Four-star ’22 recruit Armstrong chooses ’Cats

While decisions on Villanova’s roster for the 2021-22 season still have to be made, the Wildcats got a jump on their recruiting for the Class of 2026 Thursday night.

Mark Armstrong, a junior at St. Peter’s Prep in Jersey City, committed to Villanova via a video on Twitter.

The 6-2, 160-pound point guard is the first member of the Class of 2022 to commit to the Wildcats. A four-star recruit, he’s ranked No. 130 in the class by 247sports.com.

Armstrong received numerous Division I offers and chose the Wildcats over Stanford and Rutgers. He said the connection he developed with head coach Jay Wright and assistant coach Mike Nardi factored heavily in his decision.

“I felt the love from Day One,” Armstrong said. “Also, the guard history they have there and how Coach talked about the vision they had for me, which is to be the best man that I can be and the best player I can be on the court, the best point guard I can be — I want to fulfill those expectations.”

Armstrong has been a starter since his freshman season. The Marauders have gone 50-16 in that time, winning the Hudson County Interscholastic Athletic League title last season. The county tournament was canceled this year due to COVID-19.

Armstrong earned second-team All-State honors from NJ.com as a junior. He averaged 14.1 points, 2.7 assists, 2.4 rebounds and 2.2 steals per game to lead the Marauders to a 10-1 record. Armstrong surpassed the 1,000-point mark with a 21-point effort in a 69-22 victory over Snyder on Jan. 30.

He ranks sixth in school history with 1,128 career points and could break Jack Gordon’s school record of 1,693 next season. He is also regarded as an outstanding defensive player.

“I still have to work on some things on defense because sometimes I take plays off,” Armstrong said. “I’m going to work with my dad (Mark), the Lightning (AAU team) coaching staff and the St. Peter’s coaching staff to become a better defensive player. I want to be the best overall player I can be.”