Julius Halaifonua achieved his first career double-double with 21 points and a personal-best 10 rebounds, leading 11th-seeded Georgetown to a commanding 78-64 upset victory over third-seeded Villanova in Thursday’s Big East tournament quarterfinal round.
The Hoyas (16-17) secured their first semifinal berth since their unexpected championship run in 2021 as an eighth seed. Georgetown’s next challenge will be second-seeded and sixth-ranked UConn, which dominated Xavier 93-68 earlier Thursday.
Contributing to Georgetown’s success, Jeremiah Williams finished with 14 points while Kayvaun Mulready also added 14, including a crucial eight consecutive points that helped the Hoyas build a commanding double-digit advantage in the second half. Malik Mack contributed 12 points despite struggling with 4-of-15 shooting, though he delivered a clutch three-pointer with 76 seconds remaining in the opening half to tie the game.
The Wildcats (24-8) saw their hopes of reaching the semifinals end, marking their continued absence from that stage since capturing the 2022 championship during Jay Wright’s farewell season. Duke Brennan paced Villanova with 14 points and six rebounds, while Tyler Perkins contributed 13 points and Bryce Lindsay added 11. However, promising freshman Acaden Lewis and reserve Devin Askew struggled significantly, combining for just 12 points on poor 5-of-21 shooting.
UConn 93, Xavier 68
Solo Ball’s 19-point performance powered the second-seeded Huskies to a dominant start-to-finish victory over 10th-seeded Xavier in the quarterfinals.
The Huskies (28-4) maintained double-digit leads for the game’s final 28 minutes and 35 seconds, extending their semifinal streak to six consecutive years since returning to the Big East in 2020-21. Tarris Reed contributed significantly with 17 points and a season-high 14 rebounds for his 10th double-double of the campaign.
Xavier’s Filip Borovicanin posted a career-best 22 points, but the Musketeers have now lost all three matchups against UConn this season by a total margin of 80 points. Roddie Anderson III added 15 points, while Tre Carroll endured a difficult outing, managing just 12 points on 2-of-10 shooting.
St. John’s 85, Providence 72
Zuby Ejiofor delivered 21 points, 10 rebounds and five assists as 13th-ranked St. John’s cruised past Providence in quarterfinal action.
The Big East Player of the Year honoree shot efficiently at 9-of-14 from the field and contributed three blocks, while three Red Storm teammates each scored 14 points: Oziyah Sellers, Bryce Hopkins and Ian Jackson. Top-seeded St. John’s (26-6) advances to face Seton Hall in Friday’s semifinals.
The Red Storm controlled the boards decisively, out-rebounding ninth-seeded Providence 51-30, including a dominant 18-4 advantage on offensive rebounds. Hopkins, a former Providence player, grabbed 13 total rebounds with six coming on the offensive end.
Seton Hall 72, Creighton 61
Adam “Budd” Clark posted 16 points, seven rebounds and six assists while Jacob Dar delivered a spectacular second-half performance to propel fourth-seeded Seton Hall past fifth-seeded Creighton.
After not seeing action in the first half, Dar erupted for a season-high 16 points and five rebounds in just 15 second-half minutes, helping the Pirates (21-11) maintain their slim NCAA Tournament aspirations.
Creighton (15-17) dropped below .500 for the first time since the 2014-15 season and will miss March Madness for the first time since 2019. Josh Dix topped all scorers with 22 points, Nik Graves added 15 points and five assists, and Austin Swartz chipped in 10 points for the Bluejays.
