VILLANOVA, Pa. – Villanova hosted its traditional Blue/White Scrimmage presented by Rothman Orthopedic Thursday night at Finneran Pavilion before an energetic crowd.
 
"When I walked in tonight, I was just hit with a jolt of energy having so many people back in here," stated Villanova head coach Jay Wright. "We practice in here and it's quiet. It was obviously quiet last year in Covid with no fans in here. So to be here tonight, with the students and fans was just awesome."
 
The Wildcats played four 10-minute scrimmages over the course of nearly 90 minutes with 10 players switching between the Blue and the White. Among the 10 who logged all the minutes were Collin Gillespie, Jermaine Samuels, Justin Moore, Caleb Daniels, Trey Patterson, Eric Dixon, Brandon Slater, Kevin Voigt, Angelo Brizzi, and Chris Arcidiacono.
 
Daniels led all scorers with 22 points on the night, including 6-of-10 accuracy from beyond the 3-point arc.  Slater contributed 16 points and four rebounds while Gillespie added 15 points.
 
Arcidiacono and Moore each were credited with 10 points.
 
Bryan Antoine (knee) and Jordan Longino (knee) joined Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree in street clothes for this one. Nnanna Njoku (concussion protocol) was not in the building.
Wright said he was hopeful both Njoku and Longino would return to the practice court next week.
 
"This was good for us," Wright stated. "It's always good to play in front of a crowd and this was a great crowd for a scrimmage. I thought the guys were tired at the end but they were good."
 
The Wildcats plan to practice Friday and then take several days off as Villanova enters its fall break. Practice is slated to resume on Tuesday.
 
Villanova opens the 2021-22 regular season on Tuesday, Nov. 9 vs. Mount St. Mary's at Finneran Pavilion at 4:30 p.m.