West Virginia Mountaineers vs Villanova Wildcats Match Player Stats On Mar 23, 2018

Omari Spellman added 18 points, Mikal Bridges scored 16 and Eric Paschall had 14 for the top-seeded Wildcats, who improved to 33-4 and will play in the Elite Eight on Sunday.

Villanova will face third-seeded Texas Tech with a chance to advance to the Final Four for the second time in the last three seasons. The Wildcats won the national championship in 2016. The Red Raiders beat second-seeded Purdue 78-65 on Friday.

Villanova hit 13 of 24 shots from beyond the 3-point arc.

Daxter Miles Jr. led fifth-seeded West Virginia (26-11) with 16 points before fouling out while Sagaba Konate and Jevon Carter added 12 apiece. Esa Ahmad contributed 11 and Teddy Allen had 10.

Carter capped an 8-0 run with a short baseline jumper to put West Virginia ahead 50-47 early in the second half. Ahmad followed with a layup on the next possession for a 52-47 advantage, the Mountaineers' largest lead.

The Wildcats responded with the next five points to tie the game.

West Virginia kept up with its relentless pressure and bolted to a 60-54 lead when Carter hit a layup with 11:04 remaining.

Villanova responded to tie the game at 60 as Brunson scored four points and Paschall added two free throws.

Bridges then knocked down a 3-pointer from the baseline and Spellman grabbed an offensive rebound and threw down a two-handed dunk, capping an 11-0 Villanova run that gave the Wildcats a 65-60 lead with 8:59 left.

Brunson later found Spellman for a deep trey, and Villanova pulled ahead 71-64. On the next possession, Paschall exploded to the basket for a dunk that gave the Wildcats a 73-64 advantage.

Brunson's step-back 3-pointer pushed the lead to 76-66 with 5:20 left.

Late in the first half, Brunson scored 11 consecutive points to give Villanova a 37-35 lead.

After struggling with West Virginia's press, which caused nine first-half turnovers, the Wildcats had a late surge and went into the locker room with a 44-42 lead.

Brunson led all scorers with 16 first-half points.

The Mountaineers shot 48 percent in the first half, but only made 4 of 14 shots from beyond the 3-point arc.

Overall, Villanova outshot West Virginia from the floor, 50 percent to 38.6 percent.

--Field Level Media