Inside Luigi Suigo’s Villanova Debut: Figuring Out Fouls, American Tempo

Villanova center Luigi Suigo made his American basketball debut on Sunday, Oct. 11 when the Wildcats beat Rutgers in a preseason exhibition. The 7-foot-4 Italian scored 10 points on 5-of-10 shooting, adding eight rebounds, three assists, three blocks and three personal fouls across 30 minutes played while shaking off the nerves of playing for Villanova for the first time.

“I’m not gonna lie, I was a little bit emotional,” Suigo said. “First time playing in the US, new team, new everything. It was really amazing. I’m happy that I made this choice to come play at Villanova.”

Adjusting to America

His fouls marked an improvement from his last stop, playing in Belgrade, Serbia for Mega Superbet of the Adriatic Basketball Association: there he averaged three personal fouls per game in 18 minutes off the bench. Villanova head coach Kevin Willard said that Suigo’s adjusting to American rule quirks could cause some extra whistles.

“I think he’s gonna have his up and down moments with fouls, getting used to — one was an offensive call where, in Europe, that’s not an offensive call, and here it is,” Willard said. “So him getting used to those kinds of rules is gonna take a little time.”

Another potential challenge for Suigo is the speed of American guards, who darted around him on at least two plays in the paint during the Rutgers game.

“The guards from the US are pretty different from the guards in Europe, so the way I have to play defense and help my teammates on the pick-and-rolls, for example, is different,” Suigo said. “They were more flashy, athletic, so that’s one thing I want to keep working with and getting better.”

The return of Kwame Evans Jr., who didn’t play against Rutgers and was listed as day-to-day with a foot injury, should help Suigo out with another imposing presence in the paint.

“As soon as he’s back and playing for real, I think it’s gonna be hard for the other team to guard,” Suigo said. “We’re big, strong, Devin Royal’s gonna be the three, so we’re gonna be good.”

A Smooth Transition

Royal, for his part, praised Suigo for how he’s adjusted to basketball in the United States.

“He’s definitely very coachable. He’s learning, he’s getting better day by day,” Royal said. “Very strong around the paint, around the rim. Easy rebounds, I mean he’s 7’4, so not much you can do about it.”

Suigo arrived at Villanova in late July: Willard said that although missing some of the Wildcats’ offseason programming put him at a disadvantage in terms of his condition, Suigo’s dedication to film study has helped him adjust as he gets up to speed.

“I think he’s transitioning great. He really is. Not getting him over here till the middle of July hurt him in the weight room a little bit, but he’s done a really good job of studying the game,” Willard said. “He’s really watching film with the assistants and just getting used to how we play defense and how fast the American game is.”