No. 3 Villanova 63, Providence 61: Ryan Arcidiacono overcame a sub-par performance by hitting two free throws with 3.1 seconds to play as the top-seeded Wildcats advanced in the Big East Conference tournament at New York's Madison Square Garden.

Josh Hart poured in 18 points off the bench as Villanova (31-2) won its school-record 14th consecutive game to advance to Saturday night's conference title game against sixth-seeded Xavier. Daniel Ochefu added 15 points and 13 rebounds and Darrun Hilliard II scored 12 for the Wildcats, who beat the Friars for the third time this season while also setting a school mark for wins in a season.

Kris Dunn nearly had a triple-double with 22 points, nine assists and seven rebounds for fourth-seeded Providence (22-11), which erased a 13-point lead in the second half. Ben Bentil contributed 12 points and 10 boards but leading scorer LaDontae Henton was limited to nine points on 2-of-9 shooting for the defending tournament champions.

A 3-pointer by Jalen Lindsey and a pair of free throws had the Friars within 56-54 with 2:13 remaining but Hart buried a 3-pointer and a jumper by Hilliard made it 61-56 with 67 seconds left. Providence rallied as Dunn drove for a layup with 16.5 seconds to play before Lindsey stole the inbounds pass and Dunn scored inside to tie it at 61-61 with 12.4 seconds left, but Arcidiacono was fouled driving to the hoop and sealed it.

Hilliard scored nine early points before Hart came off the bench to spark an 8-0 burst as the Wildcats surged ahead 31-20, but Providence closed the half on an 8-2 run to make it 33-28. Villanova used an 11-1 burst to open its biggest lead at 47-34, but Carson Desrosiers converted a three-point play and Lindsey hit from long range in a 10-0 run to cut the deficit to 47-44 with 8:53 to play.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Ochefu registered his seventh double-double of the season but only his second in the past 15 games. ... Henton remains four points shy of tying Jimmy Walker (2,045) for second place on the school's career scoring list. ... Hart finished 3-of-5 from 3-point range and is 11-of-18 from distance over the past three games.