Liam Murphy (NJ) visited VU in September. He is also looking at G'town.

We're getting information out of Sunday's secret scrimmage between Villanova and North Carolina.

The most eye-opening nugget was the performance of Justin Moore, who scored 39 points on 9-12 shooting from three-point range. That's an encouraging sign for Villanova going forward.

The teams played 4 separate sessions, with each team winning two.

Villanova won the first session, which lasted 20 minutes, 44-36. The Cats also took session two, a six-minute period, 8-7. North Carolina took the next two, a 43-36 win in 20 minutes and an 18-12 victory in eight minutes. Both teams played zone defense in the final two sessions.

We've learned to take the results of all preseason matchups, either scrimmages or exhibition games, with a grain of salt. Still, it's great the Cats were able to play pretty much even with the Tar Heels, and hopefully, Moore can carry that kind of shooting over to the regular season. At the very least, it should provide an excellent learning opportunity and some much-needed experience for this young Villanova team.

It's always a pleasure to observe Jay Wright work, and Thursday's open practice gave us some intriguing insights.

https://villanova.rivals.com/news/observations-from-open-practice-1

A rundown of the topics Wright discussed Thursday afternoon.

https://villanova.rivals.com/news/jay-wright-speaks-at-nova-media-day

Villanova hosted its annual men's basketball media day on Thursday. We'll have some more comprehensive coverage coming later, but wanted to just get out a couple of quick observations while putting together some more in-depth thoughts.

-Jay Wright was not pleased with the performance against USC. The first indication of that was the fact the start of media day was delayed as the team was in a film session. Wright also hinted at his displeasure with the performance last week a couple of times during his media availability.

-The start of open practice was much louder than in previous years. I don't know what the takeaway from that is, but it was something that certainly stood out.

-Collin Gillespie will not play in the "secret" scrimmage against North Carolina, but Wright is hopeful he will be ready for the season opener. He said they plan to test Gillespie on Monday, seeing if he can participate in live practice.

-Bryan Antoine is progressing and appears to be on track for a mid-to-late December debut. Wright said everything's been going well, there have been no setbacks, and he hopes to have him participate in practice towards the end of November.

We'll take a deeper dive into Wright's comments and have a look at what we saw in the open portion of practice later today or tomorrow.

Rivals' Eric Bossi caught up with elite 2022 big man Jalen Duran and got an update on the progress in his game and on his recruitment. Duran is already ranked No. 2 in his class and stands at 6-10. Holding early offers from Miami, Maryland, and Penn State, he told Bossi that Villanova has been interested as well.

In addition to the fact Duren is just a sophomore in high school, there is another concern for programs looking to recruit him, and that's the NBA. It's very possible that 2022 will be the first year that high school players can go directly to the NBA, and at this point, it's hard to see Duren not taking that path if it's available.

The good news is you can keep a close eye on Duren, his development, and his journey towards either highly-coveted recruit or NBA lottery pick, as he plays at Roman Catholic in Philadelphia.

Well, the second half didn't go quite as well as the first, and Nova fell to USC on Friday night in their first action of the 2019-20 season.

We're not going to overreact to the first game action of a young team in an exhibition game, but we'll share some thoughts and takeaways.

After being a strength in the first half, rebounding became a problem in the second. USC got a lot of extra opportunities, helping to change the tide. The Cats also struggled to score for stretches in the second half. Rust most likely played a factor, and as a result, the Cats shot just 37.3 percent from the field and 23.5 percent from deep. Overall, the defense was OK considering the youth and the fact that it was their first action against an actual opponent, but USC managed to shoot 44.8 percent from the floor and 41.2 percent from beyond the arc.

The Bad:

One question that emerged is who will be able to go get a bucket for the Cats when they absolutely need one. After a 9-0 run early in the second half gave the Cats an eight-point lead, they could do little to stem the momentum shift. When they struggled to score the ball, no one was able to step up and stem the tide. Saddiq Bey showed flashes of being that guy, but he needs to be more aggressive.

The complete switch on the boards was disappointing. A first half strength turned into a second half weakness, and it had a major impact on the outcome. Certainly a lesson for the young Cats.

At times the spacing got messed up offensively, leading to convoluted and stagnant possessions. Again, much of this can be attributed to a young team/early season, and it will be another lesson for the group.

Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree didn't show signs of being the double-double machine he was last year at the AdvoCare Invitational. He was incredibly quiet with two points and five rebounds. We're certainly not writing him off, but the hope was that he would come out and look like he did in Orlando last November, and we didn't get that Friday night.

Cole Swider continued to struggle. After knocking down his first shot of the game, Swider missed his next seven to finish 1-8 (1-7 from three). Swider is young and has plenty of time to get going, but so far his highly-regarded shot hasn't translated to the college game, and that's a concern that wasn't alleviated on Friday.

The Good:

While the defense didn't jump off the page, the lack of complete breakdowns was encouraging. Lapses are expected for young teams, so considering the circumstances the overall defensive performance was encouraging.

Despite the occasional spacing issues, the ball movement was good for the most part. The extra pass was being made and the swing passes were crisp.

JEREMIAH ROBINSON-EARL. Perhaps the biggest bright spot of the night was the heralded freshman. He led all scorers with 20 points on 10-15 shooting while adding nine rebounds, one assist, one steal, and one block. He looked comfortable and showed off a high-level basketball IQ. He clearly looks ready to meet expectations.

Justin Moore didn't have his shot working Friday night, finishing with 8 points on 3-11 shooting. But he looked comfortable running the point. His playmaking skills will need to develop, but he looked ready to be out there and has a solid foundation to build from.

Saddiq Bey looks ready to continue his progression after emerging last season. We'd like to see him be a bit more aggressive, but he finished with 16 points and nine rebounds, shooting 5-11 from the floor and 4-7 from three.

Overall:

It was pretty much what you would expect from a mid-October exhibition game with a young team: a mixed bag. They showed some good things, and the showing from JRE was extremely encouraging. There is also plenty to work on, and consistency is something they're going to have to develop. We'll take much of this with a grain of salt, especially considering the Cats were without Collin Gillespie and Bryan Antoine.

It was great to see the Cats back on the court, and it should be fun to watch these guys develop this season and beyond.

Pretty solid half for the Cats, who lead 28-27.

The expected rust and feeling out processes were present, most notably in the shooting department. There were some occasional spacing issues, but overall not bad considering the circumstances.

Saddiq Bey looked good, and Justin Moore looked incredibly comfortable out there. JRE looks ready to make an early impact.

The ball movement was pretty good, and the Cats did a nice job on the glass, especially the offensive glass where they pulled down seven second chances in the half. Considering youth and the fact that it's their first game action, the defense was solid.

The Rivals' national reporter sat down with five-star 2021 Max Christie, who holds a Villanova offer. The pair discussed his time at USA Basketball, what he's working on in his game, what he's looking for in his college choice, and some schools that have been involved. Villanova was one of the schools Christie mentioned when asked who has been checking in on him.

I'll post the link and let you watch the video for yourselves, but wanted to note a couple things. One, it seems like his recruitment remains in its infancy, and he mentioned focusing on his upcoming high school season, so it feels like we're a long way away from a decision. And two, while it's hard to glean a whole lot from a four-minute interview, it's hard not to love this kid. He projected great energy in the interview as well as displaying an impressive level of maturity. He seems very level-headed and intelligent and appears to have a great head on his shoulders.

You can watch the full interview here:

https://basketballrecruiting.rivals...d-others-in-pursuit-of-five-star-max-christie

Friday, 11 PM, on the PAC-12 Network, which Comcast carries, Channel 1329, in the Philly area.
There is also an Apple app for the PAC-12 Network.

After Villanova defeats William & Mary tomorrow, the team will be undefeated at 6 and 0, on the season. It would be the team's best start in 20 years. Nova has the highest scoring offense in their league (CAA), at 40.4 points per game, and they are currently ranked #8, in the country. Their Junior QB, Daniel Smith, and Justin Covington (#3) are well worth watching. Covington has rushed for 100+ yards in every game this season.
Most of their games are not televised, but 7 to 10 minute highlight films of every game are available on YouTube.

So, earlier today Jay Wright seemed to be hinting that a redshirt for five-star freshman Bryan Antoine was a very real possibility. Needless to say, there was some surprise when Antoine was not only on the court ahead of the Blue/White scrimmage Thursday night but was also getting up shots and looking just fine doing it. He was shooting from beyond the arc, and he was knocking them down.

Now, this doesn't mean he's magically healed and ready to play, but the sight clashed pretty strikingly with the picture that Wright's comments painted this morning. We'll have to wait for clarification, but it was still an encouraging sign.

It's also worth noting that word is that Justin Moore has been getting most of Antoine's time and has been acquitting himself well.

We've spent the afternoon getting caught up on all the news out of Big East media day, from the Wildcats not being the conference's preseason favorite for the first time in five years, to a potential redshirt for Bryan Antoine, to the All-Conference Team selections. While much of today's news has had a tone of disappointment or concern in regards to Villanova, there was also some good news as star freshman Jeremiah Robinson-Earl was selected as the conference's preseason Freshman of the Year.

It's easy to understand why Robinson-Earl was the selection. He comes to Nova as a five-star recruit who is ranked 11th in his class. He's also coming off a summer in which he had a solid showing with Team USA in Greece. And finally, he comes to a Villanova team that is lacking its usual senior leadership, opening the door for Robinson-Earl to contribute from day one. In fact, I'd be stunned if he wasn't starting on opening night, but we'll try to get a better feel for that over the next few weeks. The less-than-encouraging news on fellow freshman Bryan Antoine should only increase JRE's opportunities. The mix of talent and opportunity make him an easy choice for the award.

With the way Jahvon Quinerly was handled last season, there will be some scrutiny on JRE's situation. But it appears to be a completely different scenario, and early indications are that the freshmen group is picking things up well. Robinson-Earl's complete skillset and experience with Team USA should help him make the transition to the college game, and expectations are that he will be a contributor from the opening tip of the season.

For the first time in what seems like forever, Villanova isn't represented on the preseason All-Conference First Team selections. Instead, Collin Gillespie and Jermaine Samuels represent the Cats on the Second Team.

The First Team consists of Butler's Kamar Baldwin, Creighton's Ty-Shon Alexander, Marquette's Markus Howard, Providence's Alpha Diallo, and Xavier's Naji Marshall. Seton Hall's Myles Powell was selected preseason Player of the Year. In fairness, it's hard to argue with those selections and the young Wildcats have more to prove before being considered on the level of those players.

Joining Gillespie and Samuels on the Second Team are DePaul's Paul Reed, Georgetown's James Akinjo, and a pair of St. John's' players in L.J. Figueroa and Mustapha Heron.

It should be fun to see how everything shakes out, but even if these predictions prove true it shouldn't be long before Nova is once again represented on the First Team.

For the first time in five years, Villanova will not enter the season as the coaches pick to win the conference. The Wildcats were edged out of the top spot in favor of Seton Hall by a single point.

This is purely speculation on my part, but it's possible that Jay Wright cast his vote for the Pirates at the top of the conference while Pirates coach Kevin Willard (intentionally?) put someone besides Nova at the top of his knowing it would be a close race between the two teams at the top of the conference. I don't know Willard, so I can't speak as to whether that type of pettiness or gamesmanship is in him, but it seems a little weird.

At the end of the day it doesn't matter, as preseason polls are meaningless and things will ultimately be decided on the court.

As evidence of how open the middle of the conference is this year, teams 3-7 in the poll were separated by just seven points.

After Seton Hall and Nova, the poll went Xavier, a tie between Providence and Marquette, Georgetown, Creighton, Butler, St. John's, and DePaul.

It should be an incredibly fun season in the Big East, and now the Wildcats will have a bit of a chip on their shoulder come conference play.

The Big East held its annual media day at Madison Square Garden on Thursday, and we'll recap all the Nova-related tidbits here throughout the day. But perhaps the biggest news for the Wildcats was Jay Wright acknowledging that a redshirt for five-star freshman Bryan Antoine is a "possibility."

Wright said Antoine's torn labrum wasn't correctly diagnosed until he got to Villanova, when he had surgery to correct the issue on May 31. Wright noted that Antoine hasn't been able to "do anything" yet and doesn't expect him to practice until mid to late November.

Wright said the goal is to "get him through his rehab first" and then see "how much the layoff has affected him." One positive is that Wright said the rehab is "going well" but even so the timing puts his season in question.

It's disappointing news for the Cats, who were excited to have one of their top recruits on the court and contributing this season. It appears that we'll probably get a decision sometime in December, but the signs aren't encouraging at this point.

We'll dig into the ramifications of the ultimate decision once it is made, but one thing that comes to mind immediately is whether Wright's knowledge of the situation has played into how he's approached recruiting this summer. Is it possible Wright has been expecting a redshirt for some time and is essentially considering Antoine a 2020 recruit at this point? We don't know for sure, but it would help to explain how this past summer played out. For now, we'll continue to monitor the Antoine situation and update as we learn more, but it appears we won't see him for at least the first six weeks of the season and possibly not until next season.

After an incredibly quiet summer on the recruiting front that seemed to produce only disappointing news, we finally have some positive news to report. Five-star small forward A.J. Griffin will be on campus this weekend for an official visit, per Rivals' Corey Evans. Griffin is currently ranked 8th in the 2021 Rivals 150.

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Devin Askew was originally scheduled to visit today, but canceled that visit and will instead be at Kentucky as his recruitment appears to be a Kentucky vs. Louisville race. Having Griffin visit instead is a wonderful "consolation" prize as he would be an incredible addition for the Cats. Any time you're getting a top 10 player on campus, it's a good thing.

Given the roster construction, the quiet surrounding the 2020 class isn't particularly surprising. But that doesn't make it any easier watching guys once connected to Villanova head elsewhere, especially as the Cats look to cement and maintain their spot among the nation's elite. Even though it makes sense, having such a quiet summer is tough to deal with when you now expect the program to be a destination for recruits.

However, this has allowed Jay Wright and staff to allocate resources to the 2021 class, and hopes remain high that it will be another banner group for the program. The Cats are involved with a plethora of elite recruits in that class, and having Griffin on campus is a great opportunity to begin making an impression.

With the charity exhibition against USC as the only exhibition game scheduled ahead of the season, we kind of expected another closed-door joint practice/scrimmage to emerge, and courtesy of Stadium Sports Jeff Goodman, we now know that the Cats will in fact have one of those sessions, this one against North Carolina for the second-straight year. It is scheduled for October 27.

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As you probably recall, the Cats and Tar Heels got together ahead of the start of last season and we received reports that Phil Booth dropped 41 points while Eric Paschall had 24 and Saddiq Bey 23.

Jay Wright has made a habit of these closed scrimmages with ACC teams, as Nova also had a pair of them with Virginia recently as well. While there are a ton of factors that have contributed to Nova's recent success, you can't help but wonder if these preseason meetings with elite ACC schools have had at least some impact. Regardless, it should be a great experience for another anomalously young Wildcat team.

Nova Nation received some not-so-great news Wednesday as Rivals' Corey Evans reported that elite 2021 PG Devin Askew has canceled his early October visit to Villanova. He has instead scheduled a visit to Kentucky.

The move is a pretty clear indication that Villanova won't be the choice, and it is a disappointing development on the recruiting front. Askew has had a stellar summer and looked like a prime candidate to continue Villanova's tradition of Guard U. Between his game and his maturity, there was a lot to like about Askew.

The lack of action with the class of 2020, while understandable considering the current roster construction, has served to create a bit of an atmosphere of weariness on the recruiting front, and an early disappointment in the 2021 class doesn't help to ease that feeling.

The one positive here is that it happened early, giving Jay Wright and staff plenty of time to adjust and reallocate resources.

Things have remained relatively quiet on the recruiting trail through mid-September. Sure, the Cats have been putting in the work, most notably sending three coaches to check in on A.J. Griffin last week and setting up both in-home and official campus visits with Devin Askew (more on Askew coming shortly). But we also had some news that more directly impacted the Cats yesterday.

Lynn Greer III told Rivals' Corey Evans that he would be reclassifying to the 2021 class. This is significant because Villanova will have more room and be able to paint a clearer picture of playing time for recruits in that class.

With five players hitting campus in the 2019 class, the lack of scholarship seniors on the 2019-20 team, and the fact that Caleb Daniels will be joining the mix in 2020 after sitting out this season, the roster is incredibly crowded. It's possible that Jeremiah Robinson-Earl and/or Bryan Antoine head to the NBA early, but we won't have a clearer idea of that possibility until they actually play some games and we see how draft big boards start to shake out.

As such, Wright and Co. have been taking a wait and see approach with the 2020 class. If JRE and/or Antoine look likely to head to the NBA, the Cats could add a late commitment in 2020, but if not they could continue to focus on the 2021 class when the roster opens up a bit.

Regardless, 2021 has really been the focus this summer and fall, and the Wildcats have been pushing hard for some of the bigger names in the class. Still, Greer's announcement has to make you think he becomes a little bit more interesting to Villanova, and he'll be someone to keep an eye on going forward.

Rivals' Krysten Peek caught up with elite 2021 guard Devin Askew, who has seen a flurry of activity in his recruitment over the past few weeks and has become a priority for the Wildcats. Askew touched on a wide range of topics, including some thoughts on the main schools involved with his recruitment, what he's looking for in his college choice, and when a commitment could come.

First things first, Askew answered definitively that he will remain in the class of 2021 after some consideration of reclassifying into 2020. In my opinion, this is a positive for Nova just in terms of the roster construction. Remaining in the class of 2021 puts Askew in a position where Nova can offer him a more clear and sizeable role.

Askew's thoughts on what he's looking for were particularly interesting. First, he noted that he is looking at what the schools offer in terms of recovery and taking care of the player's bodies. He mentioned the amount of basketball elite recruits play these days, and wanting to make sure his body is both prepared for those demands and also that schools are prepared to help the players recover from such a workload. That answer demonstrates an impressive amount of maturity and foresight on the young man's behalf. That's not something we often hear recruits talk about. He also noted that he wants a good coach and wants to be in a place where he can have fun with his teammates both on and off the court.

In terms of Villanova, he noted that Jay Wright and staff are impressing upon him that they will help prepare him for the next level.

As far a timeline for a decision, Askew said it's likely to come later in October after his next round of work with USA Basketball. After his recent Instagram announcement that a commitment was coming "soon," this would also seem to be a positive development for Nova, as Askew appears intent on taking his visit to Villanova in the first week of October. He is also planning on visiting Memphis and Kentucky in that time frame.

Right now it appears that Nova is battling Louisville, Memphis, Kentucky, Arizona, and Gonzaga. It will be tough to pull off, but it appears that Wright and company will have every opportunity to make their case. October is looking like it will be an interesting month on the recruiting trail.

You can watch the full interview at the link below:

https://basketballrecruiting.rivals.com/news/five-star-devin-askew-sets-announcement-date

One realizes how far the Villanova track program has fallen when one sees the results. Yes, they won the Big East indoors, but the Big East is a basketball conference.

Yesterday some competed at the Florida Relays and the Stanford Invitational. MacArthur did well in the 800, but the winner was Danae Rivers (Penn State) and 2nd was Gabrielle Wilkinson (Florida). Rivers is from Connecticut and Wilkinson from Pennsylvania – both in Villanova’s prime recruiting territory. Did Villanova bother to recruit them?

The only other one who seemed to perform well was Logan Wetzel at Stanford Invitational running 3:44.73 (1500) - equivalent to 4:02.6 mile.

What was even more disconcerting was there were no Villanova runners in the men’s 800 at the Florida Relays, but there were lots of guys running well for G’town and Columbia. Where was Villanova? This used to be an outstanding middle-distance school Note: VU men have not run a 4x800 at Penn Relays for several years.

The saddest observation was that Brian Faust (Purdue) finished 5th in the 400 in 46.05 at the Florida Relays. Last year he was an outstanding frosh at Villanova. What happened? How do you “lose” a runner of that quality when you have no one on your team who can break 48?

Recruiting class looks good - so far - but men need a lot of work after years of neglect. And do not let last year’s success at Penn Relays fool you. Yes, it felt good and the women are for real, but there was no Oregon, no Stanford, no Arkansas, no …

Some important news on the recruiting front today as five-star point guard Devin Askew posted a teaser on Instagram stating "Commitment coming soon! Date coming soon! Let's get this!"

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Askew has an official visit to Villanova scheduled for October 4 and an unofficial with Memphis the day before that. He officially visited Louisville earlier this month. In addition, he's also recently been visited by John Calipari, Chris Mack, Penny Hardaway, and Sean Miller. Jay Wright was expected to meet with Askew today.

All of that is to say things have been incredibly busy for Askew and it's hard to glean any clues from the timing of the announcement. The post was added to his Instagram story rather than just a regular post, so it doesn't have a specific time-stamp on it. Furthermore, it's unclear if it was posted before or after the scheduled meeting with Wright. If it was after, that would bode well for the Wildcats.

What we can discern is that Askew apparently feels he has all the info he needs to make his decision. It will be interesting to see if he decides to take his scheduled visits to Memphis and Villanova. Obviously, if he selects an announcement date after those visits or if he takes those visits before any further updates are provided, that's great news for those schools.

Regardless, the wheels are in motion and it appears we'll be getting more info and ultimately a commitment sooner rather than later. For now, we'll wait for further details while paying close attention to whether or not his early October visits take place.

Right now the consensus is that this is a Louisville vs. Kentucky race, but I wouldn't write off contenders like Nova, Memphis, or Arizona just yet. Based on the wording of his post, I'd expect an announcement of a commitment date first, and we'll be keeping a close eye on the calendar while awaiting that news.

It's been incredibly quiet on the recruiting front, but we finally have a bit of news and it is encouraging news.

The top point guard in the class of 2021, Devin Askew, has scheduled an official visit to Villanova. That visit is scheduled for October 4.

He is expected to take an unofficial visit to Memphis the day before his trip to Nova and has already visited Louisville officially. In addition, he is expected to officially visit Kentucky later this year.

Askew is currently ranked 10th in his class by Rivals.

Highlighting games and stretches that jump out from the newly released 2019-20 schedule as we inch closer to the return of Nova hoops.

https://villanova.rivals.com/news/initial-takeaways-from-the-2019-20-schedule