The 2005–06 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team represented

Villanova University Villanova University is a private Roman Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania. It was founded by the Augustinians in 1842 and named after Saint Thomas of Villanova. The university is the oldest Catholic university in Penns ...

in the 2005–06

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

season. This team is typically credited with re-establishing Villanova as a national powerhouse after nearly two decades of underwhelming performances. Villanova, led by head coach Jay Wright, spent most of the season competing with

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are rank ...

and

Big East The Big East Conference is a collegiate athletic conference that competes in NCAA Division I in ten men's sports and twelve women's sports. Headquartered in New York City, the eleven full-member schools are primarily located in Northeast and ...

rival

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...

for possession of the top spot in the college basketball rankings. Utilizing a starting lineup that consisted of four guards (seniors

Randy Foye Randy Foye (born September 24, 1983) is an American former professional basketball player. He played collegiately at Villanova University. He was selected seventh overall in the 2006 NBA draft by the Boston Celtics, but was immediately traded to ...

and

Allan Ray Allan Nathaniel Ray (born June 17, 1984) is an American sports agent and former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for four years at Villanova University. He played one season ( 2006–07) with the Boston Celtics of th ...

, junior

Mike Nardi Mike Nardi (born January 30, 1985) is an American basketball coach and former player. He attended St. Patrick High School in Elizabeth, New Jersey and Villanova University. He is 6'2" 170 lb Playing career As a senior in high school, N ...

, and sophomore

Kyle Lowry Kyle Terrell Lowry (born March 25, 1986) is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He has been a six-time NBA All-Star and was named to the All-NBA Third Team in 2016. Lowry ...

) and a center (junior Will Sheridan), Villanova played a fast-paced style of basketball that became a common topic of intrigue among analysts. Villanova entered the NCAA tournament as a number one seed and made an Elite Eight appearance before losing to eventual champion

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. Four players from the 2005-06 Villanova Wildcat team currently have played in the NBA:

, and

Dante Cunningham Dante Lamar Cunningham (born April 22, 1987) is an American professional basketball player who last played for Le Mans Sarthe Basket of the LNB Pro A. He played college basketball for Villanova before being selected with the 33rd overall pick in ...

. As of 2022, only Kyle Lowry remains in the NBA.

Class of 2005

Villanova Class of 2005 – ESPN
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Rivals A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant ...

– NR

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). Th ...

–

Roster

Coaching staff

Jay Wright – Head Coach

Schedule

Awards and honors

* Randy Foye, Consensus first-team All-American * Allan Ray, Consensus second-team All-American * Randy Foye,

Big East Player of the Year The Big East Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year award is given to the men's basketball player in the Big East Conference voted as the top performer by the conference coaches. It was first awarded at the end of the league's inaugural sea ...

* Randy Foye, First-team All-

* Allan Ray, First-team All-Big East * Kyle Lowry, Second-team All-Big East * Randy Foye, Robert V. Geasey Trophy

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2005-06 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team

Villanova Wildcats The Villanova Wildcats are the athletic teams of Villanova University. They compete in the Big East (NCAA Division I) for every sport; except football and rowing where they compete in the Colonial Athletic Association ( Football Championship ...

Villanova Wildcats men's basketball seasons Villanova Villanova Wildcats men's b Villanova Wildcats men's b