Eric Dixon, Villanova aim to subdue UCF in Crown semis

Eric Dixon looks to lead Villanova to the finals of the College Basketball Crown when they face Darius Johnson and UCF on Saturday in Las Vegas.

Dixon became the Wildcats' all-time career scoring leader Thursday by recording 24 of his 28 points in the second half of a 60-59 victory over Southern California.

"Eric is trying to get people involved and to make the right play," said Villanova interim coach Mike Nardi. "That's just who he is. Once he gets it going, you try to move him around, put him in different spots. His teammates know where he likes the ball. Then, you let him go to work."

Dixon leads the nation with 23.1 points per game for the Wildcats (21-14).

Johnson, meanwhile, scored 31 points in UCF's 88-80 win over Big 12 counterpart Cincinnati on Thursday.

The Knights (18-16) opened the tournament on Tuesday with a 76-75 win over Oregon State, sealed in part thanks to Moustapha Thiam's blocked shot in the closing seconds.

The 7-foot-2 freshman center led the Big 12 with 2.6 blocks per game. He also is one of four Knights who averages double figures in points.

The leader of that quartet -- Keyshawn Hall at 18.8 points per game -- left the team entered the transfer portal before the College Basketball Crown. Hall committed earlier this week to another team playing on Saturday, Final Four participant Auburn.

In his absence, Johnson has picked up the slack. He matched Tyler Hendricks and Nils Machowski with 15 points against Oregon State.

"One of our biggest things this year has been maintaining and building leads," Johnson said Thursday. "Even when it got close, we got stops when we needed to and we executed offensively."

Sustained offensive execution will be key for a UCF team facing a Villanova defense holding opponents to 67.1 points per game this season.

--Field Level Media