VILLANOVA, Pa. – With Caleb Daniels unavailable for Saturday's game against Philadelphia Big Five rival Saint Joseph's due to a non-COVID-19 virus, the Wildcats were without the man who generally serves as their top reserve option.
 
No worries, as another Wildcats' veteran helped fill the void. Junior guard Chris Arcidiacono stepped in seamlessly, scoring a season-high eight point to go with five rebounds in 25:32 of action in Nova' 81-52 triumph.
 
"He's awesome for our team," stated Villanova head coach Jay Wright. "Chris helped our team before people started to see him play. You can't have a guy that good who comes to practice every day and makes everyone better, continues to improve and doesn't complain when he doesn't play. That doesn't happen anymore. I would always say to Chris that his value was off the charts before he ever stepped on the floor in a game. And I told him last year to stay ready because I had confidence to put him in there at any point."
 
Arcidiacono did just that, moving into the starting lineup in March after Collin Gillespie's season ended prematurely with a knee injury.
 
"Now he's to the point where he knows everything we do," added Wright. "He's a valuable member of our team and he's going to keep getting better."
 
The next opportunity to do so comes Tuesday night when Villanova meets former BIG EAST rival Syracuse in the second game of the Jimmy V Classic doubleheader at Madsion Square Garden. ESPN carries the national broadcast (Dan Shulman, Jay Bilas and Holly Rowe) while Ryan Fannon and Whitey Rigsby are on the call for the Villanova IHeart Radio network.
 
Seven years have passed since these opponents last met in an overtime thriller won by the Wildcats 82-77 at the Wells Fargo Center. And it's been almost nine years since Chris' older brother Ryan Arcidiacono helped Villanova knock off the Orange 75-71 in overtime on Jan. 25, 2013, during Syracuse's final BIG EAST regular season before moving to the Atlantic Coast Conference.
 
Of course, Syracuse's starting lineup includes a familiar face to the Nova Nation. Cole Swider appeared in 77 games over the previous three seasons for the Wildcats before transferring last spring. He averages 13.1 points per game in his new uniform.
 
Villanova (6-2 overall, 0-0 BIG EAST), meanwhile, hopes to build on the momentum of last week, when it limited La Salle, Penn, and Saint Joseph's to 51.3 points per game in a trio of double-digit Philadelphia Big Five victories.
 
Syracuse (5-3 overall, 1-0 ACC) enjoyed a big week of its own, downing Indiana 112-110 in double overtime and downing Florida State 63-60 on Saturday in Tallahassee.
 
This is the first meeting between the schools at Madison Square Garden since the 2008 BIG EAST Tournament. The Orange held a 7-4 edge in BIG EAST Tournament matchups between the school at the Garden.

Also on Monday, Collin Gillespie was named to the BIG EAST Conference weekly Honor Roll after averaging 24.5 points per game in the wins over Penn and Saint Joseph's. The Graduate Student also shared Philadelphia Big Five Player of the Week honors with Temple's Damian Dunn.
 
Villanova held steady at No. 6 in both the Associated and USA Today Coaches polls released on Monday.