OMAHA, Neb. (Interstat) — Villanova built a commanding early lead and withstood a second-half surge to defeat Creighton 80-69 in a Big East men’s basketball game Saturday at a sold-out CenturyLink Center.

The Wildcats, led by Duke Brennan’s 21 points and 12 rebounds, opened a 14-point halftime advantage by holding the Bluejays to 27 first-half points. Creighton outscored Villanova 42-39 after halftime but never closed the gap to single digits. Tyler Perkins added 17 points and 11 rebounds for Villanova, which improved to 20-5. Josh Dix scored 14 points for Creighton, which fell to 13-13.