Villanova @ Butler preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 21, 2020 ) Butler 61, Villanova 76

Butler is going through a bit of a rough patch, while Big East rival Villanova is hoping to avoid a similar fate. The 12th-ranked Wildcats look to avoid suffering back-to-back losses for the first time this season Wednesday when they visit the 19th-ranked Bulldogs, who have dropped four of six.

One of those losses for Butler was a 15-point defeat to Villanova, which shot 21-of-23 from the foul line in the first matchup while riding Jermaine Samuels' 20 points to the quality victory. That was the Wildcats' fifth win in a seven-game winning streak that ended against Creighton the last time out, when Villanova suffered a 76-61 defeat. Butler fell at home to Providence in its last game and has only narrow wins against Marquette and Georgetown to show for its last six outings. "You've got to get stops to win," Bulldogs coach LaVall Jordan said after the Providence defeat. "We couldn't get enough stops down the stretch."

TIME: 6:30 p.m. ET. TV: Fox Sports 1

ABOUT VILLANOVA (17-4, 7-2 Big East): Collin Gillespie and Saddiq Bey combine to average just over 30 points per game for Villanova, which has received at least 13 3-pointers from each of its top six scorers. Bey (48) has a slight lead on Gillespie (47) in that category, although he holds a big advantage in 3-point percentage (45.3 to 36.2). Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, a freshman, has grabbed double-digit rebounds in six of the last nine games but is coming off an 0-for-7 shooting performance in the loss to Creighton.

ABOUT BUTLER (17-5, 5-4): The Bulldogs' top two scorers, Kamar Baldwin and Sean McDermott, combine for nearly 28 points per game while each shooting about 86 percent from the foul line. Baldwin is just 2-of-23 from the 3-point line over the previous six games, while McDermott followed up a 7-of-10 showing from downtown against Georgetown by going 0-of-2 from long range against Providence. Luwane Pipkins had a game-high 22 points against the Friars and is 17-of-17 from the foul line in the last two games.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Samuels, bothered by a foot injury, has just 12 points in the last two games, barely above his scoring average of 10.9 points.

2. Neither team shot well from the field in the first meeting. Villanova shot 37.7 percent while Butler was not much better at 40.6 percent.

3. Purdue G Aaron Thompson (6.6 points, 5.1 assists, 3.5 rebounds) has missed three straight games with a wrist injury.

PREDICTION: Villanova 67, Butler 62