Villanova @ Creighton preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 6, 2019 ) Creighton 59, Villanova 66

After suffering their first Big East losses of the season, No. 16 Villanova and Creighton each aim to bounce back Tuesday when the teams collide on the Bluejays' home court. Creighton had won eight in a row before falling to Butler its last time out, while the Wildcats had a six-game winning streak snapped against Marquette.

"This league is going to be incredible," Villanova coach Jay Wright said after the loss to Marquette. "You're going to have to really be mentally tough this season. You can't let one game affect your performance in the next game." His team defeated Creighton in both meetings last season, but this version of the Bluejays already has posted wins against Texas Tech, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Arizona State and Marquette. Despite a quick start, Creighton finished with its second-lowest point total of the season (57) in the 14-point loss to Butler with 3-point shooting (4-of-22) being one of the primary reasons for the defeat. “We had our opportunity early,” Bluejays coach Greg McDermott said on his postgame radio interview. “The first 10 possessions, we only had one turnover. We had a lot of wide-open looks (that we missed). If we hit those and go up by eight or 10, it’s a different game because our defense was really good, especially early. It might have changed the complexion of the game.”

TIME: 9 p.m. ET. TV: Fox Sports 1

ABOUT VILLANOVA (10-3, 1-1 Big East): Prior to scoring seven, six and nine points over the last three games, Saddiq Bey had scored at least 13 points in six straight outings. Bey (14.2 points) is the team's second-leading scorer behind Collin Gillespie (14.3), who has drained multiple 3-pointers in nine of the last 10 games and leads the squad in made 3s with 28 on the season. Cole Swider has connected on 26 3-pointers and leads the squad in 3-point accuracy (46.4), and the sophomore knocked down 4-of-8 3s against Marquette to match Justin Moore (14 points) for the top spot on the team.

ABOUT CREIGHTON (12-3, 1-1): Marcus Zegarowski (15 points) led the team in scoring against Butler and has scored at least 14 points in 12 of the Bluejays' 15 games while increasing his average to 18.1 points per game. Ty-Shon Alexander chips in 16.4 points and a team-high 6.1 rebounds with 37 made 3-pointers, tied with Zegarowski for second on the squad behind Mitch Ballock (45). Ballock (12.6 points) has made just three field goals in 10 attempts over the last two outings in failing to reach double-digits in points for just the third and fourth times this season.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Ballock averages only one turnover every 37.8 minutes.

2. The Bluejays' bench combined for six points on 2-of-13 shooting against Butler.

3. Moore has registered double-figure points in six of the last seven outings.

PREDICTION: Creighton 87, Villanova 82