Villanova men's basketball head coach Kevin Willard will send four newcomers onto the floor when the Wildcats open their season Nov. 1 in Rome, headlined by 7-foot-3 Italian freshman Luigi Suigo.

Suigo, a 19-year-old center from Tradate, Italy, withdrew from the 2026 NBA Draft after receiving an invite to the NBA Combine and enrolled at Villanova instead. He played professionally for KK Mega Basket in Serbia, averaging roughly eight points, five rebounds and a block per game in ABA League play. The Athletic noted Villanova ranked 347th nationally in block rate last season, a gap Suigo's rim protection could fill.

"He's only 19 years old, but he has a great feel for the basketball game … He was a big piece of what we wanted to do," Willard said at Big East Media Day on Thursday, Oct. 1. "What I love about him is he's very coachable."

The remarks came at the conference's annual media gathering at the Marriott Marquis in Times Square, according to The Villanovan. It was the first time since 2013 the event moved out of Madison Square Garden.

New Big East Commissioner Tim Brosnan, a former Major League Baseball executive succeeding Val Ackerman, outlined his top priority: getting at least six of the conference's 11 programs into the NCAA Tournament. Brosnan said he has no immediate plans to change eligibility rules or mandate minimum Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) spending, though multiple athletic directors have raised the issue with him.

Willard's projected starting five for the Rome opener features Suigo alongside senior guard Tyler Perkins, 6-10 power forward Kwame Evans Jr. (transferred from Oregon), 6-6 forward Devin Royal (transferred from Ohio State) and junior point guard Elijah Crawford (transferred from Illinois-Chicago), according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. Only Perkins returns from last season's roster.

Perkins averaged 13.7 points and 5.4 rebounds per game in 2025-26, earning third-team All-Big East and Big East Most Improved Player honors. He is back to full activity after offseason right shoulder surgery and was voted to the All-Big East Preseason First Team. Evans and Royal landed on the Second Team.

The NCAA's new "five-in-five" rule, which gives athletes five years to play five seasons and effectively eliminates redshirts, is also reshaping Willard's roster planning. He said Villanova is not recruiting any high school players this year because six current players could return for a fifth season.

Forward Matt Hodge, the other returning player from 2025-26, is recovering from ACL surgery and is not yet available.

On the women's side, head coach Denise Dillon faces a significant roster blow. Senior forward Brynn McCurry tore her ACL earlier in 2026, a recurring injury throughout her career, and will miss the entire season. Dillon said at Media Day that losing McCurry was "a big hit" and that the team is relying on younger players to fill the role.

The Wildcats women still return most of their roster, led by junior guard Jasmine Bascoe, who averaged 18.9 points and 4.0 rebounds per game last season as a unanimous first-team All-Big East pick. Sophomore Kennedy Henry, who played more minutes than expected as a freshman, added muscle in the offseason and earned a preseason All-Big East nod alongside Bascoe.

Villanova's women went 25-8 overall and 16-4 in Big East play in 2025-26, reaching the NCAA Tournament before a first-round loss to Texas Tech. The men finished 24-9 and 15-5 in conference play in Willard's first season, falling in the first round to Utah State.

Both programs open the regular season Nov. 1 against Notre Dame in the "Eternal City Tip-Off" doubleheader at the 3,500-seat Palazzetto dello Sport in Rome. The men tip at 9:30 a.m. ET on FOX; the women follow at noon on FS1. Players from both schools are scheduled to meet Pope Leo XIV, a Villanova graduate, ahead of the games.

The men play their first exhibition Sunday, Oct. 11 at Rutgers. The women host FDU on Sunday, Oct. 18 at 2 p.m. at Finneran Pavilion. Big East play begins Dec. 19 at Creighton.