VILLANOVA, Pa. – A 47-point second half and some defensive stops midway through the period helped No. 7/6 Villanova pull away from Saint Joseph's for an 88-68 victory at Finneran Pavilion Saturday night. Sophomore Jeremiah Robinson-Earl – playing with a protective mask after suffering a broken nose in Wednesday night's 85-66 win over Butler – scored 25 points, including 14 in the second half. Junior Caleb Daniels added 19 points and sophomore Justin Moore contributed 18 points for the Wildcats, who improved to 7-1 overall, 2-0 BIG EAST with their fifth consecutive triumph. Saint Joseph's fell to 0-4 overall, 0-0 Atlantic Ten, in this battle of Philadelphia Big Five rivals. The Wildcats connected on 17-fof-29 second half field goals (.607) after struggling to find the range in the first half (.417). "This was a very good game for us," stated Villanova head coach Jay Wright. "They are a very difficult team to guard. They are very unorthodox offensively with five guys out who can really shoot it. They cut hard and move well. "I thought we had a really good stretch in the second half where we defended them and that's what created the separation. They're going to be good and they're missing a couple of good players. They'll get healthy and be better. That's going to be a good win." The Wildcats built a 14-5 lead through first five minutes of action thanks to a sharp offensive attack. But the Hawks turned four straight defensive stops into a 10-0 run to take the lead at 15-14 with just more than 12 minutes to play in the period. A Cole Swider 3-pointer gave Nova back the lead 17-15 on the next possession. "They can do that to you because they play fast and can score quickly," Wright noted. After sinking five of their first nine, Villanova struggled to find an offensive flow, dropping in just 5-of-21 over the next 10 minutes of action. Saint Joseph's pulled to within 26-25 before the Wildcats responded with a 13-3 surge sparked by Jermaine Samuels, who provided five points in that stretch. At halftime, Villanova held a 41-33 lead over Saint Joseph's. Robinson-Earl supplied 11 points in the period while Samuels added nine points. Villanova offset a .417 first half field goal percentage by forcing seven Hawks turnovers, which resulted in a 9-0 edge in points off of turnovers. In the early stages of the second half, Robinson-Earl asserted himself as the offensive end. The sophomore scored 10 points in the first 8:29 of the period to help the Wildcats build a 62-50 lead over the Hawks. He explained after the game that this was the second time he had broken his nose. It also happened in the eighth grade. As luck would have it his mother, Katie Robinson, still had the mask he had donned back then and dropped it off at Villanova. It fit and he donned it in time for Friday's practice. "It's not too bad," he said. "You're focused on what you're doing and don't really pay that much attention to it while you're out there." Robinson-Earl also added seven rebounds to the cause as part of a 37- carom effort by the Wildcats. Wright also pointed to the efforts of Daniels and Moore. "They are two talented guards," said Wright. "Teams pay so much attention to Collin (Gillespie), as they did tonight, that it really frees Caleb and Justin up to make plays." Villanova is next slated to visit Marquette in a BIG EAST clash set for Wednesday night (FS1 and 95.7 Ben FM). That will be the Wildcats' final scheduled contest before Christmas Day.