Pitt-Villanova Rivalry Renewed with Two-Game Series
7/30/2025 12:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
PITTSBURGH – Pitt has renewed an old Big East rivalry with a home-and-home series with Villanova over the next two seasons. The Panthers will travel to Philadelphia for a Saturday, Dec. 13 matchup at Finneran Pavilion before welcoming the Wildcats back to the Petersen Events Center during the 2026-27 season.
"We are excited to add the Villanova series to our schedule for the next two seasons," said head coach Jeff Capel. "We were focused on adding another high-caliber non-conference series to our schedule this offseason. The Pitt-Villanova rivalry speaks for itself, and we look forward to adding to the history of the series over the next two seasons."
SERIES HISTORY
Pitt leads the all-time series with the Wildcats, 33-32, including a 22-5 mark at the Petersen Events Center. The Panthers have won six consecutive meetings in the series and are 13-6 versus Villanova since the 2000-01 season.
The Panthers overcame a nine-point second half deficit en route to a 73-64 overtime win against Villanova March 3, 2013, in the last meeting between the two schools. James Robinson drilled a three with 33 seconds remaining to tie the contest and added another in the final 30 seconds of overtime to help seal the win. Talib Zanna scored nine of his 14 points in overtime to go along with a then career-high 19 rebounds, while Tray Woodall added 13 points and 11 assists. FULL RECAP
2025-26 ROSTER NOTES
Pitt returns four scholarship letterwinners in Papa Amadou Kante, Cameron Corhen, Brandin Cummings, and Amdy Ndiaye, while also signing four players out of the transfer portal in Barry Dunning, Jr. (South Alabama), Nojus Indrusaitis (Iowa State), Dishon Jackson (Iowa State), and Damarco Minor (Oregon State).
The Panthers have also grabbed five signees without collegiate experience in Roman Siulepa (Brisbane State/South West Metro Pirates), Omari Witherspoon (St. John's College), Henry Lau (Sydney Boys High/Sydney Kings), Macari Moore (Ann Arbor Huron), and Kieran Mullen (St. Thomas More). Pitt remains active in this recruiting cycle as it looks to continue to add impact players for the 2025-26 season.
- Pitt's four-person transfer class has combined for 2,806 points, 1,441 rebounds, 525 assists, and 211 career steals.
- The frontcourt tandem of Jackson and Corhen has combined for 1,859 points, 954 rebounds, 108 steals, and 159 blocks, while shooting 57.3 percent (705-of-1230) from the field in their careers. The post rotation also features the return of Amadou Kante, a top 100 prospect out of high school, who is now nearly two years removed from a knee injury and poised for a larger role in 2025-26.
- Minor, a pass-first point guard who plays with a chip on his shoulder, has totaled 1,308 points, 620 rebounds, 361 assists, and 127 steals in his career. He anchors an exciting backcourt that features a pair of breakout sophomores (Cummings and Indrusaitis) and a pair of big-bodied freshmen (Witherspoon and Moore) ready to challenge for minutes.
- Dunning, Jr. is a versatile and dynamic wing coming off an all-conference season at South Alabama a year ago. He exploded to average 17.2 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game while going 31-of-76 (.408) from three-point range over the final 20 games of the season.
- Pitt's roster will once again have an international flair with a pair of players from both Australia (Siulepa and Lau) and Senegal (Amadou Kante and Ndiaye) as well as a Canadian import in Mullen. In addition, Indrusaitis holds dual citizenship in the United States and Lithuania, where he has competed on U18 and U20 national teams.
ONCE A PANTHER, ALWAYS A PANTHER
New Villanova head coach Kevin Willard played two seasons at Pitt finishing his career with 176 points, 68 rebounds, and 143 assits over 60 games (six starts). He is on his fourth head coaching stop in the college ranks after also leading Iona (2007-10), Seton Hall (2010-22), and Maryland (2022-25).
SEASON TICKET INFORMATION
The best way to guarantee the best seats for this exhibition or any other game this season is to purchase season tickets now. Season tickets are available HERE or by calling the Panthers Ticket Office at (800) 643-7488.
Exclusive benefits for season ticket holders include:
• Priority access for additional single game ticket purchases at a discounted rate
• Priority renewal for 2026-27 season tickets
• Interest-free payment plans
• Personal Pitt Athletics account representative
• Becoming a Panther Club member which includes additional benefits and amenities.
Information on single game tickets will be available at a later date.
