Schedule Outlook
Nothing comes easy for the Wildcats, who have a schedule jam-packed with exciting games, especially in conference play. They’ll also face off against their Big 5 opponents, including a road game at Temple in their second game of the season. The Wildcats have another tricky road test one week later on November 18th as they’ll travel to East Lansing to take on Michigan State.
Things get really interesting after that, as the Wildcats head west to participate in the Phil Knight Invitational. They’ll match up with Iowa State in the first round and then potentially have a showdown with a very talented North Carolina team in round two. Their final game will be another high-quality opponent, either Alabama, Connecticut, Oregon, or another matchup with Michigan State.
The Wildcats fly home after the tournament but get an intriguing home date with Oklahoma on December 3rd. They have a few more of those Big 5 games, including a road game at Saint Joseph’s, but will also travel to Newark to play Boston College in the Never Forget Tribute Classic. These are all certainly winnable games for the Wildcats, but this isn’t a schedule where they are playing low-majors at home on a regular basis.
The Big East schedule will see Villanova playing twice against all ten of their conference foes, beginning December 21st at home against St. John’s. Perhaps the most intriguing matchup in this Big East season will be their games against Creighton, which will come in Omaha on February 4th and at home three weeks later on February 25th. The 20-game onslaught ends on March 4th at home against Connecticut on senior night.