Philadelphia High School Basketball
Jordan Longino Beats Injuries, Becomes Starter | Meet the Wildcats

This is one in a series of stories introducing the Villanova Wildcats’ 2024-25 roster.
When Jordan Longino signed with Villanova in November 2020, he ranked as one of the best young players in the nation.
ESPN’s Top 100 ranked the now 6-foot-5, 215 pound shooting guard as the No. 83 player in the class of 2021, while 247Sports rated him much higher at No. 43. A consensus four-star recruit out of Germantown Academy in nearby Fort Washington, Pa., where he also served as the starting quarterback, the Wildcats were receiving a special athletic talent by any measure.
The son of Eric Longino, who suited up for SMU Basketball in the late 1980s, Jordan Longino chose Villanova over offers from Maryland, Indiana, Penn State and Virginia.
Fast forward to the 2024-25 season, Longino’s senior year, and things haven’t gone quite like one might expect for a player with such a lofty recruiting pedigree.
Longino appeared in 26 contests for the Wildcats during his true freshman season, working his way onto the court for bench minutes on a team that made the Final Four, although a knee injury suffered in practice prevented him from taking part in the NCAA Tournament. He solidified his place as one of the Wildcats’ first options off the bench during his next two seasons, playing roughly 21 minutes per night with the occasional spot start. Injuries continued to limit Longino’s effectiveness, including a hamstring injury that held him out for more than a month during his sophomore year.
Joining the Mix
Villanova needed to overhaul their roster at guard this offseason, with Jordan Longino the only scholarship player returning to the Wildcats at the position. While head coach Kyle Neptune and his staff ended up bringing in five new guards between high school recruiting and the transfer portal, Longino still managed to secure a starting spot, averaging 30.2 minutes per game through the Wildcats’ 11-game nonconference slate to begin the season.
To Longino’s credit, he stuck it out with Villanova despite the struggles endured to this point in his career, finally reaping the reward of his efforts with a consistent starting role this season. With 8.8 points, 2.9 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.5 steals per game for the Wildcats, Longino does a bit of everything, although his defensive presence is perhaps his best offering for the team.
Shooting could use some work, as he’s currently making 38.7 percent of shots from the field, but that rate is dragged down by the fact that he takes nearly half of his shots from three, where he converts at a paltry 25.5 percent clip.
That said, to hear Kyle Neptune talk about Longino, it’s clear that he’s the type of player — and person — that any coach would love to have on their roster, whether it’s his defense, his presence as a teammate or his commitment to the team, working his way back from injuries in order to make an impact with little regard to his own health.
Career Stats:
Year | GP | MIN | FG% | 3% | FT% | REB | AST | STL | PF | TO | PTS |
21-22 | 26 | 8.6 | 32.7 | 30.8 | 100 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 0.5 | 1.2 | 0.6 | 1.8 |
22-23 | 25 | 20.9 | 39.6 | 23.2 | 75.6 | 2.1 | 1.0 | 0.4 | 1.7 | 1.1 | 5.0 |
23-24 | 29 | 21.7 | 40.9 | 32.5 | 83.3 | 2.5 | 1.5 | 0.8 | 1.8 | 1.0 | 6.6 |