A new basketball season begins Sunday for the Wildcats, who will make the 58-mile east on the Pennsylvania Turnpike and north on the New Jersey Turnpike to meet Rutgers in the first of three exhibition matchups in 2026-27. Tip-off is set for just after 1 p.m. at Jersey Mike's Arena, formerly known as the 'RAC' (Rutgers Athletic Center).
 
The game will be streamed on Big Ten +. Big 10 + sits behind a paywall but viewers can see the bottom of this story for a special offer connected to this game.
 
Villanova begins its second season under head coach Kevin Willard after a 24-9 campaign in 2025-26. Those were the most victories recorded by a first-year head coach in program history. The 'Cats made their 42^nd NCAA Tournament appearance and first since advancing to the NCAA Final Four in 2022.
 
The 'Cats leading scorer last season, guard Tyler Perkins (13.7 points per game), returns to lead Villanova. The senior was last season's Most Improved Player in the BIG EAST and was chosen to Preseason First Team All-BIG EAST. Also back in the fold is redshirt sophomore Matt Hodge, the native of Belgium, who continues to recover from a torn ACL suffered on Feb. 28 and the subsequent surgery to correct it. Redshirt freshman center Nico Onyekwere and graduate student guard Wade Chiddick are other members of the '25-26 squad back for another season.
 
In the offseason, Villanova restocked with an impressive array of newcomers.
 
A pair of senior transfers from Big Ten institutions, Kwame Evans Jr. (Oregon) and Devin Royal (Ohio State), will figure prominently at the forward position. Both were selected as Preseason Second Team All-BIG EAST selections.
 
Joining Perkins in the backcourt is a trio of college veterans with multiple skills including Elijah Crawford (UIC), Jake Fiegen (Cornell) and Darryl 'Buddy' Simmons II (St. Bonaventure). Top 100 freshman signee Adam Oumiddoch and classmate Carter Fisk will also be vying to carve a niche in the lineup.
 
The final addition to the Villanova roster came in June when Italy's Luigi Suigo elected to opt out of the National Basketball Association draft process and signed with the Wildcats. The 7-3 forward attended last spring's NBA draft camp and is the tallest player in the program since Tom Greis – also 7-3 – graduated in 1990.
 
This is the first Villanova visit to Rutgers since Feb. 18, 2013, when the two schools were both part of the BIG EAST. The 'Cats own a 29-9 edge in the all-time series between the schools.
 
There is a one-time pay-per-view option ($8.99) available to watch this game. Fans can access the game at this link. B1G+ subscriptions are typically either monthly or annual offerings, but this requires a less substantial commitment. Once the PPV is purchased, fans can watch the game on bigtenplus.com or on the B1G+ app via the following devices:

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