Villanova continues ‘growing up in front of everybody’s eyes’ with OT win at Xavier

Acaden Lewis did a little bit of everything to lift Villanova to a 92-89 overtime victory over Xavier in Cincinnati on Tuesday.

Lewis had 21 points, seven rebounds, seven assists, and four steals, including one that sealed the win in the final seconds of the game. Villanova (21-5, 12-3 Big East) improved to 7-1 on the road in the Big East.

“I think we’re just built for [overtime],” Lewis told reporters. “We’ve been on the road. We’ve had seven road wins after this game. So I think we’ve been through the fire. We’ve been in some far games. We played the first game of the year [against] BYU in Las Vegas. It was with no other games around. So, we’re used to it at this point. We’re growing up in front of everybody’s eyes. And I think we’re getting really good on the road for that reason.”

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Lewis is averaging 12.7 points and leads the Wildcats in assists (5.3).

Duke Brennan had 10 points and 13 rebounds for his 12th double-double of the season. He is two double-doubles shy of tying Michael Bradley’s single-season program record.

In overtime, Villanova outscored Xavier, 11-8, and outrebounded the Musketeers, 5-4. Lewis and Bryce Lindsay had nine of the 11 points.

Xavier (13-12, 5-9) opened the game on an 11-2 run that forced Villanova coach Kevin Willard to call a timeout. Willard took out Matt Hodge, Brennan, and Lindsay. He replaced them with Devin Askew, Malachi Palmer, and Braden Pierce.

Villanova quickly spun off a 17-7 run over the next six minutes to take a lead. It spun into a 28-13 run.

Askew scored back-to-back three-pointers during the run.

“Coming into the game, we didn’t get any stops,” Lewis told reporters. “Starting five was out there, kind of, lackadaisical. They were running the speed of the game kind of got to us. And we didn’t really respond. Chris [Jeffrey] came in, Dev [Askew] came in, a bunch of guys came in and just changed the whole game. Got more stops, got us in the rhythm. And then going back in and help guys that start to get into a rhythm as well. And I think [the starters] just kept that same pressure.”

After scoring double digits in 13 of his first 14 games of the season, Lindsay has struggled. He went from averaging 16.9 points over the first 14 games to just 6.4 over the last 10.

Against Xavier, Lindsay finished with 15 points, shooting 5-for-11 from the field and 4-for-8 from beyond the arc. It was his fourth double-digit performance in the last 11 games.

“There’s a reason he started,” Willard told reporters. “I have tremendous confidence in Bryce, and he’s been putting the work in. He’s just been in a little bit of a slump, and it’s good to see him get out of it.”

Lewis echoed Willard’s thoughts on Lindsay’s performance.

“That’s great to see,” Lewis told reporters. “I’m proud of [Lindsay]. It’s not easy to go through big slumps like this when you’re playing on national TV. And everyone expects so much out of you. So for him to just keep his head down, stick to it, and keep working ... I mean, that’s what happened.”

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Villanova returns home after two road games to face No. 5 UConn at the Xfinity Mobile Arena on Saturday (5:30 p.m., TruTV/TNT). UConn won 75-67 in overtime on Jan. 24 in Storrs, Conn.

The last time Villanova hosted UConn, it upset the No. 9 Huskies, 68-66, on Jan. 8, 2025.