College basketball will have a new No. 1 team when the polls come out next week. The Butler Bulldogs knocked off top-ranked Villanova, 66-58 at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indiana on Wednesday. This is the third time the No. 1 team has been defeated this season.
No. 1 Villanova loses 66-58 to Butler, snapping 20-game winning streak
Down goes No. 1 Villanova. Butler picked up a huge home win on Wednesday night.
Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images
Ricky O'Donnell has covered basketball at all levels for more than a decade at SB Nation. He’s currently the Associate Director of Programming.
This is a season-defining win for No. 18 Butler after a loss at St. John’s last week. The Bulldogs experienced some terrifying plane trouble on their way home from that game. The plane landed safely and Butler defeated Providence at home two days later.
Kethan Savage led the way for Butler with 13 points. This layup with under one minute left gave the Bulldogs the cushion they needed for the win.
Andrew Chrabascz added 13 points and Kelan Martin chipped in 12 points for Butler in the win.
This was the second win in school history for Butler against a No. 1 team in seven tries, and their first such victory at home. The other win against a top-ranked squad came over Indiana in 2012.
The loss snapped Villanova’s 20-game winning streak, and dropped the Wildcats (14-1) from the ranks of the unbeaten, a distinction now known by only two teams this season — Baylor (13-0) and Gonzaga (14-0).
Jalen Brunson was excellent for Villanova in the loss, finishing with 23 points.
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