# 1996–97 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team

The 1996–97 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team represented Villanova University in the 1996–97 season. With an overall record 24–10 and conference record of 12–6, the Wildcats placed first in the Big East Conference, and after reaching the finals of the Big East tournament, the team was invited to the NCAA tournament as a 3 seed.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site city, state |
| Regular season ||||||
| November 29* | at American-Puerto Rico | W 68–62 | 1–0 | Eugene Guerra Sports Complex San Juan, Puerto Rico |
| November 30* | vs. Butler | W 62–54 | 2–0 | Eugene Guerra Sports Complex San Juan, Puerto Rico |
| December 1* | vs. Tulane | W 85–70 | 3–0 | Eugene Guerra Sports Complex San Juan, Puerto Rico |
| December 4 | Providence | W 75–64 | 4–0 (1–0) | CoreStates Center Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| December 7 | at St. John's | W 82–70 | 5–0 (2–0) | Madison Square Garden New York City, New York |
| December 10* | at Pennsylvania | W 82–62 | 6–0 (2–0) | The Palestra Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| December 14* | Duke | L 79–87 | 6–1 (2–0) | CoreStates Center Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| December 21* | Mount St. Mary's | W 91–66 | 7–1 (2–0) | CoreStates Center Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| December 23* | at Saint Joseph's | W 81–65 | 8–1 (2–0) | Hagan Arena Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| December 28* | Rider | W 75–61 | 9–1 (2–0) | CoreStates Center Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| December 30* | North Carolina-Wilmington | W 87–38 | 10–1 (2–0) | CoreStates Center Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| January 2 | Seton Hall | W 88–67 | 11–1 (3–0) | CoreStates Center Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| January 6 | at Providence | L 68–91 | 11–2 (3–1) | Dunkin' Donuts Center Providence, RI |
| January 8* | Oral Roberts | W 64–46 | 12–2 (3–1) | CoreStates Center Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| January 11 | Miami | L 59–61 | 12–3 (3–2) | CoreStates Center Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| January 14 | at Notre Dame | W 68–57 | 13–3 (4–2) | Joyce Center South Bend, IN |
| January 18 | Rutgers | W 79–56 | 14–3 (5–2) | CoreStates Center Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| January 20 | Syracuse | L 60–62 | 14–4 (5–3) | CoreStates Center Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| January 25 | at Boston College | W 84–66 | 15–4 (6–3) | Silvio O. Conte Forum Boston, Massachusetts |
| January 27 | at Georgetown | L 67–78 | 15–5 (6–4) | Capital Centre Landover, Maryland |
| February 1 | at Syracuse | W 70–60 | 16–5 (7–4) | Carrier Dome Syracuse, NY |
| February 4 | West Virginia | W 81–70 | 17–5 (8–4) | The Pavilion Delaware County, Pennsylvania |
| February 9* | at No. 3 Kentucky | L 56–93 | 17–6 (8–4) | Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky |
| February 12 | at Pittsburgh | L 89–95 | 17–7 (8–5) | Fitzgerald Field House Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
| February 16 | Notre Dame | W 75–70 | 18–7 (9–5) | CoreStates Center Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| February 19 | St. John's | W 65–54 | 19–7 (10–5) | CoreStates Center Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| February 23 | Connecticut | W 65–58 | 20–7 (11–5) | CoreStates Center Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| February 26 | at West Virginia | L 76–83 | 20–8 (11–6) | WVU Coliseum Morgantown, WV |
| March 1 | at Rutgers | W 84–74 | 21–8 (12–6) | Louis Brown Athletic Center Piscataway, NJ |
| Big East tournament ||||||
| March 6 | vs. Syracuse Quarterfinals | W 80–70 | 22–8 (13–6) | Madison Square Garden New York City, New York |
| March 7 | vs. Providence Semifinals | W 73–63 | 23–8 (14–6) | Madison Square Garden New York City, New York |
| March 8 | vs. Boston College Championship | L 58–70 | 23–9 (14–7) | Madison Square Garden New York City, New York |
| NCAA tournament ||||||
| March 13* | vs. Long Island First round | W 101–91 | 24–9 (14–7) | Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum Winston-Salem, NC |
| March 15* | vs. California Second round | L 68–75 | 24–10 (14–7) | Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum Winston-Salem, NC |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. ||||||

## Team players in the 1997 NBA draft

| Round | Pick | Player | NBA Club |
| 1 | 7 | Tim Thomas | New Jersey Nets |