Villanova fading with 4-star PG Jalen Carey

Northeast recruiting guru Adam Zagoria has the latest on 4-star PG Jalen Carey, who just wrapped up his third official visit to Syracuse this past weekend.

Carey’s father said they are focusing on three schools - Syracuse, Connecticut and Miami (Fla.). Carey has visited all three, with a visit to Kansas still on the books for later this month. Rutgers, mercifully, is officially out.

As for Villanova, they’re not dead yet, but I think you can read the writing on the wall with this quote:

As for Villanova, they remain in contact.

“They’re in my ear, they’re contacting me, they’re trying to set something up but nothing is imminent yet,” Carey said. “Jay Wright wants to come meet me, and coach Ash [Howard].”

It’s hard to play MMQB on this one when ‘Nova looked good for Jahvon Quinerly for so long, but the lateness of Villanova’s entry here may be their undoing in the end. If Carey was serious about Villanova, there’s no doubt they would actually accept Wright’s overtures for a meeting and/or visit.

If this goes the way it looks, David Duke will be the last hope for Villanova to secure a point guard in the 2018 class. While that recruitment feels like an uphill battle, the ‘Cats have been on Duke since the turn of the year and they’re still putting the full court press on.