Playing in Paradise looks good on Villanova, who knocks off Texas Tech in the Bahamas

In preparation for Thanksgiving, Villanova didn’t need a turkey baster — it needed a win.

Fortunately, head coach Kyle Neptune and his Wildcats got just that with an 85-69 victory over Texas Tech in their opening game of the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament at the Atlantis Bahamas resort.

Senior forward Eric Dixon led Villanova with 19 points and six rebounds. While the Wildcats shot just 43.1% from the field, including 37.5% from behind the arc, Dixon’s dominance allowed the Wildcats to advance to the semifinals.

Next up, Villanova (4-1) will now play No. 14 North Carolina in the semifinal game on Thursday (2:30 p.m., ESPN). The Tar Heels are 4-0 after picking up their fourth win against Northern Iowa, 91-69, in their first-round game.

Last season, Dixon led the Wildcats in points, scoring 15.4 per game, with graduate guard Justin Moore averaging 13.5. While Moore has upheld his standard and came into the game averaging 16 points, Dixon struggled, with just 8.5 points per game entering Wednesday.

Playing in Paradise seemed to fix Dixon’s shooting slump, however. Moore also had his usual standout performance for the Wildcats, adding on 18 points and six rebounds to the win. Moore and Dixon now average 16.4 and 10.6 points, respectively.

Combined, both Wildcats went 9-for-10 from the foul line to contribute to Villanova’s 81.3% free-throw percentage.

Pop Isaacs (16 points) and Joe Toussaint (15 points, eight assists) led the way for Texas Tech.

With four lead changes in the first 11 minutes, neither team seemed to take control in the first half. However, after a Dixon three-pointer made it a one-point game, Texas Tech (3-1) committed two fouls and two turnovers in 1 minute, 5 seconds, which shifted momentum in favor of the Wildcats.

Sophomore guard Brendan Hausen then sank his two free throws, and Moore hit a jumper before Dixon’s steal led to a monster three-pointer from Moore, which put the Wildcats up 26-20 and forced the Red Raiders to take a timeout.

While Villanova struggled to control the first-half tempo, it still went into the locker room up eight.

After an 9-0 second-half scoring run by Texas Tech cut the Wildcats’ lead to three with 10:41 left.

But this was the only glimmer of hope for the Red Raiders, as Villanova snapped its nearly three-minute scoring drought with jumper from junior guard Jordan Longino.

From there, the Wildcats extended their lead to double digits less than a minute after Texas Tech’s scoring run and maintained their lead for a smooth second-half finish and a ticket to the semifinals.

This is Villanova’s third appearance in The Battle 4 Atlantis. The Wildcats won the tournament in 2013 and 2017, making them just the second team to win two titles in the Bahamas — Baylor won in 2016 and 2021.

In the 2017 installment, Villanova beat Northern Iowa, 64-50. It was memorable, considering the Wildcats won their third national championship that season.