Bey, Gillespie lead No. 12 Villanova past DePaul 91-71

CHICAGO - Saddiq Bey and Collin Gillespie each made five of Villanova's 18 3-pointers, and the 12th-ranked Wildcats used their long-range shooting to beat DePaul 91-71 on Wednesday night.

Villanova went 18 for 26 from deep in its 20th straight victory against DePaul. The Wildcats (20-6, 9-4 Big East) have made at least nine 3s in their last five games, including 17 during Sunday's 76-56 victory at Temple.

Bey finished with 22 points and seven assists. Gillespie and Justin Moore had 17 points apiece.

DePaul (13-13, 1-12) dropped its eighth straight game. The Blue Demons took the Wildcats to overtime in a 79-75 loss on Jan. 14, but the rematch was a blowout.

While Villanova was taking aim from deep, DePaul went 4 for 12 from 3-point range. Jalen Coleman-Lands scored 17 points, and Paul Reed finished with 13 points and seven rebounds.

During one telling sequence in the second half, Coleman-Lands made a nice steal before missing a jam for DePaul. Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree then slammed it home at the other end, giving Villanova its biggest lead of the game at 77-46 with 8:21 left.

Cosby-Roundtree finished with 11 points and seven rebounds.

The Wildcats grabbed control when they closed the first half with a 15-2 run for a 46-26 lead at the break. They had 10 3s at halftime; the Blue Demons had 10 made field goals.

BIG PICTURE

Villanova improved to 15-1 this season when it wins the rebounding battle. Cosby-Roundtree led the Wildcats to a 35-28 advantage on the glass.

DePaul dropped to 1-4 against ranked opponents this season. The Blue Demons got off to a great start this year, but the Big East slate has been a disaster.

UP NEXT

Villanova visits Xavier on Saturday. The Wildcats beat the Musketeers 68-62 in their Big East opener on Dec. 30.

DePaul hosts Georgetown on Saturday night. The Blue Demons lost 76-72 to the Hoyas on Feb. 8.