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College basketball preview: Villanova-St. John's

The top-ranked Wildcats will play struggling St. John's on Saturday at Madison Square Garden.

Coach Chris Mullin will try to lead St. John’s past Villanova for the first time since February 2011.
Coach Chris Mullin will try to lead St. John’s past Villanova for the first time since February 2011.Read moreAdam Hunger / AP

Villanova at St. John’s

Saturday, 8 p.m., at Madison Square Garden

TV: Fox Business Channel

Radio: 610 WTEL-AM

Livestream: villanova.com/collegesportslive/

Coaches: Jay Wright, 18th year at Villanova (523-247, 401-162 at VU); Chris Mullin, third year at St. John's (32-50).

Series: St. John's leads, 59-46.

Last meeting:  Donte DiVincenzo scored 25 as the Wildcats won, 108-67, at MSG in the quarterfinals of the 2017 Big East Tournament.

The latest: Back at No. 1, the Wildcats (15-1, 3-1) played their most complete game of the season in an 89-65 win over 10th-ranked Xavier on Wednesday night. Phil Booth scored a career-high 21 points, and Player of the Year candidate Jalen Brunson added 17. In four Big East games, Booth has 18 assists and just two turnovers. Freshman Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree has made his last 13 field-goal attempts. St. John's (10-7, 0-5) lost,  69-66, to Georgetown on Tuesday and dropped to 0-5 in the Big East for the third straight season under Mullin. Sophomore guard Marcus LoVett, who had averaged 14.9 points, is out for the season with an injury. St. John's has not beaten Villanova since February 2011, 15 straight losses.