NEW YORK — They had just let a 13-point lead disappear. Their leading scorer had fouled out. They had made five baskets in the last 14 minutes. For the first time all night, they didn't have the lead.
Villanova was in trouble.
Not that you could tell.
“Keeping our composure was big for us,” Josh Hart said. “We were up 13 at one point, but they’re a great team, they battled back, they battled to the end.
“But the one thing about this team. There’s never any panic. We came to the huddle during the timeout and there wasn’t any panic in anybody. It was just kind of, ‘OK, let’s go, there’s 12 seconds left, let’s make a play.’”
It could have been anybody, but this time it was junior guard Ryan Arcidiacono who made the play.
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With Villanova and Providence tied in their Big East Basketball tournament semifinal at Madison Square Garden, Arcidiacono drove the right baseline, got fouled — maybe? — by Providence’s Ben Bentil and hit both free throws with three seconds left to give Villanova a 63-61 lead.
Providence's LaDontae Henton's 30-footer for the win grazed off the right side of the rim, and No. 4 Villanova recorded its school-record 31st win, stayed on track for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament at 31-2 and advanced to its first Big East title game in 18 years (see Instant Replay).
The Wildcats will face No. 6 seed Xavier, a 65-63 winner over Georgetown later Friday night, at 8 p.m. Saturday.
Panic?
“No, not this group,” coach Jay Wright said. “And that's where the experience comes in. … We just say, ‘Attitude’ to each other. That's our word we know. ‘Next play, man. Next play.’
“They're more calm than I am. There was no doubt we were going to make a play there. The concern was going to be how much time was going to be left? And were we going to be able to get a stop?”
Villanova led, 47-34, with 13½ minutes left, but Providence, which played intense perimeter defense the entire game, tightened up even more and went on a 27-14 run and tied the game with 12 seconds left.
The Wildcats struggled in a lot of areas they usually excel in. They made only 7 of 23 threes. They were outrebounded by 12 (42-30). They made only 12 of 17 foul shots. They got a combined two baskets from starters JayVaughn Pinkston, Dylan Ennis and Arcidiacono.
But none of that mattered in those last 12 seconds.
“We just wanted a flat ball screen and for me to get it and make a play if everyone was guarded and take it to the rim or kick it out for a shooter,” Arcidiacono said. “But I was able to get a good screen off Daniel (Ochefu) and then I got fouled.”
Maybe he got fouled. Replays showed minimal contact, if any.
"I think we have the best officials in the country,” Providence coach Ed Cooley said. "I think the Big East has always had the best officials in the country.
"It doesn't come down to one play. I'm pretty sure everybody's going to ask me about that. At the end of the day, we have the best officials in the country. It was a 50‑50 call. It can go either way. It just didn't go our way tonight."
Was he fouled?
Arch wasn’t answering.
“I’m playing in the game, I don’t really know,” he said. “I can’t tell. I might have fallen on my own or I might have gotten fouled. But the ref calls and we play.”
Arcidiacono, co-Big East Player of the Year with Providence’s Kris Dunn, didn’t have his best game. He made just 1 of 5 shots, had just two assists and finished with five points.
But he wasn’t going to miss with the game on the line.
“It’s a situation I like,” he said. “No matter how I’m shooting in the game or anything, I feel comfortable in that situation.”
Once again, Hart was the star for Villanova. The conference's Sixth Man of the Year made 7 of 10 shots, was 3 for 5 from distance and finished with 18 points, three rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block.
Ochefu was huge as well, with 15 points and 13 boards.
But Arch, Pinkston and Ennis, three of Villanova’s best players, were a combined 2 for 13 from the field for 10 points.
“A couple of our guys were just not in sync tonight,” Wright said. “I don't know why. But we kept our composure and found a way to pull it out. That's what it takes. You've got to have guts. You've got to have a great resiliency to keep going.”
Dunn was magnificent for Providence, with 22 points, nine assists and seven turnovers.
He finished one assist and three rebounds shy of becoming the first player to record a triple double in the Big East tourney since Pitt’s Ricardo Greer had 23 points, 12 boards and 10 assists for Villanova in 1998.
“He is big-time,” Wright said. “We're pretty good defensively, and we're pretty good at pick‑and‑roll defense. I would say he's the toughest guy we've guarded.”
Saturday night, Villanova will play in its first Big East title game since it lost to Boston College, 70-58, in 1997.
A win would deliver the program’s first title since 1995, when the Wildcats beat UConn, 94-78.
Whatever happens, there’s a pretty chance Villanova will handle it with composure.
“Everybody on this team, the top seven guys, have all been in big games,” Wright said. “They've all played in the Big East tournament. They've all already lost in the Big East tournament. They've all already played in the NCAA tournament. They've all been a 1 seed in the Big East tournament.
“They've been through everything. That makes a huge difference. It's not something to be taken lightly.”