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VILLANOVA, Pa. -- Patrick Farrell missed his first free throw, and was off on his second. With only 19 seconds left in the game, the pressure was on for Farrell to make the third. The Villanova fans stood and cheered, and his teammates were stoked, yelling from the bench at the sophomore forward that the final one would be good. Farrell practiced his motion, took a breath, released, and watched as the basketball bounced twice around the rim before it plopped through the net. The eighth-ranked Wildcats went wild, celebrating Farrells first point of the season like a game-winner, and not just the finishing touches of a 67-48 victory over Butler on Wednesday night. For a team that played about 30 minutes of basketball to forget, that moment of team bonding for the deepest of deep reserves was one to remember. "I love that," coach Jay Wright said. "Thats whats special about this team." The Wildcats (25-3, 13-2 Big East) survived one of their worst halves of the season to win for the ninth time in 10 games. They needed almost the first 10 minutes of the game to score 10 points, missed eight of their first nine 3-point attempts, and didnt have a player reach double digits in scoring until midway through the second half. "Youve got to find a way to grind against them," Wright said. "Ill take that." Darrun Hilliard and James Bell led them with only 11 points each and the Wildcats put up the kind of numbers that usually lead to a loss. Not against the lowly Bulldogs (12-16, 2-14). Butler was even worse, shooting only 26 per cent in the first half, and the Bulldogs lost their seventh straight game. The Wildcats had a small hot streak at the end of the first half, making 5 of 6 shots, to build enough of a cushion and slowly pull away. The Wildcats fell shy of their 79.9 points per game average and played for about 35 minutes looking nothing like the team that has become one of the best in the Big East. Each team took turns trading clunkers and clangers in the first 10 minutes, one reason the Wildcats only led 10-4. With 6 minutes left in the half, the Bulldogs and Wildcats combined for only 26 points. And no, Bo Ryan wasnt coaching either of the teams. The Pavilion had all the atmosphere of an art museum on a sleepy Sunday morning, making this one feel more like a bad NBA preseason game than the final on-campus home game of the season. Wright did let senior reserves Nick McMahon and Tony Chennault start -- though McMahon played only 20 seconds before he was benched for Ryan Arcidiacono. McMahon couldnt have been worse than the rest of the offence. Villanova missed 12 of its first 15 shots, most from 3-point range. The Wildcats were determined to keep shooting 3s until they fell. Bell and Arcidiacono did hit two straight near the end of the first half for a 28-15 lead. Butlers Kellen Dunham buried the shot of the game with a high banker for 3 that cut it to 34-20 at halftime. He led Butler with 12 points. Hard to believe these teams needed overtime before Villanova pulled out the win in their first matchup. "We didnt have it tonight," coach Brandon Miller said. "When you keep getting the results you dont want, it weighs on you a little bit." Bell was the lone senior regular for the Wildcats and exchanged an emotional hug with Wright after he checked out for the final time. "It was tough," Bell said. "I dont see my mom that much. My dad works a lot, doesnt really get the chance to get down that much. That was probably the toughest part, seeing my mom crying. Other than that, it was time to play." Pick a stat in the first half and both teams probably wish the number could be wiped from the record book. Butler missed 8 of 10 3s; Nova missed 12 of 16. Butler had two starters who went scoreless in the half. The Wildcats shot 38 per cent from the field. But theres a reason the Wildcats have spent most of the season in the Top 25, and they showed why in the second half, going more than 25 minutes without a turnover during a 16-3 run that stretched the lead to 24 points. Butler scored six baskets in the first half, and didnt reach seven for a second-half total until there was 1:51 left. While the Wildcats are in the hunt for a top-three seed in the NCAA tournament, the Bulldogs need a shocking conference tournament championship to have any shot at returning for some March Madness. "This is a really good group to coach," Wright said. "Its been a pleasure all year. But it cant let that prevent us from driving them and them driving themselves to get better." Jake Cave Twins Jersey . It was just business as usual for the Thunder at home. Durant scored 32 points and the Thunder beat the Bulls 107-95 on Thursday night for their eighth straight win. Taylor Rogers Jersey . Will Venable and Ryan Ludwick drove in a run each for the Padres, who have taken six of their last seven contests and clinched their third straight series win after winning the first two in this set. Clayton Richard (4-9) allowed five hits and a pair of runs over seven innings, while fanning five. https://www.cheaptwins.com/832t-terry-steinbach-jersey-twins.html . -- Thirty years ago, the Detroit Pistons beat the Denver Nuggets 186-184 in triple overtime, a game that remains the highest scoring in NBA history. Ehire Adrianza Jersey .C. -- Kevin Harvick won his first career pole at Darlington Raceway on Friday as he looks to chase his first Southern 500. Jason Castro Twins Jersey . -- Two nights after losing to the Eastern Conferences worst team, the Phoenix Coyotes handled the best.ARLINGTON, Texas -- Kole Calhoun is embracing his role leading off for the Los Angeles Angels. And hes doing it well. Calhoun opened the game with a single and added a double before his tiebreaking, three-run homer that put the Angels ahead to stay in a 5-4 victory over the Texas Rangers on Friday night, when Garrett Richards worked into the eighth inning for his 13th win. "I want to be a catalyst for the offence, get on base, score some runs," Calhoun said by phone after initially making a quick exit from the clubhouse after the game. "I want so bad to get on base. ... Im having fun right there." Calhoun, who finished a triple shy of the cycle, was also hit by a pitch. He had multiple hits for the fifth time in his last six games. "He kind of flies under the radar, but I dont know if there are too many leadoff men as dynamic as Kole has been," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. Richards (13-4), who struck out seven without a walk in 7 1-3 innings, has won all four of his starts this season against Texas. The right-hander allowed two runs while scattering seven hits. "Hes been the same every time," said Adrian Beltre, who got three of his four hits off Richards. Angels catcher Chris Iannetta said Richards is "coming into his own." "Were just seeing him mature," Iannetta said. "Hes got great stuff, and hes starting to command it more." The Angels led for good after Calhouns 412-foot shot off Nick Martinez (2-9) into the second deck of seats in right field made it 4-1 in the fifth. Another run scored when Calhoun grounded into a double play in the seventh. Huston Street worked a perfect ninth for his eighth save in as many chances since the Angels acquired him. He has 11 scoreless innings in 11 games since the July 18 trade from San Diego, where he had 24 saves. Martinez struck out six while allowing four runs and six hits in six innings. "Just one unexecuted pitch, the one to Calhoun. He wanted to go down and away, and ended up pulling it across the middle of the plate," Texas manager Ron Washington said.dddddddddddd "Other than that, I thought he did a swell job." STRIKE THREE -- TIMES FOUR Josh Hamilton was 1 for 5 with four strikeouts, the hit an opposite-field bloop single off a pitcher making his major league debut. Hamilton is 5 for 38 (.132) over his last 10 games, and without an RBI in his last nine. "Were not seeing the aggressive Josh Hamilton that we saw when he played for Texas. Were not seeing that," Scioscia said. "Theres a lot of things that hes trying. Josh is working very hard, and nobody feels worse than Josh. We need him in the middle of our lineup doing what he can do." PRODUCTIVE BOTTOM David Freese and Iannetta, the bottom two batters in the Angels lineup, were a combined 5 for 7 with four runs. Calhouns 13th homer came after Freese and Iannetta started the fifth with consecutive singles. Freese has an 11-game hitting streak. ONE BAD NIGHT Angels reliever Kevin Jepsen has been spectacular lately, allowing only two earned runs over 39 innings in his previous 44 games. But the right-hander gave up two runs while getting only one out after relieving Richards in the eighth. Jepsen leads the majors with 54 scoreless appearances. TRAINERS ROOM Angels: Rookie RHP Mike Morin is expected to be activated from the 15-day disabled list Saturday, the first day the reliever is eligible to come back after missing 13 games with a cut on his left foot. Morin threw a scoreless inning for Class A Inland Empire on Thursday night before joining the team in Texas. He is 3-3 with a 2.36 ERA in 41 games. Rangers: Alex Rios was back in RF for the first time since Sunday, when he re-aggravated a right ankle sprain on a slide. After being the DH the previous two games, he did some early work in the field before starting in the outfield. UP NEXT Los Angeles goes for its ninth consecutive win against the Rangers, which would match its longest streak in the series, a mark set from 1985-86. Matt Shoemaker tries to become the Angels third 11-game winner in the middle game of the weekend set. Colby Lewis (8-9) starts for Texas. ' ' '