Villanova ranked No. 1 for the first time ever

In all the years of storied history of basketball at Villanova, the school has never boasted a No.1 team.

That changed Monday, when the AP and USA Today each ranked the Wildcats the top team in the country.

Nova improved to 20-3 on the country after a win over Providence last week, and are now proudly adorning a big target on their backs as the regular season continues.

“We’re honored and humbled to have been voted No.1 by the writers in the Associated Press poll and the coaches in the USA Today Coaches poll,” head coach Jay Wright said. “There’s still a lot of basketball left to be played and handling this will be another challenge for our team. We look forward to it.”

In USA Today’s coaches poll it was a close decision, with the Wildcats beating out Maryland by just four votes753-749. In the AP poll, Villanova received 32 of 65 first place votes.

Last season, despite being a No. 2-seed in the NCAA Tournament the squad was upset in the second round. The team has eight games left prior to the Big East Tournament.

Villanova is in Chicago Tuesday to faceDePaul and back home Saturday at the Wells Fargo Center when they host St. Johns.