Villanova Pummels Holy Cross Behind Luigi Suigo Double-Double

Villanova, Pa. — Villanova Men’s Basketball cruised to a 95-66 win over Holy Cross in their 2026-27 home opener on Friday, Nov. 6, riding a resurgent effort from Luigi Suigo and Devin Royal to victory. The Wildcats (1-1) raced out to a 24-9 lead in the first ten minutes behind 9-0 and 8-0 runs; Jake Fiegen capped the first scoring burst with his second of five made three-pointers, forcing a Crusaders timeout.

Tyler Perkins had a rare off night, recording four fouls and making just two of 12 shots. Suigo posted the first double-double of his college career with 16 points, 15 rebounds, five assists and four blocks, while Royal led the field in scoring with 22 points. Suigo flashed a connection with point guard Elijah Crawford — who started at the position over senior Buddy Simmons II, a lineup change from Villanova’s season opener — with a pair of alley-oop dunks in the first half. Crawford went on to notch eight assists to just one turnover.

The Wildcats’ shooting started to tail off late in the period, but they still made 38 of 74 shots on the night along with 28 assists. Fiegen caught fire out of the U16 timeout in the second half, making three consecutive three-point shots and pushing Villanova’s lead north of 20 points. After a series of chippy plays midway through the half, Holy Cross forward Elijah Flowers was assessed a Flagrant 1 foul against Devin Royal, helping to spark an 11-0 run out of the Wildcats. That sparked a Crusaders timeout, and Kevin Willard began rotating in his reserves out of the break.

Up next, Villanova will host La Salle at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 10 in their first of two Big 5 pod play games.