February 17, 2026; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Villanova Wildcats forward Matt Hodge (center) controls the ball after rebounding against Xavier Musketeers forward Jovan Milicevic (left), forward Tre Carroll (back) and guard All Wright (right). Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn Image Villanova’s first full game without Matt Hodge went as the Wildcats expected.
Saturday afternoon, Villanova hopes to build postseason momentum when the Wildcats host Xavier in the regular-season finale of the two Big East teams.
Villanova hasn’t played since Wednesday, when the Wildcats beat DePaul 76-57. Xavier fell 77-68 to Seton Hall in its final game Tuesday.
The win marked the fifth straight game in which Villanova (23-7, 14-5 Big East) has alternated between wins and losses. The period began with a 92-89 overtime win over Xavier on February 17.
The Wildcats, who are locked in a No. 3 seed in next week’s Big East tournament, suffered their biggest loss of the season last Saturday when Hodge tore his right ACL in an 89-57 loss to then-No. 15 St. John’s.
Hodge averaged 9.2 points per game and led Villanova with 17 blocks.
Villanova got off to a slow start Wednesday when DePaul led by as many as eight in the first half. But the Wildcats took a 26-24 lead at halftime and dominated the second half, shooting 64.3% (18 of 28) while limiting the Blue Demons’ shooting to 48% (12 of 25), including 1 of 7 3-pointers.
Villanova also grabbed 35 rebounds, its most since the Xavier win, and committed 16 turnovers, its most since Feb. 10 against Marquette.
“Losing Matt was very sad for us,” said forward Duke Brennan, who had 15 points and 12 rebounds against DePaul. “As older guys, we understand what it takes, but you have to give credit to the younger guys as well. They took the keys with rebounding and being physical (Wednesday) and they did a great job of that.”
For Xavier (14-16, 6-13), any hopes of playing spoiler on Saturday and during the Big East Tournament will likely hinge on the health of veteran forward Tre Carroll, who suffered a right hip injury in the first half Wednesday. Carroll did not practice Thursday and is questionable for the clash with Villanova.
Without Carroll, Xavier blew a second-half lead against Seton Hall. This was a common theme in Richard Pitino’s first season, as St. Not only in the game against St. John’s, but also in the early loss to Villanova and the first Seton Hall matchup.
St. John’s and Villanova are in the NCAA Tournament, while Seton Hall heads into the final weekend of the regular season.
“We’re all disappointed with the record, obviously,” Pitino said. “Like I said before, good things are going to happen. I know they will happen. The season isn’t over yet.”
–Field level media
