January 7, 2031
Code:
2030 Big East Conference Standings
TEAM CW CL Pct W L Pct RPI Prestige
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#1 Villanova 0 0 .000 13 0 1.000 4 100
#7 West Virginia 0 0 .000 11 1 .917 5 97
#10 Louisville 0 0 .000 11 1 .917 15 89
#14 Pittsburgh 0 0 .000 10 2 .833 81 86
Syracuse 0 0 .000 9 3 .750 23 66
St. John's 0 0 .000 8 4 .667 22 75
Cincinnati 0 0 .000 8 3 .727 39 64
DePaul 0 0 .000 8 3 .727 51 55
#22 Georgetown 0 0 .000 8 3 .727 144 100
Providence 0 0 .000 8 3 .727 245 71
Connecticut 0 0 .000 7 5 .583 49 73
Rutgers 0 0 .000 7 4 .636 89 75
Notre Dame 0 0 .000 7 4 .636 94 86
Seton Hall 0 0 .000 7 3 .700 146 54
South Florida 0 0 .000 6 5 .545 32 67
Marquette 0 0 .000 3 8 .273 66 64
The Big East doesn't boast five of the nation's top teams the way we did last year, but it's still far from a "down year" for the nation's most powerful conference. There has been at least one Big East team in four consecutive Final Fours now, and I wouldn't bet against the conference extending our streak to five this spring.
West Virginia's only loss came on the road, at Boston College. Louisville's only loss came at Memphis. Pitt lost to a ranked New Mexico team in a preseason tourney, and then to Michigan State. There's not a soft loss in the group.
January 8, 2031
@#1 Villanova 87, Notre Dame 81
See what I mean? A team from the "bottom half" of the league comes to the Pavilion and fights us hard for 40 minutes. The Irish are good. They have a freshman point guard,
Grover Jenkins, who is the real deal. He hands out 10 assists and makes 5 steals. They have a former five-star recruit, junior
Charles Wells, whose 1000th career point is among the 20 he scores tonight. They're two threes and a free throw away from an upset victory.
Asher Wise leads us with 23 points (6-10 from long range), and
Tony Ezell, returning to the starting lineup for the first time since his freshman year, contributes 20, with 9 rebounds and 5 assists.
Reed Weisberg scores 15;
Lowell Welter finishes with 11 points and 8 boards;
Justice Stafford contributes 5 rebounds and 4 assists. We make half our three-point tries, and that's the difference, right there.
Record: 14-0 (1-0).
January 11, 2031
#1 Villanova 101, @#12 Louisville 97
Tony Ezell's face is contorted with pain as he leaves the court. One of his arms wraps around the shoulders of his best friend,
Lowell Welter. Tony won't put any weight on that foot. A member of the Villanova training staff supports him from the other side.
Just over 15 minutes remain in the game when Ezell's injury stops the clock. Louisville leads, 58-53. We take control of the game, which is played at a frantic pace the rest of the way. We lead by as many as 12 at one point, and we emerge with a big road victory against a tough opponent.
Asher Wise is superb, with 29 points and 5 rebounds.
Reed Weisberg plays like a veteran: 16 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists.
Welter scores 16,
Justice Stafford 15. But nobody feels much like celebrating.
The medical report confirms the bad news.
Tony has torn his ACL. 
He'll miss the remainder of the season, and we hope he'll be back by the time the 2031/32 season begins.
Record: 15-0 (2-0).
January 15, 2031
@#1 Villanova 84, St. John's 75 (OT)
Kris DeMello returns to the starting lineup as we defeat the Red Storm at the Wells Fargo Center. We need five additional minutes of basketball to do it, as SJ's
Michael Burke hits a three with 0:04 remaining to tie the game at 68 and send it to overtime.
Double-doubles from
Lowell Welter (13p/12r/2b) and
Asher Wise (13p/11r) are among the keys to our victory.
Reed Weisberg takes the scoring honors with 20 points.
Record: 16-0 (3-0).
January 18, 2031
@Syracuse 88, #1 Villanova 79
The Orange hand us our first loss of the season, coming from behind and overcoming a 28-point effort from
Asher Wise. The sophomore wing adds 7 rebounds and 4 assists.
Reed Weisberg (18p/8r),
Justice Stafford (9 assists),
Kris DeMello (10p/6r) and
Lowell Welter (9p/10r) make varied positive contributions. We don't play badly; they simply play better.
Record: 16-1 (3-1).
January 22, 2031
@#2 Villanova 85, Cincinnati 57
All five starters, plus reserve
Michael Petit, score in double figures as we punish the Bearcats at the Pavilion.
Reed Weisberg, who hits 5-of-6 treys, leads the way with 19 points, two more than
Asher Wise. Reed collects a career-high 8 rebounds, too.
Lowell Welter posts a double-double (10p/12r), and
Kris DeMello supplements 11 points with 4 blocks. Petit and
Justice Stafford score 10 apiece.
Record: 17-1 (4-1).
January 25, 2031
#2 Villanova 90, @Rutgers 73
Entering the game, we and the Scarlet Knights are among a cluster of teams with 4-1 records in Big East play, a game behind West Virginia. When the buzzer sounds, three teams--Syracuse, Louisville, and Villanova--are left on the step below the Mountaineers.
The hero for the Wildcats is
Lowell Welter. His 25 points are a career high, and his 16 rebounds are only one shy of his best ever.
Low-Key also flashes his outside game, knocking down three triples, and blocks 2 shots.
Asher Wise (21p/4a/3s),
Reed Weisberg (14p/6r) and
Kris DeMello (16p/6r/3b) provide Lowell with quality support.
Record: 18-1 (5-1).
January 29, 2031
@#2 Villanova 78, Seton Hall 58
When
Graham Sims addresses the Wildcats at halftime, they trail their visitors from New Jersey, 31-25. It's a different story after intermission, as Sims' charges nearly double up the Pirates in the second half.
"They were outworking us,"
Kris DeMello points out. "Coach Sims told us that wasn't acceptable. We fixed it."
Justice Stafford (12p/8a) is named Player of the Game.
Asher Wise (19p/5r) takes the scoring honors.
Lowell Welter (11p/9r) and DeMello (12 points) also score in double figures, and
Blake Norton hands out 4 assists in 13 minutes.
Syracuse loses to Providence, leaving us and Louisville a game behind West Virginia.
Record: 19-1 (6-1).
Code:
Top 25
# Team FPV Record Points Prv Conference
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1. Kentucky (62) 20-0 1790 1 Southeastern Conference
2. Villanova (10) 19-1 1737 2 Big East Conference
3. Vanderbilt 20-0 1654 3 Southeastern Conference
4. North Carolina 19-1 1576 4 Atlantic Coast Conference
5. West Virginia 18-1 1521 5 Big East Conference
6. Lafayette 19-1 1440 7 Patriot League
7. Kansas 16-3 1354 6 Big 12 Conference
8. Louisville 17-2 1269 10 Big East Conference
9. Tennessee 16-3 1257 8 Southeastern Conference
10. California 16-3 1127 13 Pacific-10 Conference
11. Mississippi State 17-3 1059 9 Southeastern Conference
12. UCLA 16-3 1039 12 Pacific-10 Conference
13. Stanford 17-4 924 15 Pacific-10 Conference
14. Wake Forest 14-3 873 14 Atlantic Coast Conference
15. Texas 15-4 817 11 Big 12 Conference
16. Utah 14-5 698 19 Mountain West Conference
17. New Mexico 14-5 598 20 Mountain West Conference
18. Pittsburgh 13-6 485 16 Big East Conference
19. Miami 12-5 478 17 Atlantic Coast Conference
20. Syracuse 14-5 450 NR Big East Conference
21. Oral Roberts 17-3 432 24 Summit League
22. Baylor 14-5 291 18 Big 12 Conference
23. Oregon 15-5 151 21 Pacific-10 Conference
24. Jackson State 15-3 105 NR Southwestern Athletic Conference
25. Michigan State 14-7 88 NR Big Ten Conference
Others Receiving Votes:
Boston College 13-5 75 Atlantic Coast Conference
Creighton 15-4 73 Missouri Valley Conference
Kansas State 15-4 18 Big 12 Conference
Fresno State 14-4 15 Western Athletic Conference
Pennsylvania 12-3 6 Ivy League
Lafayette hasn't lost since we beat them in December. The Leopards spent a week at #5 in February 2026, Graham's last season. They've been #6 a few other times. This ranking, therefore, is a noteworthy achievement for the Lafayette program.