Villanova Learns Path in Big East Tournament Bracket

With the 2024-25 regular season concluded for teams in the Big East, Villanova Men’s Basketball now knows their path in the Big East Tournament bracket.

The Wildcats (18-13, 11-9 Big East) will face the pitiful Seton Hall Pirates (7-24, 2-18 Big East) in the opening round, the No. 6 vs No. 11 seed matchup. Villanova swept the Pirates this season, opening conference play with a 79-67 home win back in December before eking out a 59-54 road win with a second half comeback on Feb. 26.

The 9 p.m. matchup on Wednesday, March 12 at Madison Square Garden should turn into a cakewalk for the Wildcats… but they’ve shown a maddening ability to lose the games they should win (and win games they’re expected to lose) this season. If Villanova advances, they’ll face No. 3 seed UConn, who they beat 68-66 on Jan. 8 before blowing a double digit second half lead in Hartford on Feb. 18: not the worst matchup in the world, as they’ve played the Huskies tough this season, but no easy feat either.

The Wildcats will need to run the table if they have any hope of making the NCAA Tournament. Even if they secure a spot in the championship game with wins in the first three rounds, putting them at 21 wins on the season, they’d possess just a 0.5 percent chance of making the NCAA Tournament per teamrankings.com. They remain in the picture on the NCAA Tournament bubble, checking in at No. 78 in Joe Lunardi’s latest rankings… but with little time remaining in the season, they don’t have much of a chance of climbing over the teams in front of them and securing an at-large bid.

Click here for the full Big East Tournament bracket.