Bill Melchionni is a Villanova hoops icon. His grandson hopes to uphold the family name in lacrosse.

If the Melchionni name was not already decorated enough in Villanova history, now it is getting a second chance.

Villanova junior long-stick midfielder Jake Melchionni was a unanimous selection on this year’s All-Big East preseason lacrosse team. Last season, he was named the Big East’s Co-Specialist of the Year — the first Wildcat to ever earn that honor — and to the All-Big East First Team after collecting a team-high 24 forced turnovers, eight goals, three assists, and 49 ground balls.

Sixty years earlier, Melchionni’s grandfather, Bill Melchionni, was a household name in college basketball. He averaged 27.6 points during his senior season on the Main Line and was named the Most Valuable Player of the 1666 National Invitation Tournament (NIT). Villanova retired his No. 25 jersey in 1995.

Melchionni was drafted in the second round of the 1966 NBA draft by the 76ers, with whom he won the 1967 NBA title. He also won two American Basketball Association (ABA) championships with the New York Nets and was a three-time All-Star in the ABA, leading the league in assists three times. With the Nets, he played alongside Ricky Barry and Julius Erving.

Jake Melchionni, who also wore No. 25 the past two seasons, has the opportunity to carry on his family’s name at Villanova, but this time on the lacrosse field. He remembers going to Villanova basketball games as a kid with his grandfather. The school has since held a special place for him.

“Just kind of growing up around the Villanova basketball culture with his friends, Coach [Jay] Wright is obviously a good friend of his, always seeing him,” Melchionni said. “And he’s obviously the biggest Villanova person that I know. So I think when I was getting recruited, it’s just knowing that there are people who really love and care about this place. It’s just such a special thing to me.”

Bill Melchionni is partially to credit for his family’s involvement in lacrosse. When Bill was playing in the American Basketball Association (ABA) for the New York Nets, he and his family lived on Long Island, one of the most popular lacrosse hotbeds in the country.

“When my grandpa was playing for them, it was the New York Nets,” Jake Melchionni said. “They were living in Garden City, N.Y., which is Long Island, which is obviously the lacrosse powerhouse. So my dad played lacrosse [at] not too young an age, but has played pretty much his whole life. I played hockey and soccer and a couple other sports from a young age, but it’s always really been lacrosse at the forefront.”

Melchionni grew up playing lacrosse in Bernardsville, N.J., after picking up the sport from his parents, Christina and Keith Melchionni. His father played Division I lacrosse at Duke, while his mother played at Trinity.

Melchionni’s father was also a long-stick midfielder.

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“He was an All-American at Duke,” Melchionni said.” He obviously knows the game better than anyone. So I think obviously some parents like to give advice to kids and sports, and even lacrosse and stuff like that, but just having a dad who played the same position and knows that position really well, he knows the little things that I did wrong, the little things that I did right. It’s just so easy from a young age to lean on him and just always have him in my corner after games and before games.”

The first time Bill Melchionni saw Keith play lacrosse, he was stunned.

“I never saw a lacrosse game until [Jake’s dad played],” Bill Melchionni said. “So his dad didn’t start playing lacrosse until ninth grade. And I had never seen the game. I had no idea about the game, but I remember the first time I went to see him play, I said to him, ‘This is nuts.’ I mean, these guys are out [there] whacking each other over sticks and stuff, and the goalie’s got no protection.”

It was a large contrast from basketball, which Bill Melchionni is all too comfortable with. However, it did not stop him from supporting his family in playing lacrosse.

“My grandpa, he’s a massive supporter of mine,” Jake Melchionni said. “I pretty much talk to him every day and definitely after every game and stuff like that. And it’s just really fun.”

Recently, the two were seen in the crowd for Villanova basketball’s game against Seton Hall on Feb. 4, where they were shown on the video board during the second half.

“When he comes back, he’s really respected at basketball games,” Melchionni said. “So that’s really cool to see. And it’s definitely something that I think is really cool.”.

With most of the season still in front of the team, Villanova men’s lacrosse coach Mike Corrado saw a large improvement from Melchonni in his sophomore year and expects the same this season.

“He plays long-stick middie, which is kind of a unique position,” Corrado said. “And I’ve coached a long time, and we’ve had some great ones, and they’re usually great with sticks.

“They’re usually really good off the ground. They’re usually very good at transition. And a lot of times, they aren’t the most studious with six-on-six basic base core defensive principles. I would say the area that Jake has improved in the most is his ability to operate in the six-on-six defense. They have the ball, and we’re on defense, and we got to try to stop them. And so he’s definitely improved in that area.”

Villanova is coming off back-to-back seasons where they lost in the Big East championship game. Melchionni and the Wildcats (1-1) will look to get past that obstacle and earn their way into the NCAA Tournament this time around.

“The Big East tournament, Big East championship is number one on our list,” Melchionni said. “But it’s deeper than that, I know it’s a little cliché to say, but it’s really just focusing on one game. Just the step ahead. I just think it’s getting 1% better every day.”