Ranked teams meet as No. 17 Xavier hosts No. 14 Nova

Published Jan. 11, 2022 6:32 a.m. ET

Associated Press

No. 14 Villanova (11-4, 4-1) vs. No. 17 Xavier (12-2, 2-1)

Cintas Center, Cincinnati; Wednesday, 6:30 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Two ranked teams meet as No. 14 Villanova visits No. 17 Xavier in a Big East showdown. Villanova has three wins and three losses against ranked opponents this season, while Xavier has won one of its two games against ranked teams.

SAVVY SENIORS: Xavier's Paul Scruggs, Nate Johnson and Adam Kunkel have combined to score 42 percent of the team's points this season, including 40 percent of all Musketeers scoring over the last five games.

CREATING OFFENSE: Collin Gillespie has either made or assisted on 42 percent of all Villanova field goals over the last three games. The senior guard has 19 field goals and 11 assists in those games.

STREAK STATS: Xavier has won its last nine home games, scoring an average of 79.8 points while giving up 58.2.

ASSIST DISTRIBUTION: The Wildcats have recently gotten buckets via assists more often than the Musketeers. Xavier has 36 assists on 75 field goals (48 percent) across its past three matchups while Villanova has assists on 39 of 72 field goals (54.2 percent) during its past three games.

DID YOU KNOW: Xavier has attempted the second-most free throws among all Big East teams. The Musketeers have averaged 21.9 foul shots per game this season and 25.6 per game over their last five games.

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