Villanova Misses 2025 Recruit Chance Mallory’s Top 5

Class of 2025 point guard Chance Mallory narrowed his college decision to five schools on Thursday, March 6, and despite holding an offer from Villanova Men’s Basketball, the Wildcats didn’t make the cut.

Instead, per an interview with On3, Mallory will take his services to one of Maryland, Tennessee, Virginia, Virginia Tech and Vanderbilt… although with Terrapins head coach Kevin Willard as a potential target in Villanova’s national coaching search, the four star recruit might not be entirely out of play.

Mallory initially committed to the Virginia Cavaliers, but decommitted from the program in October following the surprise retirement of longtime head coach Tony Bennett on the eve of the 2024-25 season. As Mallory’s recruitment reopened, the 5-foot-9 point guard maintained that he’d keep the door open for any of the teams who’d tendered him an offer… including Villanova, who did so back in October 2023.

However, the Wildcats never made a concerted push for Mallory’s talents despite having just one commitment, legacy recruit Dante Allen, in the class of 2025. As Mallory scheduled a wave of visits to programs from major conferences, the Wildcats became a notable exception to the list.

Uncertainty surrounding the future of former Villanova head coach Kyle Neptune, who received his dismissal from the program on Saturday, March 15, could’ve played a role in the cooled off recruiting process.