2018–19 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team

The 2018–19 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team represented Villanova University in the 2018–19 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Led by head coach Jay Wright in his 18th year, the Wildcats played their home games at the Finneran Pavilion[1][2] on the school's campus in the Philadelphia suburb of Villanova, Pennsylvania and Wells Fargo Center as members of the Big East Conference. They finished the season 26–10, 13–5 in Big East play to finish in first place. They defeated Providence, Xavier, and Seton Hall to win the Big East tournament.[3][4] As a result, the Wildcats received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 6 seed in the South region.[5] There they defeated Saint Mary's[6] before being defeated by Purdue in the Second Round.[7]

2018–19 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball
Big East regular season and tournament champions
AdvoCare Invitational champions
NCAA tournament, Second Round
ConferenceBig East Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 20
APNo. 23
Record26–10 (13–5 Big East)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaFinneran Pavilion
Wells Fargo Center
2018–19 Big East men's basketball standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
No. 23 Villanova †13–5 .72226–10  .722
Marquette12–6 .66724–10  .706
Seton Hall9–9 .50020–14  .588
Xavier9–9 .50019–16  .543
Creighton9–9 .50020–15  .571
Georgetown9–9 .50019–14  .576
St. John's8–10 .44421–13  .618
Providence7–11 .38918–16  .529
Butler7–11 .38916–17  .485
DePaul7–11 .38919–17  .528
† 2019 Big East tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

Previous season

The Wildcats finished the 2017–18 season 36–4, 14–4 in Big East play to finish in second place. They defeated Marquette,[8] Butler,[9] and Providence to win the Big East tournament championship.[10] As a result, they received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 1 seed in the East region, their third No. 1 seed in four years.[11] They defeated Radford,[12] Alabama,[13] West Virginia,[14] and Texas Tech to advance to the Final Four for the second time in three years.[15] In the National Semifinal, they defeated Kansas[16][17] before defeating Michigan in the National Championship game to win their second national championship in three years.[18][19] They won every game of the tournament by a double-digit margin and the team's tournament run has been called among the most dominant ever.[20]

Offseason

Coaching changes

Following the season, longtime assistant coach Ashley Howard left the Wildcats to become the head coach at La Salle.[21]

Departures
NameNumberPos.HeightWeightYearHometownNotes
Jalen Brunson 1 G 6'3" 190 JR Lincolnshire, IL NBA draft
Donte DiVincenzo 10 G 6'5" 205 RS SO Wilmington, DE NBA draft[22]
Omari Spellman 14 F 6´9¨ 245 RS FR North Royalton, OH NBA draft[23]
Tom Leibig 24 F 6´5¨ 200 SR Havertown, PA Graduated[24]
Mikal Bridges 25 F 6'7" 210 RS JR Malvern, PA NBA draft
Matt Kennedy 35 G 5´11¨ 175 SR Fairfax, VA Graduated[25]
Denny Grace 40 G 5'11" 175 RS SR Catonsville, MD Graduated

Incoming transfers
NameNumberPos.HeightWeightYearHometownPrevious School
Joe Cremo24G6'4"185Graduate StudentScotia, NYAlbany

2018 recruiting class
US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Brandon Slater
SF		 Centerville, VA Paul VI Catholic High School 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 180 lb (82 kg) May 24, 2017 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars
Cole Swider
SF		 Portsmouth, RI St. Andrew's School 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) May 24, 2017 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars
Jahvon Quinerly
PG		 Hackensack, NJ Hudson Catholic High School 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Feb 14, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:5/5 stars   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:5/5 stars
Saddiq Bey
SF		 Largo, MD Sidwell Friends School 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Jun 15, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2018 Villanova Commits". Rivals.com.
  • "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

2019 Recruiting class
US college sports recruiting information for 2019 recruits
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Justin Moore
#9 SG		 Accokeek, MD DeMatha Catholic High School 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 200 lb (91 kg) May 2, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars
Eric Dixon
#18 PF		 William Grove, PA Abington High School 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 275 lb (125 kg) Apr 17, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars
Bryan Antoine
#12 SG		 Tinton Falls, NJ Ranney School 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Sep 4, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:5/5 stars   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:5/5 stars
Jeremiah Robinson-Earl
PF		 Shawnee Mission, KS IMG Academy (FL) 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Oct 30, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:5/5 stars   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Roster
2018–19 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#NameHeightWeightYearPrevious schoolHometown
G 1 Jahvon Quinerly 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)175 lb (79 kg) FrHudson Catholic Hackensack, NJ
G 2 Collin Gillespie 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)183 lb (83 kg) SoArchbishop Wood Warminster, PA
F 3 Brandon Slater 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)205 lb (93 kg) FrPaul VI Fairfax, VA
F 4 Eric Paschall 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)255 lb (116 kg) RS SrFordham Dobbs Ferry, NY
G 5 Phil Booth 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)194 lb (88 kg) RS SrMount Saint Joseph Baltimore, MD
F 10 Cole Swider 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)210 lb (95 kg) FrSt. Andrews Providence, RI
G 12 Tim Saunders (W) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)200 lb (91 kg) SrTorrey Pines Del Mar, CA
F 15 Saddiq Bey 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)220 lb (100 kg) FrSidwell Friends Washington, D.C.
F 21 Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)226 lb (103 kg) SoNeumann–Goretti Philadelphia, PA
G 22 Peyton Heck (W) 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m)175 lb (79 kg) SrArchmere Academy Wilmington, DE
F 23 Jermaine Samuels 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)220 lb (100 kg) SoThe Rivers School Franklin, MA
G 24 Joe Cremo 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)191 lb (87 kg) GSAlbany Scotia, NY
F 34 Tim Delaney 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)224 lb (102 kg) RS JrBlair Academy Mullica Hill, NJ
F 42 Dylan Painter 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)224 lb (102 kg) RS SoHershey High School Hershey, PA
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule and results
Date
time, TV		 Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 6, 2018*
7:00 pm, FS1		 No. 9 Morgan State W 100–77  1–0
  26 – Paschall  7 – 2 Tied  6 – Gillespie  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
November 10, 2018*
8:00 pm, FS2		 No. 9 Quinnipiac W 86–53  2–0
  23 – Booth  8 – Paschall  5 – Booth  Wells Fargo Center (10,216)
Philadelphia, PA
November 14, 2018*
6:30 pm, FS1		 No. 8 No. 18 Michigan
Gavitt Tipoff Games		 L 46–73  2–1
  10 – Paschall  6 – Paschall  3 – Gillespie  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
November 17, 2018*
5:00 pm, FS2		 No. 8 Furman
AdvoCare Invitational campus site game		 L 68–76 OT 2–2
  20 – Booth  11 – Cosby-Roundtree  5 – Paschall  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
November 22, 2018*
1:30 pm, ESPN2		 vs. Canisius
AdvoCare Invitational Quarterfinals		 W 83–56  3–2
  15 – Tied  13 – Cosby-Roundtree  2 – 4 Tied  HP Field House 
Lake Buena Vista, FL
November 23, 2018*
11:30 am, ESPN		 vs. Oklahoma State
Advocare Invitational		 W 77–58  4–2
  22 – Paschall  13 – Cosby-Roundtree  5 –  Tied   HP Field House 
Lake Buena Vista, FL
November 25, 2018*
12:00 pm, ESPN		 vs. No. 14 Florida State
Advocare Invitational final		 W 66–60  5–2
  17 – Gillespie  8 – Cosby-Roundtree  2 – 2 Tied  HP Field House (3,127)
Lake Buena Vista, FL
December 1, 2018*
3:00 pm, ESPN2		 No. 23 vs. La Salle
Philadelphia Big 5		 W 85–78  6–2
  27 – Paschall  5 – Cosby-Roundtree  5 – Gillespie  The Palestra (6,522)
Philadelphia, PA
December 5, 2018*
8:30 pm, FS1		 No. 21 Temple
Philadelphia Big 5		 W 69–59  7–2
  15 – Samuels  7 –  4 Tied   4 – Gillespie  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
December 8, 2018*
2:00 pm, FS1		 No. 21 Saint Joseph's
Philadelphia Big 5/Holy War		 W 70–58  8–2
  14 – Paschall  9 – Paschall  6 – Booth  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
December 11, 2018*
7:00 pm, ESPN2		 No. 17 at Penn
Philadelphia Big 5		 L 75–78  8–3
  21 – Gillespie  5 – Paschall  2 – Booth  The Palestra (8,033)
Philadelphia, PA
December 15, 2018*
12:00 pm, ESPN		 No. 17 at No. 1 Kansas L 71–74  8–4
  29 – Booth  11 – Cosby-Roundtree  3 – Gillespie  Allen Fieldhouse (16,300)
Lawrence, KS
December 22, 2018*
12:30 pm, CBS		 vs. UConn
New York Showcase		 W 81–58  9–4
  21 – Paschall  7 – Booth  7 – Booth  Madison Square Garden (16,027)
New York, NY
Big East regular season
January 2, 2019
8:30 pm, FS1		 DePaul W 73–68  10–4
(1–0)		  24 – Paschall  6 – Paschall  6 – Booth  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
January 5, 2019
2:00 pm, FOX		 at Providence W 65–59  11–4
(2–0)		  23 – Booth  14 – Paschall  4 – Booth  Dunkin' Donuts Center (12,410)
Providence, RI
January 8, 2019
7:00 pm, FS1		 No. 24 St. John's W 76–71  12–4
(3–0)		  25 – Paschall  8 – Tied  6 – Gillespie  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
January 13, 2019
12:00 pm, FOX		 at Creighton W 90–78  13–4
(4–0)		  28 – Booth  7 – Paschall  7 – Booth  CHI Health Center Omaha (17,379)
Omaha, NE
January 18, 2019
8:30 pm, FS1		 No. 22 Xavier W 85–75  14–4
(5–0)		  22 – Booth  8 – Paschall  5 – Booth  Wells Fargo Center (12,103)
Philadelphia, PA
January 22, 2019
7:00 pm, FS1		 No. 18 at Butler W 80–72  15–4
(6–0)		  23 – Paschall  8 – Cosby-Roundtree  5 – Booth  Hinkle Fieldhouse (8,962)
Indianapolis, IN
January 27, 2019
2:30 pm, FOX		 No. 18 Seton Hall W 80–52  16–4
(7–0)		  25 – Booth  8 – Tied  5 – Booth  Wells Fargo Center (16,444)
Philadelphia, PA
January 30, 2019
8:00 pm, CBSSN		 No. 14 at DePaul W 86–74  17–4
(8–0)		  20 – Paschall  11 – Bey  8 – Booth  Wintrust Arena (5,002)
Chicago, IL
February 3, 2019
12:00 pm, FS1		 No. 14 Georgetown W 77–65  18–4
(9–0)		  30 – Gillespie  16 – Samuels  4 – Gillespie  Wells Fargo Center (14,506)
Philadelphia, PA
February 6, 2019
8:00 pm, CBSSN		 No. 14 Creighton W 66–59 OT 19–4
(10–0)		  17 – Bey  8 – Booth  6 – Gillespie  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
February 9, 2019
2:30 pm, FOX		 No. 14 at No. 10 Marquette L 65–66  19–5
(10–1)		  19 – Booth  6 – Tied  3 – Tied  Fiserv Forum (17,856)
Milwaukee, WI
February 13, 2019
6:30 pm, FS1		 No. 13 Providence W 85–67  20–5
(11–1)		  25 – Paschall  7 – Cosby-Roundtree  8 – Gillespie  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
February 17, 2019
5:00 pm, FS1		 No. 13 at St. John's L 65–71  20–6
(11–2)		  14 – Cremo  14 – Paschall  4 – Paschall  Madison Square Garden (19,812)
New York, NY
February 20, 2019
6:30 pm, FS1		 No. 17 at Georgetown L 73–85  20–7
(11–3)		  26 – Booth  10 – Bey  5 – Bey  Capital One Arena (11,624)
Washington, D.C.
February 24, 2019
1:30 pm, CBS		 No. 17 at Xavier L 54–66  20–8
(11–4)		  17 – Paschall  8 – Bey  4 – Booth  Cintas Center (10,444)
Cincinnati, OH
February 27, 2019
9:00 pm, FS1		 No. 10 Marquette W 67–61  21–8
(12–4)		  29 – Samuels  9 – Samuels  7 – Booth  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
March 2, 2019
2:00 pm, FOX		 Butler W 75–54  22–8
(13–4)		  28 – Booth  10 – Samuels  5 – Paschall  Wells Fargo Center (17,515)
Philadelphia, PA
March 9, 2019
12:00 pm, FOX		 No. 23 at Seton Hall L 75–79  22–9
(13–5)		  22 – Gillespie  8 – Tied  5 – Paschall  Prudential Center (16,114)
Newark, NJ
Big East tournament
March 14, 2019
12:00 pm, FS1		 (1) No. 25 vs. (8) Providence
Quarterfinals		 W 73–62  23–9
  20 – Paschall  10 – Tie  6 – Gillespie  Madison Square Garden (19,534)
New York, NY
March 15, 2019
6:30 pm, FS1		 (1) No. 25 vs. (4) Xavier
Semifinals		 W 71–67 OT 24–9
  28 – Booth  9 – Samuels  5 – Booth  Madison Square Garden (19,812)
New York, NY
March 16, 2019
6:35 pm, FOX		 (1) No. 25 vs. (3) Seton Hall
Championship		 W 74–72  25–9
  17 – Paschall  10 – Bey  3 – 4 tied  Madison Square Garden (19,812)
New York, NY
NCAA tournament
March 21, 2019*
7:20 pm, TBS		 (6 S) No. 23 vs. (11 S) Saint Mary's
First Round		 W 61–57  26–9
  21 – Booth  7 – Samuels  6 – Booth  XL Center (14,695)
Hartford, CT
March 23, 2019*
8:40 pm, TNT		 (6 S) No. 23 vs. (3 S) No. 13 Purdue
Second Round		 L 61–87  26–10
  19 – Paschall  4 – Tied  2 – Tied  XL Center (15,031)
Hartford, CT
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
S=South.
All times are in Eastern Time.

Source[26]

Rankings
See also: 2018–19 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
RV = Received votes. ( ) = First place votes.
Week
PollPre12345678910111213141516171819Final
AP9 (1)8RV232117RVRVRVRV221814141317RV232523Not released
Coaches88^RV232116RVRVRVRV211814131316RV23252220

*AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings
^Coaches did not release a Week 1 poll.

References
  1. "Board of Trustees Approves Pavilion Renovation" (Press release). Villanova Wildcats. February 14, 2017. Retrieved March 30, 2017.
  2. "Villanova Basketball Pavilion Renovation Approved". VU Hoops. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
  3. "Seton Hall vs. Villanova - Game Summary - March 16, 2019 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  4. "2019 Big East tournament bracket, scores: Villanova defeats Seton Hall, wins third straight conference tournament title". CBSSports.com. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  5. "Villanova Earns 6 Seed, Temple to Play in First 4 Game". NBC 10 Philadelphia. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  6. "Saint Mary's vs. Villanova - Game Recap - March 21, 2019 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  7. "Villanova vs. Purdue - Game Recap - March 23, 2019 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  8. "Marquette falls to Villanova 94-70 in Big East tournament". FOX Sports. March 8, 2018. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  9. "Insider: Butler powerless against Villanova in Big East semifinal". Indianapolis Star. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  10. "Villanova tops Providence for 2nd straight Big East title". USA TODAY. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  11. "March Madness: Villanova earns No. 1 seed in East region in NCAA tournament, will play LIU-Brooklyn or Radford - Philly". Philly.com. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  12. "Top-seeded Villanova dominates Radford". Newsday. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  13. "Alabama vs. Villanova - Game Recap - March 17, 2018 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  14. Schonbrun, Zach (March 23, 2018). "Villanova Breaks Free of West Virginia in the Second Half to Win". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  15. Stubbs, Roman; Boren, Cindy (March 25, 2018). "Known as pretty, Villanova is gritty in knocking out Texas Tech to reach Final Four". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  16. Schonbrun, Zach (March 31, 2018). "Villanova Rolls Over Kansas to Reach Its Second N.C.A.A. Final in Three Seasons". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  17. "Villanova overpowers Kansas from three in Final Four rout". SI.com. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  18. "Michigan vs. Villanova - Game Recap - April 2, 2018 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  19. "Michigan basketball can't solve Villanova, special season terminated". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  20. Paine, Neil (April 3, 2018). "The Only Opponent Villanova Has Left Is History". FiveThirtyEight. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  21. "La Salle hires Nova assistant Howard as coach". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
  22. "Sources: Villanova's Donte DiVincenzo to remain in 2018 NBA draft". Retrieved May 29, 2018.
  23. "Nova freshman Spellman staying in NBA draft". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  24. "Nova freshman Spellman staying in NBA draft". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  25. "Nova freshman Spellman staying in NBA draft". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  26. "Future Big East Basketball Schedules". whiteandbluereview.com. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
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