The Wildcats ushered in a return to respectability last season under coach Kevin Willard, who returned Villanova to the NCAA Tournament after a three-year absence following the sudden retirement of Hall of Fame coach Jay Wright. The Wildcats lost consecutive games to end the season, in the Big East Tournament and in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to Utah State. Like so many coaches in this era, Willard completely revamped his roster and is trying to get the Wildcats to take the next step on conference contention and with deep runs in March.

Players to watch

Look for the Italian Wemby: The Wildcats hope 7-foot-3 Italian center Luigi Suigo will have an elite season in what is expected to be his only season in the program. The 19-year-old is a projected lottery pick and played last season for Mega Basket in Serbia’s Adriatic League, where he averaged 18.3 minutes, 7.9 points and 5.1 rebounds in 26 games. ... Guard Tyler Perkins is back after he earned Big East most improved player honors last season. He averaged 13.7 points and 5.4 rebounds while starting all 33 games.

Departures and arrivals

It’s nothing but departures and arrivals anymore in college basketball. The Wildcats lost: Duke Brennan, Bryce Lindsay, Acaden Lewis, Devin Askew, Malachi Palmer, Chris Jeffrey, Tafara Gapare, Zion Stanford, Braden Pierce and Malcolm Flaggs. ... Suigo highlights the newcomers. ... Arrivals include Devin Royal, a senior transfer from Ohio State who averaged 13.7 points and 5.7 rebounds; Jake Fiegen, a 6-4 graduate transfer from Cornell who averaged 17.1 points and 5.1 rebounds; and Elijah Crawford, a junior transfer from Illinois-Chicago who averaged 14.1 points and 4.9 assists. He played his first season at BYU.

Top games

The Villanova and Notre Dame men’s and women’s teams will meet Sunday in a doubleheader in Rome that will mark the start of the college basketball season. The event has been dubbed the Eternal City Tip-Off and there will be a Vatican component: Villanova alumnus Pope Leo XIV is scheduled to hold an audience with players and traveling fans. The Wildcats host Michigan on Nov 21 at the city’s NBA arena where the 76ers play. Villanova has a Black Friday game at Kansas in Allen Fieldhouse. The Wildcats are set to play one of the other Division I city teams in the final Big 5 Class. Villanova said it was exiting the famed city series at the end of this season.

Facts and figures

Perkins was named to the Jerry West Award watchlist. The award celebrates the top shooting guard in Division I college basketball. He was also named first team All-Big East. ... The Wildcats lost 10 of their top 11 scorers, including four starters, and nearly 5,000 minutes played from last season’s lineup. ... Villanova was picked in the Big East preseason poll. ... The Wildcats have not won an NCAA Tournament game since Wright led them to the 2022 Final Four.