Jermaine Samuels hit the game-winning 3-pointer with 20.5 seconds remaining to lift No. 18 Villanova past No. 1 Kansas 56-55 on Saturday in Philadelphia.
Samuels scored 15 points, Collin Gillespie added 12 and the Wildcats improved to 9-2 and defeated a No. 1 team for the seventh time in program history. Villanova made just 10 of 41 shots from beyond the 3-point arc.
Kansas became the fifth No. 1 team this season to be beaten, joining Michigan State, Kentucky, Duke and Louisville.
Devon Dotson scored 15 points, Udoka Azubuike had 12 points and 11 rebounds, and Ochai Agbaji had 11 points for the Jayhawks, who fell to 9-2 and had their nine-game winning streak snapped.
Dotson missed a runner in the lane at the buzzer.
Kansas went ahead 53-51 with 2:28 left as Dotson tossed a perfect pass to a cutting Agbaji. After an empty Villanova possession, Christian Braun scored in the paint for a 55-51 advantage with 1:49 left.
Gillespie stole the ball at midcourt and dribbled all the way in to get within 55-53 with 1:07 to go. After Samuels' 3-pointer, Dotson missed the front end of a 1-and-1 with 17.5 seconds left and Villanova then turned the ball over.
Villanova missed nine of its first 13 shots but trailed only 14-9 with 9:25 left in the first half.
Cole Swider and Justin Moore then drilled 3-pointers, the latter capping an 8-0 run and giving the Wildcats a 15-14 lead with 7:51 remaining.
Kansas' Marcus Garrett drove to the basket with 5:14 left and appeared to injure his right ankle. Garrett, who stayed down for several minutes before being helped off the court and to the locker room, was ruled out for the game at halftime.
The game was tied at 23 after a hard-fought, defensive battle in the first half. The Jayhawks' 23 points were their fewest in any half all season.
After a couple of difficult baskets in the paint by Azubuike, the Wildcats turned up their defensive aggression and went on a 10-0 run to take a 35-27 advantage with 14:52 left.
Shortly after that, Dotson knocked down a pair of free throws, Agbaji added a dunk and the Jayhawks used a 6-0 run to tie the game at 37 with 10:39 left.
--Field Level Media
Kansas | Villanova | |
Devon Dotson 15 | Scoring | Jermaine Samuels 15 |
Ochai Agbaji 4 | Assists | Saddiq Bey 5 |
Udoka Azubuike 11 | Rebounds | Jeremiah Robinson-Earl 9 |
Devon Dotson 4 | Free Throws Made | Jeremiah Robinson-Earl 2 |
Ochai Agbaji 3 | Steals | Collin Gillespie 2 |
Udoka Azubuike 2 | Blocks | N/A |