VILLANOVA, Pa.—For so long they played without fear.

The Marquette players had every reason not to do so. The Pavilion, No. 4 Villanova's claustrophobic cavern of noise, can instill self-doubt in the most experienced of teams, let alone one which starts two freshmen guards.

But the Golden Eagles had countered every run the Wildcats had made in the second half on Saturday. So when Jerel McNeal held the ball in the backcourt after Villanova had cut the deficit to 63-59 with less than three minutes left, it was time for Marquette to extend its lead once again.

"We're a fearless team," said Marquette freshman Dominic James, who had 15 points. "We got a lot of poise … I felt like we were ready for it, but we could have done a better job with their pressure defense."

The Golden Eagles (16-7, 6-4 Big East) committed 25 turnovers, but the costliest one of all was a result of blind chance, not carelessness.

McNeal slipped at the top of the key and lost the ball. Villanova's Allan Ray coasted in for a layup. Then the fear took its tool.

Villanova (17-2, 8-1), which overcame cold shooting and poor shot selection to mount a late surge and pull out a 72-67 victory, now smelled blood and increased the intensity on its press when McNeal received the inbound pass.

The freshman's subsequent nervous, wayward pass sailed over the head of Joe Chapman. Villanova gathered the ball before Ray buried a three-pointer with 1:53 left to put the Wildcats up 64-63 — their first lead since midway through the first half.

Villanova led 68-63 before James and McNeal, who added 14 points and eight rebounds, scored quick layups with under a minute left. After two Ray free throws, Steve Novak missed a three-pointer at the top of the key with eight seconds left that would have tied the game.

"As far as the end of the game, we got every look that we wanted," said Marquette coach Tom Crean. "Two weeks ago (Novak) hit a shot with a second to go to win the game. Today he took a shot from a different place, and it just didn't go down."

After a cold first half, Novak's shots were dropping in the second period. The senior, whose last-second heroics beat Notre Dame on Jan. 20, hit four three-pointers down the stretch and scored a team-high 18 points.

Ray led the Wildcats with 28 points and compensated brilliantly for his teammates' shooting woes.

"It was not frustration at all," said Villanova senior Randy Foye, who toiled for each of his 24 points due to McNeal's clinging defense. "We just knew we were shooters who were going to keep taking shots. And if they fell, they fell. If they missed, they missed."

Villanova was 11-for-46 from the field (23.9 percent) at one point during the second half and finished at 31.8 percent for the game. Foye and backcourt teammates Mike Nardi and Kyle Lowry combined to shoot 9-of-37 from the field.

"We struggled, and a lot of that credit goes to Marquette," said Villanova coach Jay Wright. "But we finished it off, and that's a sign of a really good team."

Marquette, which twice had leads of 10 in the second half, has squandered second-half leads at Pittsburgh and Villanova in consecutive weeks — the mark of a confident young team that occasionally relapses into hesitant inexperience.