- had to be postponed, the Hawks agreed to fill in for the matchup known as the "Holy War."

Taylor Funk and Jordan Hall led St. Joe's with 17 points apiece. Ryan Daly also had 11 for the Hawks, who fell to 0-4.

Collin Gillespie drove to the basket and hit a layup for a 19-15 Villanova lead with 10:25 remaining in the first half.

The Hawks stayed close and trailed 21-19 with 8:30 left after Hall dropped in a 15-foot jumper.

But the Wildcats responded with a 3-pointer by Moore and a tough basket in the lane by Daniels to go back ahead by seven.

St. Joe's closed within 26-25 after Funk knocked down a deep trey from the wing with 5:25 to go.

Villanova responded with a late 11-2 run before Daly finished with a three-point play with 2.8 seconds remaining. The Wildcats led 41-33 at halftime.

Hall made a trey early in the second half to close the Hawks within 46-39.

On Villanova's next possession, Samuels converted a three-point play for a 49-39 advantage with 17:20 left.

Robinson-Earl stayed hot and drained a 3-pointer from the baseline, Moore then added a jumper and the Wildcats pulled ahead 58-43 with 15:15 to go.

St. Joe's struggled offensively and soon fell behind by 20, 72-52 with 7:52 left.

--Field Level Media