Villanova men’s basketball announced in a release the signings of its three incoming high school recruits. The trio includes guard Acaden Lewis, guard Chris Jeffrey and forward Nico Onyekwere.
It is the first high school recruiting class under new head coach Kevin Willard.
Recently, on Jon Rothstein’s CBS podcast, Willard was happy with the roster that he and his staff put together this offseason.
Yeah, I’m excited about [the roster],” Willard said on the podcast. “We have some really good athleticism at the two, three and four. I think we can play certain guys in a whole bunch of different positions. I think it’s deep and it’s young, it’s a team that, you know, we can retain and get better and build on. I love our freshmen coming in. I got two unbelievable freshman guards [Lewis and Jeffrey] who I think are going to be dynamite, can take over at any time, go one-on-one, create for everybody.”
Lewis is a four-star recruit out of the Sidwell Friends School in Washington, D.C. He is ranked the fifth-best point guard in the 2025 recruiting class by 247Sports. At Sidwell Friends, Lewis averaged 12.6 points, 4.1 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game. In his junior season, he earned the basketball Gatorade Player of the Year for the District of Columbia.
“Acaden [Lewis] is a true point guard, a quality 3-point shooter who plays with excellent pace,” Willard said in the release. “He is an elite passer who has exceptional court vision. As he gains experience, Acaden will provide stability and leadership at the point guard position. We’re excited to welcome Acaden to the Nova Nation.”
Before signing with Villanova, Lewis was committed to the University of Kentucky. He decommitted from the school on April 10 and signed with the Wildcats on May 1.
The Wildcats also recruited another four-star guard in Jeffrey. He was recruited to Maryland by Willard, where he then committed. After Willard left the Terrapins to come to Villanova, Jeffrey followed him.
Jeffrey played high school basketball at Mt. Zion Prep in Brooklyn, NY. He averaged 14 points, five rebounds and five assists per game while playing in the Elite Youth Basketball League circuit with Mt. Zion Prep.
“Chris [Jeffrey] is a point guard who plays both ends of the floor,” Willard said. “He brings a physical presence and strength to the backcourt. Offensively, Chris scores the ball at all levels – strong and quick enough to get by the defender to score at the basket, pull up, draw a foul, or to distribute to his teammates. At the defensive end, he is a pest on the ball in both full-court and half-court settings. Chris is a terrific fit for our system and the Big East.”
He was Willard’s first high school recruit as head coach at Villanova.
The final high school joining the program is seven-foot-one Onyerkwere. He joins the Wildcats out of Long Island Lutheran (NY). This past 2024-25 season in high school, he averaged 6.2 points and five rebounds across 15 games. He also collected 22 blocks.
“Nico [Onyekwere] is a space-eater, an old-school style center with the kind of tools needed to compete inside in the Big East,” Willard said. “He has range to 17-feet, can shoot the hook shot with both hands, and does a good job on screen and rolls. We’re eager to get to work to help Nico transition to the speed of the college game and continue to develop his skills.”
Onyekwere committed to Florida State University. However, he requested a release and decommitted after head coach Leonard Hamilton resigned.
Villanova was also set to bring in four-star guard Dante Allen in the 2025 recruiting class, but after the dismal of former head coach Kyle Neptune, he decommitted. Allen ended up signing with the University of Miami instead.
Earlier in the month, Adam Zagoria said that Villanova had completed their roster search for the 2025-26 season. Pending any other late additions, the Wildcats will leave two roster spots empty out of the 15-player limit.
