PHILADELPHIA — Ryan Arcidiacono took the inbounds, heaved the ball, and ducked.
Hundreds of Villanova students trampled the court like a bull rush and the game-saving point guard was the target.
One overzealous fan tried to strip him of his No. 15 jersey.
Hey, it’s not every day the Wildcats knock off a Top 5 team — though they sure are trying.
Arcidiacono hit the tying 3-pointer with 2.2 seconds left in regulation, and James Bell hit consecutive 3s in overtime to send Villanova to its second win over a Top 5 team this week, 75-71 over No. 3 Syracuse on Saturday.
The Wildcats defeated No. 5 Louisville 73-64 on Tuesday and became the first unranked team to beat two Top 5 teams in the same season since Florida State in 2011-12, according to STATS LLC.
“What a week for us," coach Jay Wright said.
What an understatement.
Philadelphia’s college fans came down with a case of court-storming fever this week after Villanova’s win over Louisville and La Salle’s 54-53 win the next night over No. 9 Butler. At the Wells Fargo Center, home of the NHL’s Flyers, the fans made it a Philly hoops hat trick, rushing the court in celebration of perhaps the biggest regular-season week in Villanova history.
Talk about upset city!
Arcidiacono’s 3-point attempt to tie with about 25 seconds left in regulation was off the mark. Syracuse’s Michael Carter-Williams missed the front end of a 1-and-1 and JayVaughn Pinkston of the Wildcats grabbed the rebound.
Bell missed a 3 and Mouphtaou Yarou grabbed the offensive rebound. Syracuse decided not to foul, giving Yarou time to kick it out to Arcidiacono. He let go a leaner from just beyond the 3-point line to tie the game at 61, force overtime and send the crowd of 18,273 into a frenzy.
“I just put it up and luckily it went in," Arcidiacono said. “I think we’re having fun."
The Wildcats may not be ranked in next week’s AP Top 25 poll, but they have worked their way into NCAA tournament consideration.
“What a week for us," coach Jay Wright said.
Also on Saturday:
No. 1 Duke 84
Maryland 64
DURHAM, N.C. — Freshman Rasheed Sulaimon scored a season-high 25 points and Duke bounced back from one of its worst losses under Mike Krzyzewski by routing Maryland.
No. 3 Kansas 67
Oklahoma 54
LAWRENCE, Kan. — Ben McLemore scored 18 points and Jeff Withey added 13 points and nine rebounds as Kansas extended its nation-leading winning streak to 17 games.
Georgetown 53
No. 5 Louisville 51
WASHINGTON — Otto Porter had 17 points and grabbed the game’s decisive rebound with 1.4 seconds to play as Georgetown handed Louisville its third straight loss.
No. 8 Florida 82
Mississippi State 47
STARKVILLE, Miss. — Kenny Boynton and Erik Murphy each scored 18 points as Florida routed Mississippi State.
No. 9 Butler 83
Temple 71
INDIANAPOLIS — Rotnei Clarke scored 25 points in his return from injury and Khyle Marshall added 19 to lead Butler past Temple.
No. 10 Gonzaga 66
San Francisco 52
SPOKANE, Wash. — Kelly Olynyk scored 13 points to help Gonzaga extend its home winning streak against San Francisco to 24 games.
Iowa State 73
No. 11 Kansas State 67
AMES, Iowa — Will Clyburn had 24 points and 10 rebounds and Iowa State handed Kansas State its second straight loss.
Wisconsin 45
No. 12 Minnesota 44
MADISON, Wis. — Traevon Jackson just beat the shot clock and hit a 15-foot jumper from the right side with 4 seconds left as Wisconsin handed Minnesota its fourth straight loss.
No. 14 Ohio State 65
Penn State 51
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — Sam Thompson scored 16 points on six-of-seven shooting to lead Ohio State.
San Diego State 55
No. 15 New Mexico 34
SAN DIEGO — J.J. O’Brien had 12 points and 10 rebounds and Jamaal Franklin added 10 points for San Diego State.
No. 18 N.C. State 91
North Carolina 83
RALEIGH, N.C. — Lorenzo Brown had 20 points and 11 assists to help North Carolina State beat North Carolina, ending a 13-game losing streak in the long rivalry.
La Salle 69
No. 19 VCU 61
RICHMOND, Va. — Ramon Galloway scored 31 points, 12 during an 18-4 run in the second half, and La Salle upset VCU to win consecutive games against ranked teams for the first time in 61 years.
No. 20 Wichita State 73
Bradley 39
WICHITA, Kan. — Nick Wiggins scored 12 points and fueled a 16-0 run in the second half with three 3-pointers as Wichita State completed a regular-season sweep of Bradley.
No. 22 Missouri 81
Vanderbilt 59
COLUMBIA, Mo. — Jabari Brown scored 21 points, Alex Oriakhi tied a career high with 18 and Missouri cruised to an easy victory over Vanderbilt.
No. 23 Mississippi 63
Auburn 61
AUBURN, Ala. — Marshall Henderson scored 15 points and made the game-winning free throws with 7 seconds remaining to lift Mississippi over Auburn.
No. 24 Notre Dame 73
South Florida 65
TAMPA, Fla. — Jerian Grant scored 18 points and Tom Knight had 17 to lead Notre Dame over South Florida.
