BRYN MAWR, Pa. (Interstat) — Villanova used a dominant defensive performance to defeat Xavier 67-50 in a women’s basketball game Thursday night. The Wildcats forced 19 turnovers, converting them into 33 points, to pull away at The Pavilion. Villanova built a 33-20 halftime lead and maintained control throughout, despite 16 points each from Xavier’s Mariyah Noel and Savannah White. Kelsey Joens led Villanova with 18 points, including four 3-pointers, as the Wildcats hit 15 from beyond the arc. Jasmine Bascoe added 15 points and seven assists for Villanova, which improved to 13-3. Xavier, which fell to 9-7, shot just 42.9% from the free-throw line. The Musketeers’ 19 turnovers offset their 52.4% shooting from the field.

BRYN MAWR, Pa. (Interstat) — A dominant defensive performance fueled by relentless perimeter pressure propelled the Villanova Wildcats to a decisive 67-50 victory over the Xavier Musketeers in a Big East women’s basketball game Thursday afternoon at The Pavilion. The Wildcats, improving to 13-3 overall, leveraged a season-high 15 three-pointers and a staggering 33 points off turnovers to overwhelm the Musketeers before an announced crowd of 1,511. Xavier fell to 9-7 with the loss. The game’s defining stretch came not from a singular run, but from a sustained, smothering defensive effort that began from the opening tip. Villanova’s active hands and disciplined rotations forced Xavier into 19 turnovers, which the Wildcats converted into 33 points. Conversely, Villanova committed only 11 turnovers, leading to just 16 points for Xavier. This 17-point disparity in points off turnovers proved to be the central narrative of the contest. Villanova’s Jasmine Bascoe, a guard from Milton, Canada, orchestrated the victory with 15 points, seven assists and four rebounds, but her impact was most felt defensively as part of a unit that tallied 13 steals. Kelsey Joens of Iowa City led all scorers with 18 points, connecting on 6-of-13 shooting from beyond the arc. The Wildcats shot 15 for 32 from three-point range overall, a 46.9% clip that stretched the Xavier defense beyond its breaking point. Xavier, which struggled to find any offensive rhythm, was led by the duo of Mariyah Noel from Kansas City, Kansas, and Savannah White of Saint Paul, Minnesota, who each scored 16 points. Noel added six rebounds and seven assists, while White contributed five rebounds and four blocks. Their efforts, however, were consistently undermined by Villanova’s defensive pressure and the Musketeers’ own inefficiency, managing an offensive rating of just 78.6 points per 100 possessions. The Wildcats established control early, closing the first quarter on a 7-0 burst, capped by a Kelsey Joens three-pointer just before the buzzer, to take a 17-11 lead. They extended that lead to 33-20 by halftime, as Xavier managed only nine points in the second quarter on 3-of-13 shooting. Any hope of a Xavier comeback was extinguished in the third quarter. After the Musketeers cut the deficit to 35-29 on a White layup with 7:51 left, Villanova responded with a critical 7-0 spurt. The sequence was emblematic of the night: a Denae Carter steal led to a Joens three-pointer, and after a Xavier miss, Carter found Joens for another three, pushing the lead back to 13 points. Xavier would get no closer than nine points the rest of the way. Villanova’s balance was key. Brynn McCurry of Sparta, New Jersey, posted a double-double with 10 points and seven rebounds, while Denae Carter of Philadelphia provided six points, five rebounds, three assists and two blocks. MD Ntambue of Montreal added seven points off the bench. Xavier’s interior defense showed flashes, outblocking Villanova 5-3 and scoring 24 points in the paint to Villanova’s 20. But the Musketeers’ 4-for-13 shooting from three-point range and 10-for-16 performance from the free-throw line left them unable to capitalize on their few advantages. The victory keeps Villanova near the top of the Big East standings as they prepare for a road test at Providence on Sunday. Xavier, which had won two of its last three, looks to regroup at home against DePaul on Tuesday. The two teams are scheduled to meet again in Cincinnati on Feb. 11.

Preview: Xavier Visits No. -- Villanova in Big East Women’s Basketball Clash BRYN MAWR, Pa. (Interstat) — The surging Villanova Wildcats look to rebound from a rare setback when they host the Xavier Musketeers in a Big East women’s basketball matchup on Thursday night. Villanova (12-3 overall) saw a five-game winning streak snapped in an 85-69 road loss at Marquette on Sunday. Prior to that, the Wildcats had been dominant in conference play, winning their first four Big East games by an average of 26.3 points. They are 7-1 at The Pavilion this season. Xavier (9-6) arrives after a nail-biting 52-51 road victory at Georgetown, also on Sunday. The Musketeers have alternated wins and losses over their past six games and are seeking their first consecutive victories since late November. The game features a compelling backcourt matchup. Xavier is led by guard Meri Kanerva, who is averaging 11.4 points and 6.6 assists per game. She logged 40 minutes and dished seven assists in the win at Georgetown. Villanova counters with guard Dani Ceseretti, who posted 12 points, five rebounds and four assists against Marquette. For Xavier to pull the upset, they will need another strong performance from forward Savannah White, who recorded a double-double with seven points and 11 rebounds against the Hoyas. Villanova’s depth has been a strength, with Jasmine Bascoe (20 points vs. Marquette) and Kennedy Henry (15 points) providing consistent scoring support. Villanova won both meetings last season by double digits. The Wildcats’ potent offense, which averages 75.1 points per game, will test a Xavier defense that has allowed 62.1 points per contest. This is the first of two scheduled meetings this season. The teams will meet again at Xavier on Feb. 11. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. EST at The Pavilion on the campus of Bryn Mawr College.