In a Big East classic, UConn rallies past Villanova, 71-69

Seeing there was time, Collin Gillespie drove an extra step, looking for the foul, and a chance for the win. The whistle blew. A crazy ending? Sure, but not in Villanova’s favor. Charge on Gillespie, R.J. Cole, hero of the night, getting there for Connecticut to draw it. This game was that close, in doubt even after the whistle blew with a second left.

When Connecticut rejoined the Big East, this was what it was about, even for Villanova. The promise of a classic rivalry, delivered Tuesday night in Hartford, to that last second. Going in, No. 8 Villanova hadn’t lost to a team not named Marquette since Dec. 17, and had won five straight over UConn. Put X’s through both those marks, as the 21st-ranked Huskies scored five points in the final 20.9 seconds for a 71-69 Big East classic.

A Gillespie drive had produced two free throws for a lead with 93 seconds left. A Cole drive at the other end was denied by Brandon Slater. Then Slater drew a foul with 47 seconds left. His foul shot pushed Villanova’s lead to 69-65. Turnover at the other end.

Trying to seal it, Caleb Daniels missed the front end of a one-and-one, the first second-half free-throw miss by Villanova (21-7, 14-4 Big East) in 11 tries. Tyler Polley drained a three. Cole tied up Gillespie in the backcourt, giving UConn the ball, and Cole delivered with a drive and a hoop with 5.9 seconds left.

“Down the stretch, they made the plays, we didn’t make the plays,” said Villanova coach Jay Wright. “It was that close.”

Gillespie finished with 17 points and Slater added 15 for the Wildcats.

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Except it didn’t have Connecticut coach Dan Hurley by the end. Hurley got a quick and surprising technical with just under five minutes left for protesting a lack of a foul call, hitting the scorer’s table. If the refs were lip-reading, they didn’t like what came out of his lips next, but that wasn’t the cause of the next technical. Hurley turned and threw his hands up to rev up the crowd, which isn’t a new thing for him — four big waves this time. Let’s assume the second technical and automatic ejection were more like a lifetime achievement award, since that move wouldn’t normally send Hurley to the locker room.

Count this as one possession: Gillespie made three of four free throws, then Jermaine Samuels hit a corner three, pushing Villanova into a 29-24 lead.

That didn’t last. Cole hit a quick three, UConn (20-7, 11-5) scored again off an offensive rebound, and quickly got the lead back, taking it into halftime, 33-32.

UConn got hot immediately after halftime but the Huskies couldn’t get fully away from Villanova, and most of the last 10 minutes, it was a single-possession game. A Samuels three-pointer with just under three minutes left gave Villanova a 65-61 lead. UConn answered right back inside. There were 18 lead changes by the end.

It wasn’t quite replicated, as UConn scored on eight of its first 11 possessions, getting the crowd right into things. Villanova wasn’t cold at the start, its first nine possessions, just had four makes in eight attempts, one offensive rebound, two turnovers.

The Wildcats had their best first-half stretch after the first media timeout, scoring seven straight for a 20-19 lead. Villanova’s early scoring was balanced, with four Wildcats starters hitting two field goals each and Daniels adding a three-pointer off the bench. At halftime, Samuels led the Wildcats with 10 points.

For UConn, Adama Sanogo scored 10 in the half, grabbing a couple of offensive rebounds, adding a couple of blocks and even a couple of assists.

The Huskies emphasized keeping their lengthy defenders on Gillespie and Justin Moore, which makes sense, even if that left Samuels a little extra space and Brandon Slater a lot of extra space four outside shots. They made just enough to keep things tight throughout. Sanogo led both teams with 20 points.

Villanova went into this one a game behind Providence in the loss column in the Big East standings, with the Friars headed to the Finneran Pavilion next week. A game back or two games back is pretty big at this late stage of the season. Make it two games back. Villanova is going to need some help to win the regular-season title.