Villanova’s rally at Saint Joseph’s in recent “Holy War” fails

The Villanova Wildcats made two second-half drives to save the game, but rival Saint Joseph’s had an answer for every Villanova run.

The Wildcats overcame a double-digit deficit in the second half and even led briefly, but failed to complete the comeback. The Hawks held off the Cats and won 83-76.

Saint Joseph’s earned its first win at Hagan Arena against Villanova since 2011. The game also marked Villanova’s fourth straight loss to a Big 5 opponent.

Since taking over as head coach of the Wildcats, Kyle Neptune is 3-5 overall against Big 5 teams.

It was a hard-fought battle for most of the game until the Hawks went on a 15-0 run midway through the second half.

Rasheer Fleming sparked a 15-0 run with a dunk, and Erik Reynolds started to step up after a slow start to keep the game going. Two Fleming free throws ended the run and gave Saint Joseph’s a 53-42 lead with 13:49 left in the game.

Villanova didn’t go away quietly, however. Eric Dixon sparked a 16-4 Wildcat run to close the gap. Wooga Poplar capped the surge by scoring seven straight points for the Cats, including a basket, to regain the lead and give Villanova a 60-59 lead with 6:38 left.

Xzayvier Brown struggled for much of the game, but found his game-winning touchdown in the final minutes of the game to help the Hawks storm back into the lead.

Villanova rallied once again and even made it to a one-possession game, but untimely turnovers, missed shots and defensive errors prevented them from overtaking the Hawks. The Wildcats gave up two wide-open dunks to Fleming in the final minute to secure the win for the Hawks.

Dixon led the Cats again. He scored a game-high 24 points and nine rebounds. Jhamir Brickus also impressed offensively, scoring 22 points on 9 of 15 shots. Wooga Poplar had 13 points on 3-of-11 shooting, with eight boards and three steals. Jordan Longino finished the game with 12 points, six rebounds and three assists.

The Wildcats shot 27 of 66 (40.9%) overall and 8 of 23 (34.8%) from distance. Once again, turnover was an issue. The Wildcats allowed 16 turnovers in the loss.

Villanova held a slim 37-36 halftime lead after Dixon and Brown traded three-pointers in the final seconds of the first half.

As for the Hawks, Fleming overcame early foul trouble to score a team-high 19 points on 7 of 9 shooting with two blocks. Brown had 18 points, six rebounds and 13 assists. Derek Simpson contributed six points, six rebounds, four assists, one steal and one block. Anthony Finkley went 4-6 from distance en route to a 12-point game. Judge Ajogbor added three blocks.

St. Joe’s shot 26 of 60 (43.3%) and 9 of 27 (33.3%) from three-point range.

The Wildcats fall to 2-2 overall. They return to action Friday night against Virginia in the Hall of Fame Series. Kickoff is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. ET at CFG Bank Arena in Baltimore.