Well, it doesn’t get much better than that. Villanova put forth a nearly perfect performance on Sunday afternoon, defeating Butler 82-42 to win its sixth game in a row.

The Wildcats set the tone right from the start and never looked back. They hit six straight shots to open the game, jumping out to a 13-2 lead. It was a Jermaine Samuels layup with 14:21 to play in the first half that pushed the ‘Nova lead into double figures and Butler would never get within single digits again. By the time the first half buzzer sounded, Villanova had a comfortable 39-23 lead.

The ‘Cats were on fire in the first half, hitting 71.4% both overall and from 3 (15-21/5-7). Some simple math tells us that they hit 10-14 2-point tries after again making a concerted effort to go inside. On Sunday, there was a particular emphasis on getting Eric Dixon going and the big man responded by scoring six of Villanova’s first 13 points and eight first-half points. The ‘Cats also did a great job moving the ball, assisting on 12 of 15 made baskets, with Dixon helping out in that department as well as he dished out three first-half assists.

The defense was good as well as Butler shot just 38.5% overall and 33.3% from 3. ‘Nova build a 14-8 advantage on the boards and a 14-10 advantage in the paint.

The second half started much the same way as the first half did. Villanova scored the first 12 points of the period, holding Butler scoreless for the first 5:30, to push the lead to 28. The ‘Cats kept pouring it on, taking a 30-point lead with 13:13 to play. Villanova kept its foot on the gas, keeping the lead over 30 the rest of the way and taking their biggest lead of the game with 40 seconds left. That 40-point lead would end up being the final margin in an utterly dominant showing.

The ’Cats were able to continue doing the things that had made it so successful during the previous five wins. They won the rebounding battle 35-21. They won points in the paint 24-14. The won second-chance points 11-6. They shot 16-28 on 2-point attempts. They continued to play strong defense (30.8% shooting overall for Butler, 26.9% from 3, 9-26 from 2) and played with great physicality. They also happened to combined all of those things with elite 3-point shooting (63.2%) and the result was a blowout victory.

Collin Gillespie had 17 points, five rebounds and three assists. Justin Moore added 15 points, seven rebounds and five assists.

Dixon finished with 14 points, five rebounds and a career-high four assists, continuing his development this season. “It’s simple, basic, but not sexy just getting better every day and he’s been doing it since day one that he’s been here,” Jay Wright said of Dixon. “When he was a freshman and we wanted to redshirt him we said ‘he’s gonna be good’ cause we could just see every day he got a little bit better, a little bit better and he’s open to coaching, open to getting into better shape, open to conditioning, open to changing his diet. He’s done everything fast. And I really still believe this isn’t close to what he’s gonna be in the end.”

Jermaine Samuels rounded out the double figure scorers with 14 points and five rebounds.

It was perhaps Villanova’s most complete performance of the season so far, something that was encouraging to Wright. “We’ve been playing some good defense,” Wright said. “But early in the year we had lapses when we had leads. We’re starting to be able to do this for 40 minutes. Part of it is our starters really being locked in and then getting some depth so that when we make substitutions, we don’t lose that focus and I thought our guys off the bench did a really good job too.”

In addition to ‘Nova finding some consistency, Wright noted the importance of depth. It’s something fans have been clamoring for, and we’re starting to see it. Caleb Daniels continued to do a nice job off the bench, scoring eight points. Bryan Antoine continued his progression, chipping in three points, three rebounds and three assists while continuing to play strong defense. Jordan Longino played 17 minutes as he continues to work his way into the rotation.

“Today was good,” Wright said. “Today might have been one of our best defensive performances. We usually struggle with these guys, so it was a good performance for us defensively.”

It was a nearly flawless performance from the ‘Cats and it was great to see them continue to build on the things that have helped them be successful over the last five games heading into Sunday’s matchup. They’ll look to keep things rolling on Wednesday when they host Marquette.