NEW YORK -- The latest buzzer-beater at the Big East tournament belongs to a Seton Hall reserve with a familiar last name. Sterling Gibbs hit a step-back jumper as time expired and Seton Hall stunned No. 3 Villanova 64-63 in a thrilling quarter-final Thursday, a loss that could cost the Wildcats a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. "Were really confident, honestly, especially after you beat the No. 3 team in the country," said Gibbs, a sophomore transfer from Texas whose brother was a Pittsburgh star. "We know if we can beat them, we can beat anyone. So were just up for the challenge." Eugene Teague had 19 points and 12 rebounds for the eighth-seeded Pirates (17-16), who advanced to the tournament semifinals for the first time in 13 years. They will play Friday night against No. 4 seed Providence, which held off fifth-seeded St. Johns 79-74. Josh Hart scored 18 to lead the top-seeded Wildcats (28-4), beaten only twice in 18 regular-season conference games while winning their first outright Big East title since 1982. Both losses were blowouts by Doug McDermott and Creighton. "Youve all heard me say this before: This was not about 1 seeds, 2 seeds. This was about we wanted to come to Madison Square Garden and win the Big East tournament. Winning the Big East tournament would mean much more to us than a 1 seed," Villanova coach Jay Wright said. "The NCAA tournament seedings, my belief is 1, 2, 3, it doesnt matter that much. Youre going to play great teams." Patrik Auda scored all 13 of his points in the first half for Seton Hall, a 10 1/2-point underdog. But the pesky Pirates, accustomed to playing close games, built a 15-point lead and recovered after Villanova spurted past them with a 16-0 run in the second half. It was Seton Halls first victory in five tries against top-seeded teams at the Big East tournament. "We never really got rattled," coach Kevin Willard said. "These guys have a lot of heart. They have a lot of character, and they deserve to win." Villanova took a 63-62 lead on Darrun Hilliards floater in the lane with 7.8 seconds to go. Seton Hall pushed the ball past halfcourt, then called timeout with 3.7 seconds left. With much of the crowd on its feet, Jaren Sina inbounded and Gibbs backed off Hilliard with a hard step back, draining a 17-foot jumper from the top of the key just as the horn sounded. "We usually dont like to call timeouts. We usually like just to go. But I wanted the ball, at that time, in Sterlings hands," Willard said. A fired-up Gibbs, who finished with 10 points, jumped onto the scorers table and looked up at the crowd as excited teammates ran all over the court in a wild celebration. The shot was a near carbon copy of the one Kemba Walker hit three years ago at the Garden during Connecticuts captivating run to Big East and NCAA tournament championships. That buzzer-beating jumper by Walker, also in the quarterfinals, beat a top-seeded Pittsburgh team that was led by Gibbs brother, Ashton. "It ended up being a little bit of a scramble. The plan kind of got switched up a little bit," Sterling Gibbs said before Teague interrupted. "A little bit?" said the senior centre. "Yeah, a lot of bit," Gibbs acknowledged. "In the end, it was supposed to get in my hands and I was supposed to create a shot for my teammates or create a shot for myself, and I just stepped back and hit the jumper." Hilliard scored all 11 of his points in the second half. JayVaughn Pinkston also had 11 for the Wildcats, but the 77 per cent free throw shooter was 3 of 10 at the foul line as the Wildcats went 15 for 25 (60 per cent) to Seton Halls 6-for-9 mark. The Pirates limited Villanova to 37.9 per cent shooting and 21.1 per cent from 3-point range (4 for 19), less than 18 hours after holding Butler to a 2-for-18 mark (11.1 per cent) from long distance in the opening round. "We got the shots we wanted to. We just werent making them," Villanova guard Ryan Arcidiacono said. Playing in the Big East quarterfinals for the first time since 2003, the Pirates won despite getting only seven points from leading scorer Fuquan Edwin on 3-of-15 shooting. Villanova won both regular-season meetings, by an average of 16.5 points, and figured to have an advantage again after Seton Hall had to hold off Butler 51-50 Wednesday night. Early on, though, it was the Pirates who looked fresh even though they had little time to rest. On a bitterly cold day in the Big Apple, the Wildcats took a while to warm up. They missed 13 of their first 14 attempts from 3-point range and trailed 44-31 with 14 minutes remaining. But they made a flurry of steals during a 16-0 run and took their first lead at 47-44 on Hilliards 3-pointer with 8:03 left. Edwin tied it with a 3 and Teague followed with a three-point play to put the Pirates back in front. With the score tied at 59, Arcidiaconos steal sent Villanova on a fast break that culminated in Harts layup with 40 seconds left. Undeterred, the Pirates worked the ball around and Gibbs passed to Sina for a 3 from the left corner that gave them for a 62-61 edge with 17.2 seconds remaining. "That was a great college basketball game," Wright said. "Great to be a part of it. Great atmosphere. The Garden was rocking. We had a lot of fun." Joe Ross Jersey . -- The Tampa Bay Lightning are disappointed, though not discouraged. Ryan Zimmerman Nationals Jersey . made a diving catch in left field for the final out in a 1-0 victory over the Miami Marlins in a regular-season finale Sunday. Zimmermann (14-5) allowed only two baserunners, finishing with 10 strikeouts and one walk in the fifth no-hitter in the majors this year. https://www.cheapnationals.com/1507r-car...ationals.html.Y. -- Phil Jackson lost out on his preferred coach, but hes working hard on keeping his star player. Yan Gomes Nationals Jersey . That little deal worked out in a big way for the Mavericks. Nowitzki had 21 points Tuesday night to pass Oscar Robertson for 10th on the NBAs career scoring list, leading the Mavs to a 95-83 victory over the Utah Jazz. Max Scherzer Jersey .Y. - Through three quarters, the Brooklyn Nets could not shake the NBAs worst team.NEW YORK, N.Y. - After missing the playoffs seven times in nine seasons, the New York Islanders might finally be finding out what its like to be on the right side of the breaks.Just past the midpoint in this surprising season, the Islanders have landed atop the Eastern Conference — ahead of Pittsburgh, Montreal and Detroit. In front of Tampa Bay and the rival New York Rangers.It was only fitting that the Islanders reached the summit with a thorough 3-0 victory over the Rangers on Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden — arguably the biggest stage in the NHL and certainly the largest in New York.We havent accomplished a whole lot yet, captain John Tavares said. We expect to win against everyone we play against.I think anytime you beat the Rangers as an Islander, its a lot of fun.This was already setting up as a special year for the Islanders, who will be leaving Long Island and the Nassau Coliseum once the season is over and relocating to Brooklyn. Success on the ice has planted the seeds that perhaps nostalgia wont be the only reason why this season is remembered and celebrated.They won the Stanley Cup four times back in the 1980s. The Islanders know another championship would provide the perfect farewell to the Nassau Coliseum — the only home they have ever known.Our goal is always to win the Stanley Cup, Tavares said.The defending Eastern Conference champion Rangers were feted upon their return home from a three-game California sweep. Welcoming the Islanders only raised the hype, and the bright lights and attention didnt rattle them.The Islanders took the play to the Rangers, overwhelmed them in the second period, and finished the shutout in the third after driving goalie Henrik Lundqvist to the bench.It was a four-point game because they are catching up to us, said Jaroslav Halak, who stopped 27 shots and earned his fourth shutout. The guys did a great job. Playing in Madison Square Garden isnt easy, but we played our game.The Islanders (29-13-1) opened a seven-point lead over the Rangers, the fourth place team in the Metropolitan Division. The Islanders lead Tampa Bay and Pittsburgh by one point for the overall lead in the East.We havent wanted to get too high on our highs or too low on our lows, defenceman Traavis Hamonic said.dddddddddddd Weve done a good job this year rebounding from losses.Not only are they playing at the top of their game, having won three straight and five times during a seven-game road trip that ended Tuesday, the Islanders are getting good bounces.With the game scoreless in the first period, the Rangers struck the goal post three times within seconds — first with a drive by All-Star Rick Nash and another by Derick Brassard that hit the right post before sailing across the crease and hitting the left one.Luck was on my side, Halak said. It could have been a different game if they got the first one.Not only didnt they get the first one, they didnt get any past the goalie who is in his first season with the Islanders. It marked only the second time this season the Rangers were shut out, and it was the first time the Islanders did it at the Garden since Billy Smith posted another 3-0 win on Dec. 17, 1975.They had some chances, Tavares said. We were playing on the road against a pretty good team. We did a pretty good job getting pucks to the net.They did that 32 times in two periods against Lundqvist, scoring all three goals against him in the second. Lundqvist watched the third from the bench as Cam Talbot took over and stopped all 12 shots he faced.Rangers coach Alain Vigneault made the switch to try to change things for his team. Instead, the Islanders stuck to their game and finished off the big win.Theyre a tough team to play against. They play the right way, Nash said. They lock you in your own zone and they kind of drain all the momentum from your game.With 29 wins and 43 games under their belts, it is less surprising anytime the Islanders come out on top — regardless of the opponent. The schedule doesnt get any easier. When the Islanders return home Friday, the high-powered Pittsburgh Penguins will be there waiting.The Islanders are five wins shy of last seasons total with 39 games left.You go back to training camp and go over the things that are confidentially held in that room and what we wanted to accomplish, coach Jack Capuano said. Its about the character and comfort the guys have in one another, and up until this point how we have performed.We have a lot of hockey left. ' ' '