2021–22 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team

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2021–22 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball
NCAA tournament, Final Four
ConferenceBig East Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 4
APNo. 6
Record30–8 (16–4 Big East)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaFinneran Pavilion
(Capacity: 6,501)
Wells Fargo Center
(Capacity: 20,478)
Seasons
2021–22 Big East men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 13 Providence 14 – 3   .824 27 – 6   .818
No. 6 Villanova † 16 – 4   .800 30 – 8   .789
No. 21 UConn 13 – 6   .684 23 – 10   .697
Creighton 12 – 7   .632 23 – 12   .657
Seton Hall 11 – 8   .579 21 – 11   .656
Marquette 11 – 8   .579 19 – 13   .594
Xavier 8 – 11   .421 23 – 13   .639
St. John's 8 – 11   .421 17 – 15   .531
Butler 6 – 14   .300 14 – 19   .424
DePaul 6 – 14   .300 15 – 16   .484
Georgetown 0 – 19   .000 6 – 25   .194
† 2022 Big East tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

The 2021–22 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team represented Villanova University in the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Led by head coach Jay Wright in his 21st and final year of coaching, the Wildcats played their home games at the Finneran Pavilion 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 30–8, 16–4 in Big East play to finish in second place. They defeated St. John's, UConn, and Creighton to win the Big East tournament championship. As a result, they received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 2 seed in the South region. They defeated Delaware, Ohio State, Michigan, and Houston to advance to the Final Four. There they lost to eventual national champion Kansas.

On April 20, 2022, head coach Jay Wright announced he was retiring effective immediately.[1] Former Wright assistant and Fordham head coach Kyle Neptune was named the new head coach.[2]

Previous season[edit]

In a season limited due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Wildcats finished the 2020–21 season 18–7 overall and 11–4 in Big East play to finish first place in the conference. As the No. 1 seed in the Big East tournament, they lost in the quarterfinals 72–71 to eventual conference tournament champions Georgetown.[3] In the NCAA tournament, the Wildcats received the 5 seed in the South Regional. They defeated Winthrop and North Texas to reach the Sweet 16, where they fell to eventual tournament champions Baylor 62–51.[4] Villanova finished #11 in the final Coaches Poll.[5]

Offseason[edit]

Departures[edit]

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Notes
Jeremiah Robinson-Earl 24 F 6'9" 230 Sophomore Kansas City, KS Declared for the 2021 NBA draft; selected 32nd overall by the Knicks, then traded to the Thunder.[6]
Cole Swider 10 F 6'9" 225 Junior Portsmouth, RI Transferred to Syracuse[7]
Kevin Hoehn 20 G 6'0" 175 Senior Morristown, NJ Graduated

2021 recruiting class[edit]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Jordan Longino
SG 		Fort Washington, PA Germantown Academy 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Jul 23, 2020 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars
Nnanna Njoku
C 		Hockessin, Delaware Sanford School 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 245 lb (111 kg) Apr 19, 2020 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars
Angelo Brizzi
PG 		Warrenton, VA Highland School 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Jul 27, 2020 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports:3/5 stars    ESPN:3/5 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:

  • "2021 Villanova Commits". Rivals.com.
  • "2021 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

Coaching changes[edit]

Following the 2020–21 season, longtime assistant coach Kyle Neptune left the Wildcats to become the head coach at Fordham.[8] Wright subsequently promoted George Halcovage to Associate Head Coach and Dwayne Anderson from Director of Basketball Operations to Assistant Coach. Mike Nardi remained in his Assistant Coach position.[9]

Roster[edit]

2021–22 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 1 Bryan Antoine 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jr Ranney School Tinton Falls, NJ
G 2 Collin Gillespie (C) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) GS Archbishop Wood HS Huntingdon Valley, PA
F 3 Brandon Slater 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Sr Paul VI Catholic HS Centerville, VA
G 4 Chris Arcidiacono 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Jr Perkiomen School Langhorne, PA
G 5 Justin Moore 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr DeMatha Catholic HS Fort Washington, MD
G 10 Angelo Brizzi 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Fr Highland School Warrenton, VA
G 12 Kevin Voigt (W) 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Sr Massapequa HS Massapequa, NY
F 13 Trey Patterson 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) RS Fr Rutgers Prep Somerset, NJ
G 14 Caleb Daniels 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 210 lb (95 kg) RS Sr Tulane New Orleans, LA
G 15 Jordan Longino 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Fr Germantown Academy Doylestown, PA
F 21 Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 250 lb (113 kg) GS Neumann–Goretti Catholic HS Philadelphia, PA
F 22 Nnanna Njoku 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 260 lb (118 kg) Fr Sanford School Newark, DE
F 23 Jermaine Samuels 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 230 lb (104 kg) GS The Rivers School Franklin, MA
F 43 Eric Dixon 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 255 lb (116 kg) RS So Abington HS Willow Grove, PA
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: July 8, 2021

Schedule and results[edit]

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Regular season
November 9, 2021*
4:30 p.m., FS1 		No. 4 Mount St. Mary's W 91–51  1–0
  27 –  Moore   6 –  Samuels   7 –  Moore  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
November 12, 2021*
11:30 p.m., ESPN2 		No. 4 at No. 2 UCLA L 77–86 OT 1–1
  20 – Samuels   9 – Dixon   3 – Tied  Pauley Pavilion (13,659)
Los Angeles, CA
November 16, 2021*
6:30 p.m., FS2 		No. 5 Howard W 100–81  2–1
  23 – Slater   7 – Dixon   4 – Tied  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
November 20, 2021*
1:00 p.m., ESPNews 		No. 5 vs. No. 17 Tennessee
Hall of Fame Tip Off semifinals 		W 71–53  3–1
  14 – Tied   11 – Samuels   6 – Moore  Mohegan Sun Arena 
Uncasville, CT
November 21, 2021*
1:00 p.m., ABC 		No. 5 vs. No. 6 Purdue
Hall of Fame Tip Off Championship 		L 74–80  3–2
  19 – Moore   5 – Samuels   5 – Gillespie  Mohegan Sun Arena (9,100)
Uncasville, CT
November 28, 2021*
6:00 p.m., ESPN2 		No. 7 vs. La Salle
Philadelphia Big 5 		W 72–46  4–2
  13 – Gillespie   8 – Dixon   5 – Gillespie  The Palestra (5,841)
Philadelphia, PA
December 1, 2021*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		No. 6 at Penn
Philadelphia Big 5 		W 71–56  5–2
  26 – Gillespie   11 – Moore   3 – Daniels  The Palestra (6,255)
Philadelphia, PA
December 4, 2021*
12:00 p.m., FS1 		No. 6 Saint Joseph's
Holy War/Philadelphia Big 5 		W 81–52  6–2
  23 – Gillespie   7 – Moore   4 – Moore  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
December 7, 2021*
10:01 p.m., ESPN 		No. 6 vs. Syracuse
Jimmy V Classic 		W 67–53  7–2
  18 – Moore   9 – Samuels   5 – Gillespie  Madison Square Garden (14,344)
New York, NY
December 12, 2021*
3:00 p.m., ABC 		No. 6 at No. 2 Baylor
Big East–Big 12 Battle 		L 36–57  7–3
  15 – Moore   8 – Samuels   1 – Tied  Ferrell Center (10,264)
Waco, TX
December 17, 2021
8:00 p.m., FS1 		No. 9 at Creighton L 59–79  7–4
(0–1) 		 16 – Gillespie   9 – Dixon   2 – Gillespie  CHI Health Center Omaha (17,208)
Omaha, NE
December 21, 2021
7:00 p.m., FS1 		No. 23 No. 18 Xavier W 71–58  8–4
(1–1) 		 17 – Moore   8 – Dixon   4 – Tied  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
December 29, 2021*
9:00 p.m., FS1 		No. 22 Temple
Philadelphia Big 5 		Canceled due to COVID-19 protocols on Temple's team Finneran Pavilion 
Villanova, PA
January 1, 2022
2:00 p.m., CBS 		No. 22 at No. 15 Seton Hall W 73–67  9–4
(2–1) 		 21 – Gillespie   11 – Samuels   3 – Samuels  Prudential Center (13,625)
Newark, NJ
January 5, 2022
8:30 p.m., FS1 		No. 19 Creighton W 75–41  10–4
(3–1) 		 22 – Moore   7 – Samuels   5 – Gillespie  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
January 8, 2022
5:00 p.m., FOX 		No. 19 at DePaul W 79–64  11–4
(4–1) 		 29 –  Gillespie   7 –  Moore   4 –  Gillespie  Wintrust Arena (3,839)
Chicago, IL
January 12, 2022
6:30 p.m., FS1 		No. 14 at No. 17 Xavier W 64–60  12–4
(5–1) 		 21 – Gillespie   10 – Dixon   2 – Tied  Cintas Center (10,224)
Cincinnati, OH
January 16, 2022
12:00 p.m., FS1 		No. 14 Butler W 82–42  13–4
(6–1) 		 17 – Gillespie   7 – Moore   5 – Moore  Wells Fargo Center (17,009)
Philadelphia, PA
January 19, 2022
8:00 p.m., CBSSN 		No. 11 Marquette L 54–57  13–5
(6–2) 		 15 – Dixon   10 – Samuels   4 – Gillespie  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
January 22, 2022
12:05 p.m., FOX 		No. 11 at Georgetown W 85–74  14–5
(7–2) 		 28 – Gillespie   8 – Dixon   2 – Tied  Capital One Arena (11,872)
Washington, D.C.
January 25, 2022
5:00 p.m., FS1 		No. 14 DePaul W 67–43  15–5
(8–2) 		 16 – Moore   10 – Dixon   2 – 3 Tied  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
January 29, 2022
4:30 p.m., FOX 		No. 14 St. John's W 73–62  16–5
(9–2) 		 17 – Gillespie   7 – Tied   4 – Moore  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
February 2, 2022
10:00 p.m., FS1 		No. 12 at No. 24 Marquette L 73–83  16–6
(9–3) 		 18 – Slater   6 – Tied   5 – Moore  Fiserv Forum (12,782)
Milwaukee, WI
February 5, 2022
12:00 p.m., FOX 		No. 12 No. 17 UConn W 85–74  17–6
(10–3) 		 24 – Dixon   12 – Dixon   5 – Samuels  Wells Fargo Center (19,786)
Philadelphia, PA
February 8, 2022
8:30 p.m., FS1 		No. 15 at St. John's W 75–69  18–6
(11–3) 		 16 – Tied   10 – Gillespie   3 – Tied  Madison Square Garden (9,712)
New York, NY
February 12, 2022
1:00 p.m., FOX 		No. 15 Seton Hall W 73–67  19–6
(12–3) 		 16 – Tied   7 – Moore   4 – Gillespie  Wells Fargo Center (17,803)
Philadelphia, PA
February 15, 2022
8:00 p.m., CBSSN 		No. 10 at No. 8 Providence W 89–84  20–6
(13–3) 		 33 – Gillespie   10 – Moore   3 – Tied  Dunkin' Donuts Center (12,636)
Providence, RI
February 19, 2022
5:00 p.m., FOX 		No. 10 Georgetown W 74–66  21–6
(14–3) 		 19 – Moore   10 – Gillespie   8 – Samuels  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
February 22, 2022
8:00 p.m., FS1 		No. 8 at No. 21 UConn L 69–71  21–7
(14–4) 		 17 – Gillespie   6 – Dixon   4 – Gillespie  XL Center (15,564)
Hartford, CT
March 1, 2022
6:30 p.m., FS1 		No. 11 No. 9 Providence W 76–74  22–7
(15–4) 		 20 – Daniels   6 – Moore   5 – Gillespie  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
March 5, 2022
12:00 p.m., FOX 		No. 11 at Butler W 78–59  23–7
(16–4) 		 16 – Moore   7 – Longino   4 – Gillespie  Hinkle Fieldhouse (8,163)
Indianapolis, IN
Big East tournament
March 10, 2022
7:00 p.m., FS1 		(2) No. 8 vs. (7) St. John's
Quarterfinals 		W 66–65  24–7
  19 – Daniels   9 – Dixon   3 – Gillespie  Madison Square Garden (19,812)
New York, NY
March 11, 2022
9:00 p.m., FS1 		(2) No. 8 vs. (3) No. 20 UConn
Semifinals 		W 63–60  25–7
  21 – Samuels   12 – Samuels   10 – Gillespie  Madison Square Garden (19,812)
New York, NY
March 12, 2022
6:30 p.m., FOX 		(2) No. 8 vs. (4) Creighton
Championship 		W 54–48  26–7
  17 – Gillespie   8 – Samuels   5 – Gillespie  Madison Square Garden (19,812)
New York, NY
NCAA tournament
March 18, 2022
2:45 p.m., CBS 		(2 S) No. 6 vs. (15 S) Delaware
First Round 		W 80–60  27–7
  21 – Moore   9 – Samuels   6 – Moore  PPG Paints Arena (18,738)
Pittsburgh, PA
March 20, 2022
2:40 p.m., CBS 		(2 S) No. 6 vs. (7 S) Ohio State
Second Round 		W 71–61  28–7
  20 – Gillespie   8 – Tied   4 – Gillespie  PPG Paints Arena (18,506)
Pittsburgh, PA
March 24, 2022
7:29 p.m., TBS 		(2 S) No. 6 vs. (11 S) Michigan
Sweet Sixteen 		W 63–55  29–7
  22 – Samuels   9 – Daniels   4 – Moore  AT&T Center (17,357)
San Antonio, TX
March 26, 2022
6:09 p.m., TBS 		(2 S) No. 6 vs. (5 S) No. 15 Houston
Elite Eight 		W 50–44  30–7
  16 – Samuels   10 – Samuels   2 – Tied  AT&T Center (17,186)
San Antonio, TX
April 2, 2022
6:09 p.m., TBS 		(2 S) No. 6 vs. (1 MW) No. 3 Kansas
Final Four 		L 65–81  30–8
  17 – Gillespie   8 – Slater   3 – Tied  Caesars Superdome (70,602)
New Orleans, LA
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Eastern Time.

Source[10]

Rankings[edit]

See also: 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
Week
PollPre123456789101112131415161718Final
AP45766923221914111412151081186Not released
Coaches45*76610222215141112121510811854

*Coaches did not release a week 1 poll.

Awards and honors[edit]

Big East Conference honors[edit]

All-Big East Awards[edit]

All-Big East First Team[edit]

  • Collin Gillespie[12]

All-Big East Second Team[edit]

National awards[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Villanova coach Jay Wright steps down, joining growing number who are walking away from a changing profession". CBSSports.com. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
  2. ^ "Wright retiring after 21 years as Villanova coach". ESPN.com. April 20, 2022. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
  3. ^ Juliano, Joe. "Top seed Villanova upset by Georgetown, 72–71, in Big East quarterfinals". www.inquirer.com. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
  4. ^ "NCAA Tournament 2021: No. 1 seed Baylor rallies in second half vs. Villanova to move on to Elite Eight". CBSSports.com. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
  5. ^ "College Basketball Rankings 2020-21 - Coaches Poll". CBSSports.com. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
  6. ^ "Thunder acquire No. 32 pick Jeremiah Robinson-Earl from Knicks". www.nba.com. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  7. ^ "Villanova's Swider transferring to Syracuse". ESPN.com. April 6, 2021. Retrieved July 8, 2021.
  8. ^ Zagoria, Adam. "NCAA Coaching Carousel: Fordham Names Villanova Assistant Kyle Neptune Head Coach". Forbes. Retrieved July 8, 2021.
  9. ^ Juliano, Joe. "Villanova's Jay Wright announces coaching staff changes". www.inquirer.com. Retrieved July 8, 2021.
  10. ^ "2021–22 Men's Basketball Schedule". villanova.com. Retrieved October 11, 2021.
  11. ^ a b Fitzpatrick, Mike (March 9, 2022). "Gillespie Big East POY again, Cooley 1st Friars coach to win". Associated Press. Archived from the original on April 5, 2022. Retrieved April 17, 2022.
  12. ^ a b "Champagnie, Gillespie Repeat on All-Big East First Team". Big East Conference. March 6, 2022. Archived from the original on March 11, 2022. Retrieved April 17, 2022.
  13. ^ Jensen, Mike (April 2, 2022). "Villanova's Collin Gillespie wins Bob Cousy award as nation's top point guard". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on April 3, 2022. Retrieved April 17, 2022.
  14. ^ All-American selections from:
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