Will Villanova crack the AP Top 25 this season?

The Wildcats continue to receive votes but are on the outside looking in.

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What is the story about?

Villanova has been left out of the AP Top 25 once again but continues to receive votes as one of the top teams on the outside looking in.

This begs the question — will the Wildcats debut in the rankings at any point this season?

Villanova was one of eight teams to receive votes this week. The Wildcats received 29, which was behind Clemson, Utah State, and Tennessee.

The team improved to 20-5, and 11-3 in the Big East, with a road victory against Creighton on Saturday. Many might think that this is enough

to get the team ranked in the middle of February.

If you are a conspiracy theorist, you might be thinking that there is a bit of a hangover from the Kyle-Neptune era. A 20-win team in the Big East seems like a legitimate candidate to be in the top 25, but this is also a team that has missed the tournament in each of the last three years.

Ultimately, this is not the actual reason. While it might have some truth to it, the overall body of work has lacked that one signature win that Villanova might need to take that next step.

The Wildcats are currently 2-4 against Quad 1 teams this season. The two victories came on the road against Seton Hall and in what is categorized as a neutral-site game against Wisconsin, despite the game being played in Milwaukee. An early-season loss to Creighton was recently dropped to a Quad 3 loss following the struggles of the Blue Jays.

There will be chances for Villanova to earn a signature win that could catapult the team into the rankings. The Wildcats will host No. 5 UConn on Saturday and have a trip to Madison Square Garden to take on No. 17 St. John’s on Feb. 28.

There are six games remaining on the schedule. Kevin Willard has this team firmly in the field to return to the NCAA Tournament but nonetheless, the Wildcats do not want to get tripped up against an inferior opponent. If Villanova can pull off an upset, it might be what it takes to receive enough votes to crack the AP Poll.