Villanova 70, Rutgers 49: Maalik Wayns poured in a game-high 28 points, and Villanova rode a flurry at the beginning of the second half to a first-round win in Big East tournament action at Madison Square Garden in New York.

The 14th-seeded Wildcats (13-18) will face No. 6 seed South Florida in a second-round contest Wednesday night.

The Scarlet Knights (14-18) hit five 3-pointers during a 17-2 spurt that gave it a 34-26 advantage late in the first half, but Villanova promptly responded with an 11-0 blitz of its own, scoring the first seven points of the second half to take the lead for good, 39-36, with 17:29 to go.

Rutgers was unable to make another push, missing 22 of its 25 field-goal attempts in the second half.

Wayns got to the basket at will and turned in a 13-for-14 effort from the free-throw line. Villanova, which led the conference in foul shooting during the regular season, made 22 of 30 from the line while Rutgers hit just 9 of 17.

Eli Carter scored 23 points to lead the 11th-seeded Scarlet Knights, making three consecutive 3-point shots during his team's big first-half run.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Rutgers was 7 for 11 from 3-point range in the first half but just 6 of 19 on 2-point shots and 1 of 5 from the foul line ... Villanova was eliminated by South Florida in last year's Big East Tournament, 70-69, and the Bulls also swept a pair of meetings with the Wildcats this season ... Villanova is now 2-0 against Rutgers in Big East tournament play and 28-9 overall.