# 1980–81 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team

The 1980–81 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team represented Villanova University during the 1980–81 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The head coach was Rollie Massimino. The team played its home games at Villanova Field House in Villanova, Pennsylvania, and was a member of the Big East Conference. The team finished tied for 3rd in the conference regular season standings and received a bid to the NCAA tournament before falling to No. 1 seed and eventual Final Four participant Virginia. Villanova finished with a 20–11 record (8–6 Big East).

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site city, state |
| Regular season ||||||
| * | | Merrimack | W 90–61 | 1–0 | Villanova Field House Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Dec 2, 1980* | | St. Francis (NY) | W 95–73 | 2–0 | Villanova Field House (2,200) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Dec 6, 1980 | | Providence | W 68–49 | 3–0 (1–0) | Villanova Field House Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Dec 9, 1980 | | at Seton Hall | W 66–65 | 4–0 (2–0) | Walsh Gymnasium South Orange, New Jersey |
| Dec 13, 1980 | | Boston College | W 74–71 | 5–0 (3–0) | Villanova Field House Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Dec 6, 1980* | | vs. La Salle | L 83–84 | 5–1 | The Palestra Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Dec 28, 1980* | | vs. San Francisco | W 93–66 | 6–1 | Special Events Center El Paso, Texas |
| Dec 29, 1980* | | at UTEP | W 43–41 | 7–1 | Special Events Center El Paso, Texas |
| Jan 3, 1981 | | St. John's | L 78–90 | 7–2 (3–1) | Villanova Field House Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Jan 6, 1981* | | Notre Dame | L 65–94 | 7–3 | The Palestra Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Jan 10, 1981 | | at Syracuse | W 69–65 | 8–3 (4–1) | Carrier Dome Syracuse, New York |
| Jan 14, 1981 | | at St. John's | L 54–56 $^{OT}$ | 8–4 (4–2) | Alumni Hall Queens, New York |
| Jan 17, 1981* | | at Pennsylvania | W 68–55 | 9–4 | The Palestra Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Jan 19, 1981* | | Towson | W 84–64 | 10–4 | Villanova Field House Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Jan 21, 1981 | | Connecticut | W 63–59 | 11–4 (5–2) | Villanova Field House Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Jan 24, 1981* | | at Colgate | W 85–75 | 12–4 | Cotterell Court Hamilton, New York |
| Jan 26, 1981 | | at Boston College | L 60–73 | 12–5 (5–3) | Roberts Center Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts |
| Jan 31, 1981* | | vs. Temple | L 68–71 | 12–6 | The Palestra Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Feb 4, 1981 | | at Georgetown | L 54–70 | 12–7 (5–4) | McDonough Gymnasium (4,504) Washington, D.C. |
| Feb 7, 1981* | | at Maine | W 68–48 | 13–7 | The Pit Orono, Maine |
| Feb 11, 1981 | | Seton Hall | W 67–63 | 14–7 (6–4) | Villanova Field House Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Feb 14, 1981 | | at Providence | L 70–82 | 14–8 (6–5) | Providence Civic Center Providence, Rhode Island |
| Feb 17, 1981 | | Syracuse | W 88–78 | 15–8 (7–5) | Villanova Field House Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Feb 21, 1981 | | vs. Georgetown | L 60–68 | 15–9 (7–6) | The Palestra (6,228) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Feb 23, 1981 | | at Connecticut | W 74–73 | 16–9 (8–6) | Hartford Civic Center Storrs, Connecticut |
| Feb 28, 1981* | | vs. Saint Joseph's | W 72–62 | 17–9 | The Palestra Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Big East tournament ||||||
| Mar 5, 1981* | (4) | vs. (5) Connecticut Quarterfinals | W 65–54 | 18–9 | Carrier Dome Syracuse, New York |
| Mar 6, 1981* | (4) | vs. (8) Providence Semifinals | W 58–49 $^{OT}$ | 19–9 | Carrier Dome Syracuse, New York |
| Mar 7, 1981* | (4) | at (6) Syracuse Championship game | L 80–83 | 19–10 | Carrier Dome Syracuse, New York |
| NCAA tournament ||||||
| Mar 13, 1981* | (9 E) | vs. (8 E) Houston First round | W 90–72 | 20–10 | Charlotte Coliseum Charlotte, North Carolina |
| Mar 15, 1981* | (9 E) | vs. (1 E) No. 5 Virginia Second round | L 50–54 | 20–11 | Charlotte Coliseum Charlotte, North Carolina |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. E=East. ||||||