VILLANOVA, Pa. – After putting the wraps on a successful month of January, Villanova is set to tackle a challenging February schedule beginning Saturday when it hosts Creighton (16-5 overall, 5-3 BIG EAST) at the Wells Fargo Center. Tipoff is set for just after noon in a game that will air on FS1 (Brian Custer and Len Elmore) and 610 ESPN Radio along with the TuneIn app (Ryan Fannon and Whitey Rigsby).
 
After dropping a 71-60 decision at Marquette in their fist action in 2020, the Wildcats reeled off a streak of seven consecutive January victories. The surge began with a come from behind win against the Bluejays in Omaha (64-59) that was keyed by 24 points from junior guard Collin Gillespie.
 
Gillespie has been one of the constants for Villanova in the recent run of success. Over those seven games he has averaged 18.1 points, 5.6 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game. His assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.4 ranks second in the BIG EAST to Quincy McKnight of Seton Hall (2.7). On Tuesday, the product of Archbishop Wood High School registered his first career double-double, scoring 17 points and adding 13 rebounds in a 79-59 win over St. John's at Madison Square Garden.
 
In Villanova's last two outings, wins at Providence and St. John's, Gillespie has pulled down 21 caroms.
 
"I always say this to our team: Ryan Arcidiacono used to have a way of doing whatever the team needed," noted Wildcats head coach Jay Wright. "Even though he was the point guard, he would find a way to do what was needed. Rebounding, scoring, defending the other team's best player. Whatever we needed.
 
"We haven't been rebounding well (recently). So Collin goes and rebounds his head off. He's a beast. That's really impressive. He stepped up in an area where we haven't been as good as we need to be."
 
And as point guard, Gillespie has set an important tone.
 
"I thought he did a good job of controlling the tempo," stated St. John's head coach Mike Anderson on Tuesday night. 
 
One can't mention Villanova's work on the glass without touching upon the contributions of freshman Jeremiah Robinson-Earl. The reigning BIG EAST Freshman of the Week matched his season high of 14 caroms in Tuesday night's win. His 9.7 rebound per game averages ranks fourth in the BIG EAST.
 
Robinson-Earl's 193 rebounds have moved him into elite company among first-year players at Villanova. He already has more caroms as a freshman than such notables as Harold Pressley (143), Josh Hart (151), Will Sheridan and JayVaughn Pinkston (165), Jack Devine (166) and Lance Miller (182).
 
Up ahead are such Nova legends as Jason Lawson (212), John Pinone (221), Alex Bradley (231), and Ed Pinckney (249). The most rebounds collected by a Wildcats freshman were the 321 that Omari Spellman grabbed in 2017-18.
 
In Creighton, the Wildcats meet a team that is tied for third place in the BIG EAST and has a NET ranking of 26 in the nation. Villanova is 1-1 all-time against the Bluejays at Wells Fargo Center, where it currently is riding a 12-game winning streak (last loss to St. John's on Feb. 7, 2018).
 
Next week, the 'Cats journey to Indianapolis to meet Butler on Wednesday evening at 6:30 p.m. (FS1 and 610 ESPN Radio).
 
The 2019-20 season – Villanova's 100^th college basketball campaign – is presented by Hartford Funds and Coca-Cola.