VILLANOVA, Pa. – Villanova's first visit to New York City in 2019-20 takes place Tuesday night, when the Wildcats meet St. John's at Madison Square Garden. Tipoff is set for just after 6:30 p.m. on FS1 (Gus Johnson and Bill Raftery) with the Villanova radio broadcast airing on 610 ESPN in the Delaware Valley and the TuneIn app everywhere (Ryan Fannon and Whitey Rigsby).

Following Saturday's gritty 64-60 win at Providence, the Wildcats gathered Sunday morning for a light workout and film session. The team had dispersed for the day by the time reports of the helicopter crash that claimed the life of basketball icon Kobe Bryant and eight others, including Bryant's daughter Gianna, began to surface.

In a statement Sunday night, Villanova head coach Jay Wright said of the product of nearby Merion High School: "Kobe was the consummate Philadelphia basketball player: tough, committed, a competitive legend and an all-time champion. He was a proud father, husband, and a good man who will continue to be the example of excellence for generations to come! Our prayers go out to his family and all the victims of this tragedy."

Villanova returned to practice Monday afternoon and attempted to zero on in on the task it faces against a St. John's team that picked up a road win of its own Saturday, 79-66 at DePaul. The Red Storm bring a 13-8 overall record and 2-6 league mark into Tuesday night's clash at the Garden. These two teams split a pair of decisions last season, with St. John's posting 71-65 victory on Feb. 17 in Manhattan. The Wildcats were held to 33 percent shooting from the field in that one.

The Wildcats moved up one spot in both the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches polls released Monday. Villanova is now at No. 8 in the AP Top 25 and No. 10 in the USA Today Coaches' tabulation.

Freshman forward Jeremiah Robinson-Earl was tabbed BIG EAST Freshman of the Week for the third time in as many weeks on Monday. Robinson-Earl posted a double-double in the 76-61 win over Butler on Jan. 21 (12 points, 14 rebounds) and followed that with a 17-point effort at Providence.

Robinson-Earl and classmate Justin Moore have each earned the BIG EAST Freshman of the Week honor four times thus far (it has been awarded 11 times in 2019-20 to this point of the season). Robinson-Earl (11.2 points per game) and Moore (10.7 points per game) are the top two freshmen scorers in the BIG EAST.

Junior guard Collin Gillespie was named to the BIG EAST Honor Roll after averaging 16.0 points per game in a 2-0 week for Villanova. 

The Wildcats are slated to return to campus following Tuesday night's game in New York City. They'll then start looking ahead to their next clash, a Saturday matinee against third place Creighton at Wells Fargo Center (noon/FS1 and ESPN 610 Radio).