VILLANOVA, Pa. – He's been through the place a couple of times and glanced at the images of his younger self wearing Villanova blue and white in the main concourse area of Finneran Pavilion. But thanks to a grueling National Basketball Association schedule, Ryan Arcidiacono has not yet taken in a Wildcats' game in the Finn since the building was transformed in 2018.
 
That will change in a most remarkable way on Wednesday night. Arcidiacono will return not just to watch the No. 15 Wildcats (17-6 overall, 7-4 BIG EAST) host No. 18 Marquette (17-6 overall, 7-4 BIG EAST), but to receive the unique honor of having his No. 15 jersey retired. (At Villanova, jerseys are retired but numbers are not. The only retired number in program history is the No. 11 worn by Naismith Hall of Famer Paul Arizin.)
 
"It's an unbelievable honor," said the guard Monday afternoon, shortly after finishing up a workout with his Chicago Bulls teammates at Georgetown ahead of a Tuesday night game at Washington. "To have this happen at a school I grew up rooting for is amazing. It doesn't feel real to me."
 
The Arcidiacono ceremony will take place at halftime of a game matching two of the five BIG EAST teams ranked in this week's Associated Press Top 25. The game is slated for 8:30 p.m. and can be seen nationally on FS1 (Brian Custer and Jim Spanarkel) and heard via 610 ESPN and the TuneIn app everywhere (Ryan Fannon and Whitey Rigsby). Marquette, led by senior National Player of the Year candidate Markus Howard, downed the 'Cats 70-61 in the previous meeting in Milwaukee on Jan. 4.
 
The Arcidiacono clan is a large one and includes two current members of the Wildcats – Ryan's brother Chris Arcidiacono and cousin Kevin Hoehn. Parents Joe and Patti will be present as will quite a few others.
 
"I don't even know what the final number is," noted Arcidiacono. "It's probably somewhere in the range of 70-100 people."
 
Wednesday night's events will put the final touch on one of the more remarkable Villanova careers in program history. When Ryan Arcidiacono arrived alongside classmate Daniel Ochefu in 2012, the Wildcats were fresh off a 13-19 season. For his part, Arcidiacono had missed the bulk of his senior year at Neshaminy High School after back surgery.
 
"Having someone who grew up watching Villanova and understood immediately the qualities our program prioritized was incredibly valuable," states Villanova head coach Jay Wright.
 
Wright often tells the story of a practice session not long after Arcidiacono came to campus. Forward JayVaughn Pinkston – at 6-6 and 240 pounds - plowed over Arcidiacono as the newcomer tried to take a charge on a drive to the basket. The coaching staff, fully aware that their freshman guard wasn't that far removed from back surgery, held its collective breath.
 
Arcidiacono hopped right back up, looking none the worse for wear.
 
A short while later, the new point guard turned the tables on the second year forward. On a drive to the basket, he went right into Pinkston as the Brooklyn, N.Y. native tried to draw his own charge.
 
"I think our entire staff felt pretty good after watching that exchange," Wright says now. "It was obvious to everyone that Ryan wasn't backing down."
 
Arcidiacono became the first freshman in the modern era to be named a captain. It's a title he would hold for all of his four seasons. In 2012-13, he was named to the BIG EAST All-Freshman Team. By 2014-15, the 6-3 guard shared BIG EAST co-Player of the Year honors with current Bulls teammate Kris Dunn. In his four seasons, the Wildcats won 117 games and three regular season BIG EAST Conference crowns.
 
Nothing, though, topped the final play of his career. With the NCAA championship game against North Carolina tied at 74, Arcidiacono – always known as a clutch scorer – delivered one of the most impactful assists in Final Four history. His feed to a trailing Kris Jenkins in a play that began with 4.7 seconds on the clock, led to Jenkins' game-winning jumper as the horn sounded.
 
On Wednesday, night Jenkins – recently returned to Villanova in a mentorship role covering Student-Athlete Development – will be among those on hand to celebrate Arcidiacono.
 
"I'll probably get so emotional," stated Arcidiacono. "Being back on campus in the Pavilion, where we had so many good times, makes it extra special. I'm pumped."
 
Arcidiacono signed a three-year contract with Chicago last summer and most of his hours are focused on trying to help a young Bulls team find its way in the NBA's Eastern Conference. But he keeps close tabs on the 'Cats, especially now with Chris and Kevin wearing the same uniform he once did.
 
"I watch every chance I get," he said.
 
Last November, Arcidiacono attended the Wildcats' game at Ohio State. The Buckeyes posted a 76-51 victory. Afterward Ryan Arcidiacono waited outside the 'Cats locker room. He offered an encouraging word not just to his brother and cousin, but all the younger Wildcats, many of whom were processing a lopsided defeat at the college level for the first time.
 
"We had our low points," he pointed out. "Like the game we played Oklahoma in my senior year."
 
That was a 78-55 loss that the Wildcats reversed in stunning fashion at the 2016 NCAA Final Four, posting a 95-51 victory. It was a reversal that spoke to the quiet calm of its point guard, one of the elite leaders in Villanova history. In light of what followed two nights later, it sometimes gets overlooked but it was the kind of bounce back that spoke to the tenacity of not just the 2015-16 squad, but its floor general.
 
On Wednesday night, the Nova Nation will have its chance to acknowledge Arcidiacono and the glorious era he and his teammates helped bring to life.
 
The 2019-20 season – Villanova's 100^th college basketball campaign – is presented by Hartford Funds and Coca-Cola.