Old Dominion (3-3) at Drexel (2-4) | at Villanova (4-1)
Game Info – Sunday, Nov. 23 – 2 p.m. | Tuesday, Nov. 25 – 7 p.m.
Location – Daskalakis Athletic Center | Finneran Pavilion (Philadelphia, Pa.)
Watch – FloCollege ($) | ESPN+
Listen – ESPN Sports Radio 94.1
Social Media – Twitter | Facebook | Instagram
NORFOLK, Va. – Old Dominion men’s basketball has a pair of road games in Philadelphia coming up as the Monarchs play at Drexel on Sunday at 2 p.m. and at Villanova on Tuesday at 7 p.m.
Sunday’s game against the Dragons will be streamed on FloCollege while Tuesday’s meeting with the Wildcats can be seen on ESPN+. Ted Alexander and Dennis Wolff will cover both games on ESPN Sports Radio 94.1 and live stats will also be available.
Series History
Sunday will mark the 24th meeting between ODU and Drexel, with the Monarchs ahead in the all-time series, 13-10. The two teams last played each other on Nov. 26, 2023 in Norfolk with Old Dominion coming away with a 68-61 win in overtime. Tyrone Williams led the Monarchs with 21 points, 12 rebounds and four steals and Chaunce Jenkins added 18 points.
Old Dominion and Villanova have met twice before, both times in postseason play. The Wildcats defeated the Monarchs 71-68 in the first round of the 1977 National Invitation Tournament, and the Monarchs beat the Wildcats, 89-81 in triple overtime in the first round of the East Regional in the 1995 NCAA Tournament.
ODU head coach Mike Jones was part of that victory, scoring 19 points on 6-for-18 shooting from the floor. He also made four of his 10 three-point attempts and went 3-for-4 at the line. Jones added eight rebounds, three steals, and two assists to his totals. Odell Hodge was also a part of that ODU team, but did not appear in the game.
About ODU
The Monarchs (3-3) got back into the win column and improved to 3-0 at home with an 88-56 victory over Morgan State on Friday night. Zacch Wiggins set a new career high and led ODU with 18 points, and Jared Turner followed with a season high 14 points thanks to 4-for-7 shooting from distance. Also finishing in double figures were Jordan Battle, who netted 12 points with a team-high eight rebounds, and LJ Thomas with 11 points.
Thomas is scoring 13.5 ppg and ranks fourth in the Sun Belt with a 2.08 assist-to-turnover ratio. The Plant City, Florida native is also fifth in the conference with 27 assists and 4.5 assists per game. Turner (5.8 ppg) has knocked down a team-high 10 three-pointers and Scottie Hubbard (5.3 ppg) is close behind him with eight makes from beyond the arc.
Battle (8.8 ppg) leads the Monarchs on the glass with 33 rebounds (5.5 rpg) and has collected nine steals. Thomas is next with eight steals, and Caelum Swanton-Rodger (7.0 ppg) and Donovan Raymond (2.5 ppg) have made five blocks each.
Old Dominion comes into Sunday’s game shooting 44.9% from the field, 30.9% from the arc, and 73.0% at the free-throw line. The Monarchs own a +1.2-scoring margin with 75.8 ppg against 74.7 points allowed per game. ODU ranks second in the Sun Belt in three-point percentage defense (31.4%) and third in assists per game (15.2).
About Drexel
The Dragons (2-4) hosted Penn on Friday and fell to the Quakers, 84-68. Drexel trailed 43-38 at halftime, but the visitors put together runs of 10-5 and 11-2 to pull away in the second half. Josh Reed led the team in the loss with a career-high 21 points, and Shake Blakeney also finished in double figures with 11 points.
Blakeney is the team’s leading scorer at 12.3 ppg. The junior guard from Rock Hill, South Carolina is also the CAA leader in steals with 10 and ranks third in the conference with 72 field goal attempts. Also averaging double-digit scoring are Eli Beard (10.8 ppg) and Kevon Vanderhorst (10.2 ppg). Blakeney and Beard are the top threats from the perimeter with 12 and 11 threes, respectively, and Vanderhorst has dished out a team-high 20 assists.
Blakeney, Villiam Garcia Adsten (5.8 ppg), and Martin De Laporterie (3.7 ppg) have all pulled down 30 boards. Ralph Akuta (4.2 ppg) has recorded nine blocks, good for second in the CAA.
As a team, the Dragons are shooting a combined 41.2% from the floor, 33.1% from long range, and 56.1% at the line. Drexel is netting 72.3 ppg while holding opponents to 72.0 ppg. The team leads its conference and ranks 16th nationally with 15.83 offensive rebounds per game. The Dragons are also third in the CAA in both rebounds per game (41.17) and three-point percentage defense (31.0%).
Head coach Zach Spiker is in his 10th season leading the program. The Dragons were picked to finish 10th in the CAA Preseason Coaches’ Poll with Blakeney earning a Preseason Honorable Mention nod. Drexel finished 18-15 overall and 9-9 in the CAA last season. The team features 10 returners with five newcomers for this season.
About Villanova
After opening the season with a 71-66 setback against then-No. 8 BYU, the Wildcats (4-1) have won four in a row, most recently a 70-55 wire-to-wire victory at La Salle this past Wednesday. Up 37-28 at halftime, Villanova led by as many as 20 points. Redshirt freshman forward Matt Hodge, the son of ODU Special Assistant Odell Hodge, paced the offense with 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the field, adding three rebounds and one steal to his final line.
The Wildcats have four players averaging double figures: Bryce Lindsay is the top scorer at 20.4 ppg, Hodge is second at 12.6 ppg, Acaden Lewis comes in at third with 12.2 ppg, and Duke Brennan contributes 10.2 ppg. Lindsay represents the deep threat with 20 made threes, placing him 15th in the country, and he’s also eighth in the nation with 4.0 threes per game. Lewis ranks second in the Big East with 27 assists and 5.4 assists per game.
Brennan ranks fourth in all of Division I with 72 rebounds and is the national leader in rebounds per game (14.4) and offensive rebounds per game (6.80). The senior forward from Chandler, Arizona is also 19th in the country with 7.60 defensive rebounds per game. Tyler Perkins (9.0 ppg) has grabbed eight steals while Brennan and Tafara Gapare (2.3 ppg) have made two blocks each.
Villanova has outscored its opponents by an average of 14.8 points, scoring 82.2 ppg while only allowing 67.4 ppg. The Wildcats enter Tuesday’s game shooting 47.2% from the field, including 36.4% from distance, and 68.5% at the charity stripe. Villanova is currently sixth in the country with 17.0 offensive rebounds per game and also leads its conference with 10.4 threes per game.
The Wildcats were picked seventh in the Big East Preseason Coaches’ Poll and are led by first-year head coach Kevin Hillard, who took over the role after spending 12 years at Seton Hall and the past three seasons at Maryland. The team returns three players from a 2024-25 squad that made an appearance in the College Basketball Crown and finished 21-15 overall with an 11-9 mark in the Big East.
Up Next
The Monarchs continue their five-game road swing next Sunday, Nov. 30 when they travel to Williamsburg for a 2 p.m. meeting with William & Mary.
Season Sponsor
Bon Secours is the Presenting Sponsor of Old Dominion University’s 2025-26 Men’s Basketball Season. Bon Secours is proud to operate its four hospitals and medical centers in Hampton Roads and is even more proud to serve the surrounding community with exceptional care. It’s our mission at Bon Secours Hampton Roads to treat the whole person — mind, body and spirit, to bring compassion to health care, and to be good help to those in need. Bon Secours – the health care you deserve from a team you can trust.
SEASON TICKETS ON SALE
Men's Basketball Season Tickets: Secure your spot for all 14 of ODU’s home games this season, including the exhibition game versus Hampton, for just $215.
Women's Basketball Season Tickets: Enjoy every moment of Monarchs basketball with season tickets for $120 (adults), which includes access to all 15 home games.
Discounted season ticket rates are available for ODU Faculty & Staff, ODU Letterwinners, Young Alumni, Band & Spirit Parents and Military. Call for more information.
Mini-Plans: Want flexibility? Choose a mini-plan! Get tickets to six men's games starting at $120 or six women's games for $60 ($10 per game!). Additionally, fans can purchase a Norfolk State +2 mini pack starting at $81.
Single-Game Tickets: Mark your calendar—single-game tickets will be available starting October 14, except for the men’s game versus Norfolk State, which will go on-sale in late October.
Call the ODU Ticket Office at 757-683-3375 or online at odusports.com/tickets to secure your seats today!