Villanova women advance to Big East semifinals with a 76-52 win over St. John’s

UNCASVILLE, Conn. — The Villanova women’s basketball team made a statement with a 76-52 wire-to-wire quarterfinals rout of St. John’s at Mohegan Sun Arena on Saturday.

“This is March: you either win or go home,” graduate student forward Brianna Herlihy said.

Herlihy had a career game with her sixth double-double of the season, recording 16 points and 17 rebounds. With the win, the Wildcats (21–7, 15–4 Big East) advanced to the semifinals, the first time they’ve achieved back-to-back semifinal appearances since 2002-03.

Big East Player of the Year Maddy Siegrist led all scorers with 24 points, as four Wildcats posted double-digit points. Guard Lucy Olsen hit for 13 points and was 4-for-9 from three-point range. Forward Lior Garzon chipped in 15 on 6-of-14 shooting.

Villanova entered the tournament as the No. 2 seed, the Wildcats’ highest seeding since 2016. The last time Villanova and St. John’s met in postseason play, St. John’s took down the Wildcats, 56–40, in the 2017 quarterfinals.

On Saturday, however, Villanova stifled the Red Storm’s outside shooting. Guards Lelani Correa and Kadaja Bailey led St. John’s scoring with 15 and 19 points, respectively, but Villanova held St. John’s to 3-of-14 shooting from three. Herlihy’s 12 defensive rebounds limited any St. John’s second- chance scoring.

From the tip off, the Wildcats took just 14 seconds to score, off freshman Olsen’s three-pointer. The Red Storm (12–18, 7–12) couldn’t keep up with Villanova’s grit, allowing the Wildcats to keep their lead for the rest of the half.

“When we’re in the flow… it’s a higher percentage three for us,” said Wildcats head coach Denise Dillon, who was named Big East Coach of the Year earlier this week.

Villanova went on a 8–0 run over a 1-minute, 3-second span with the help of two layups from Siegrist and a tandem of a personal and technical foul on St. Johns. The Wildcats went 4-for-4 from the line, extending their lead to 44-30 entering halftime.

A 9–3 run in the third quarter continued to extend Villanova’s lead. Then a 6–2 run swelled that lead to a game-high 24 early in the fourth quarter, putting the game out of reach.

“Playing with Brianna is so much fun. She just brings it the whole time when she’s in, she just plays so hard,” Siegrist said.

Villanova will face sixth-seeded Seton Hall, which edged No. 3 Creighton, 66-65, on Sunday at 5:30 p.m.