Villanova Basketball Schedule Released: News and Storylines to Look For

On Thursday, Villanova Men’s basketball released their highly anticipated full schedule. The biggest question surrounding the 18-19 rendition of the Wildcats is of course, can they defend their crown of National Champions despite losing 4 starters (Bridges, DiVincenzo, Spellman, Brunson) to the NBA? Only time will tell, but for now wildcat fans can examine the schedule and the storylines surrounding this season. Let’s take a look.

Welcome (Back) to the Pavilion

Villanova fans know that Hoops Mania on October 5^th will be the opening of the newly renovated Finneran Pavilion, but the official debut of the Pavilion will be a month later on November 6^th against Morgan State. All fans in attendance will be chomping at the bit to see their favorite returning upperclassmen and newcomers Jahvon Quinerly, Brandon Slater, Cole Swider, Saddiq Bey and Albany transfer Joe Cremo take the floor for the first time in their new threads.

Old Friends and New Foes

Two former pupils of Head Coach Jay Wright in Baker Dunleavy and Ashley Howard will be going against their former boss this season. Coach Dunleavy will be leading Quinnipiac into battle on Nov. 10at the Wells Fargo Center and Coach Howard will be coaching up his La Salle squad in a Big 5 matchup with the Wildcats at the Palestra on Dec. 1. It will be interesting to see if Dunleavy and Howard use any insider knowledge against the ‘Cats.

Big 5 Rodeo

Speaking of Big 5 play, The Villanova will take on each of their cross-town rivals in a span of 12 days. The Wildcats will open the Big 5 schedule with the aforementioned La Salle, then come back home for a date with Temple on Dec. 5. The Cats have another home game against St. Joe’s on Dec. 8 and then close the Big 5 Rodeo on Dec. 11 against UPenn at the Palestra. Villanova has won the last five Big 5 championships and will look to make it six in a row and tie Temple for the most Big 5 championships of all time at 27.

Balling like it’s March Madness

The March Madness fever is year-round and that statement will hold true for the Wildcats as they will duke it out against their 2018 National Championship opponent Michigan on Nov. 14 at the Pavilion. About a month later, the Cats will play their 2018 Final Four challenger, Kansas. on Dec. 15 at Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrenceville, Kansas. All 3 teams will look very different than they did five months ago and both games will be a barometer for where Villanova stands in national contention.

Other Days to Look Out for

Three other notable dates to look out for: 1) Dec. 22 vs. UConn in Madison Square Garden, 2) Big East opener on Jan. 2 vs. DePaul and 3) Senior Day at Wells Fargo Center vs. Butler on March 2. The 2018-19 season is rapidly approaching, so mark your calendars