The Cats will start the season as a top 5 team.

In addition to scrimmaging Duke on Oct. 23, Villanova will have another "secret" scrimmage on Sunday against Rutgers.

The Scarlet Knights are in a somewhat interesting position heading into 2021-22. They are looking to build on last season's success, which saw the program earn its first NCAA Tournament berth and first NCAA Tournament win in over 30 years. The team lost three key contributors to the transfer portal, but return five other contributors. Last year's team finished in the top 20 in KenPom's defensive efficiency rankings.

Rutgers enters the season widely considered a top 50 team, expected to earn a middle-of-the-pack finish in a strong Big Ten. That would have them in the mix for another NCAA Tournament trip.

It should be a good first taste of inter-squad competition for the Wildcats, and combined with the scrimmage against Duke should help to prepare the Cats for a tough non-conference slate that starts with a trip to UCLA on Nov. 12 in the second game of the season.

On Thursday night, fans got a chance to see the Wildcats on the court in person for the first time since the pandemic began. While it's still early in the preseason and we wouldn't put too much stock in a team scrimmage, it was exciting nonetheless and it's worth noting some points of interest.

1. Collin Gillespie looks fine. Gillespie showed no issues playing on his rehabbed knee, looking the the Gillespie we've come to expect. He tied for the team lead in scoring across the four sessions and nearly put up a triple double, pulling down 13 rebounds and dishing out nine assists. Gillespie being Gillespie is a great sign for the Cats heading into the season.

2. Caleb Daniels has strong showing. Daniels seemed to draw much of the fans' ire during an up-and-down campaign in 2020-21. On Thursday, Daniels looked much like the player Villanova hoped to get when he transferred into the program. He matched Gillespie with 22 points, shooting a stellar 6-10 from beyond the arc. Daniels added some contributions on the glass, handing out assists and with some steals on the defensive end, but the shooting is what stands out. If he can connect from 3 on somewhere around 40% and consistently contribute double-figure scoring it would go a long way towards helping the Cats reach their ceiling.

3. Brandon Slater shows scoring touch. Slater dropped in 16 points on an efficient 6-12 shooting. He has already proven his value on the defensive end, and if he can complement those skills with some consistent scoring it could really push Nova to another level.

Overall, the shooting wasn't great but there's no reason to think that will be a season-long issue. Gillespie's health was the most important question and the early returns were very good.

The Wildcats hit the court in front of fans for the first time this 2021-22 season on Thursday night during the annual Blue & White scrimmage and there were a couple notable absences.

A pair of freshmen missed the event as Jordan Longino is dealing with a bone bruise and Nnanna Njoku is continuing to progress through concussion protocol. Neither is expected to be a long-term issue.

Longino has been doing individual work and Jay Wright expects him to return to practice around the middle of next week. Meanwhile, Njoku is close but Wright wanted to give him another day rather than risk a potential setback by having him participate in the event.

Another big get for Jay Wright and the Cats as the No. 22 ranked player in the class of 2022, Cam Whitmore, picks Villanova. 2022 class is coming together beautifully for Wright as Whitmore joins Mark Armstrong and Brendan Hausen.

Per Joseph Tipton, key Nova target and top 25 2022 player Cam Whitmore will announce his college decision on Thursday at 3 PM. Whitmore is choosing between Villanova, North Carolina and Illinois.

The consensus around Whitmore has been leaning towards Nova for over a month now, and I heard from another source today that believes Nova will be the choice. Recruiting can always produce some surprises, but Nova has to feel good about its position right now. Could be a big day tomorrow, and we will have the decision up as soon as it's announced.

DCR will not play in 2021-22, though he will remain on scholarship and remain with the team in an off-court role.

We have the complete picture of the 2021-22 schedule. Couple oddities: the season opener is on a Tuesday and is slated for a 4:30 PM tip. The Howard game on Nov. 16 is on FS2, the Jan. 19 Marquette game and February 15 game at Providence are on CBSSN and the December 1 game at Penn appears to be set to be behind a TV paywall as it's slated for ESPN+ so prepare accordingly. You can see the full information at the link below.

With Wright being away for long stretches this summer, the coach was pleased/impressed with the work of his assistants and upperclassmen in getting the team ready for the season.

Collin Gillespie also spoke with reporters Tuesday and of course the big topic was his health and rehab from the knee injury. Gillespie has a positive update, saying unequivocally that he is 100%.

Gillespie then elaborated a bit...“I feel really good. Summer was a grind just with rehab and lifting, getting back into shape. It was tough not being able to play basketball but having to do all the other stuff to get back, but early August once we got back I was able to start working out again so that was really good. I feel really good. I’m at a good point I feel like.”

Jay Wright met with reporters Tuesday morning and one topic that was covered was the injury situation. There were several ailments of note.

Freshman Nnanna Njoku is in concussion protocol. Wright said that he is in the "backend" of the protocol so it sounds like he won't be out for long. Wright noted that Njoku has had a good summer.

Bryan Antoine is dealing with yet another injury, this time with his knee, more specifically his patellar tendon. The injury is recent so there is no official timetable for his return, but Wright said the injury will not require surgery and it isn't expected to be something that puts Antoine's season in doubt. Still, another tough blow for Antoine who hasn't been able to catch a break since arriving at Nova.

Finally, there is still no decision on Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree, but Wright indicated "it's not looking good." The program is working with the NCAA to determine if DCR could have another year of eligibility should he not be able to play this year.

2022 4-star shooting guard Brendan Hausen has committed to Villanova, per his Instagram page. Hausen is currently ranked 39th in his class by Rivals and has been one of the most impressive 2022's in the country this summer.

The 6-5 guard is from Amarillo, Texas and was considered a pretty strong Texas Tech lean prior to Villanova's involvement. Pretty impressive by Jay Wright and company to go into Texas and pull Hausen. Hausen joins Mark Armstrong in a 2022 recruiting class that is off to a strong start.