Brookover: 'Nova has decent shot to repeat as national champ
Jay Wright, of all people, reminded us of the narrative that still stigmatized his Villanova basketball program at this time a year ago. In Cherry Hill on Friday night to pick up the team of the year award from the Philadelphia Sports Writers Association, the dapper Wildcats coach told a story about a media gathering last season before his team's NCAA tournament game against Iowa.
Jay Wright, of all people, reminded us of the narrative that still stigmatized his Villanova basketball program at this time a year ago. In Cherry Hill on Friday night to pick up the team of the year award from the Philadelphia Sports Writers Association, the dapper Wildcats coach told a story about a media gathering last season before his team's NCAA tournament game against Iowa.
"Not to change the great tradition of Philadelphia in that they're supposedly the toughest media around, but we saw the soft side," Wright said.
The coach reminded the audience that Villanova, after winning consecutive Big East titles, had stumbled in its bid to reach the Sweet 16 portion of the tournament in 2014 and 2015, a monkey that had grown into a gorilla on Wright's back. Now he was done answering questions from the local media outside of his team's locker room at the Barclays Center and an awkward silence ensued.
"Are we good, guys?" Wright asked the reporters.
Mike Kern from the Daily News wanted to add one more thing.
"Please," he told Wright, "do not make us write that article [about 'Nova being eliminated in the second round] again."
Wright looked at his sports information director Mike Sheridan and said, "They actually feel sorry for us. They have a heart. We saw the soft side."
Laughter and applause followed inside the Crowne Plaza ballroom.
One night later, Villanova beat St. John's at the Wells Fargo Center to run its record to 22-2. The narrative Wright reminded us about Friday night has drastically changed. There's only one question being asked about Villanova in 2017: Will the Wildcats become the eighth team in history to repeat as NCAA men's basketball champion?
If the question was can they do it, the obvious answer is yes.
The Wildcats have been ranked no lower than fourth at any point this season and have spent seven weeks, more than any other team in the country, at No. 1. With Baylor and Kansas both losing at home Saturday, Villanova figures to be at No. 2 behind Gonzaga this week.
Since teams like Syracuse, UConn and Louisville have moved out of the Big East, Villanova has owned the conference, going 57-8 and winning three straight regular-season titles. A fourth one seems likely this season and it would be more rewarding than ever because the Big East is at its best since its reconfiguration into a basketball-only entity.
In Kris Jenkins and Josh Hart, both of whom joined Wright in Cherry Hill on Friday night, the Wildcats have two senior stars who have been there and done that. The value of having seniors with that kind of experience is immeasurable.
The glue last season was senior guard Ryan Arcidiacono and he's gone now. It can be easily argued, however, that sophomore Jalen Brunson's increased minutes have made the Wildcats better at point guard, and that is not meant as a knock on Arcidiacono.
Three stars are definitely enough to make a second straight national championship possible. But there are some concerns, too. Wright was worried enough about Jenkins' recent shooting slump (4 for 29 in a recent three-game stretch) that he brought him off the bench Saturday against St. John's. It's more likely than not that Jenkins will regain his shooting touch.
A bigger source of uneasiness for the coach should be the lack of depth in his rotation. The Wildcats were eight deep a year ago and Wright thought that was going to be the case again this season. Instead, the number has dwindled to seven as Phi Booth remains sidelined by a knee injury that has limited him to three games. The biggest reason to wonder whether the Wildcats can re-create the magic they started in March and completed in early April a year ago is the lack of a big man. It cannot be understated how important Daniel Ochefu was to Villanova's title run a year ago. It's easily forgotten that before its six-game run into school history, Villanova struggled in the Big East tournament as Ochefu nursed a sprained ankle. The Wildcats would not have won it all without him.
Once the most important part of the schedule arrived, Ochefu was the unsung hero, averaging 11.5 points and 7.2 rebounds while making 30 of his 43 field-goal attempts, including eight of 10 in the final two games. The Wildcats do not have anyone like him this year. Senior Darryl Reynolds does not have the same length as Ochefu and his minutes and contributions have been diminished in recent games.
Quality play from redshirt freshman Donte DiVincenzo and redshirt sophomore Mikal Bridges could ultimately determine the Wildcats' fate come March. Of those two, Bridges is more likely to fill the spaces in the box score vacated by Ochefu.
The 6-foot-7 forward from Great Valley High School has probably been Villanova's most improved player since the start of the season, a fact that has shown up in the form of increased minutes. He averaged 9.4 points and 29 minutes per game in the first 17 games of the season. In the last seven, he has averaged 13.1 points and more than 32 minutes. Bridges has a chance to be the next college basketball star on the Main Line and he also has the best chance to fill the unsung hero role the Wildcats will need in their bid for a second straight national title.
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