Villanova back on Wright path

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Remember when Jay Wright forgot how to coach?

There was a time when it seemed like he could do nothing wrong. And life on the Main Line was mostly good. Four trips to the second week of the NCAA Tournament in five years, once as a 12 seed. One appearance in the Final Four, another in the Elite Eight.

Then things changed. And not for the better. Not shockingly, inquiring minds wanted to know why. And many wondered, sometimes aloud, if he should consider buying a clue, even though he'd been so successful for so long.

It's the nature of the biz he chose.

In 2009-10, coming off that run to the national semifinals, Villanova went from 20-1 to 25-8, losing in the Round of 32 after nearly losing to a 15 seed in its opener. But the Wildcats had banked enough cred by that point, so it was viewed as one of those blips that can happen even to the best.

The next season, they started 16-1. They would finish 21-12, losing their last six. Then they went 13-19, tying a program record for losses.

He'd tried to play bigger. It hadn't worked. So he went back to what he knew, which was playing through his perimeter people. And adhering to the Villanova basketball principles that they refer to over and over.

It doesn't matter if we believe. Only that they do.

They won 20 in 2012-13, beating three top five teams in South Philly. That was followed by 29-5 and setting a school record for regular-season wins. Which begat 33-3, and a record for overall victories. Still, the Wildcats couldn't get past the second NCAA game either year. Which meant that questions remained. So this journey was about getting back to the Sweet 16, at least. And despite having to replace three starters, that's where the 31-5 Wildcats have finally put themselves once more, against third-seeded Miami (27-7) Thursday night in the South Region semis at the KFC Yum! Center.

So Wright must know what he's doing again.

As if he ever didn't.

Yet if he loses to Miami, or maybe even to Kansas or Maryland on Saturday, there figure to be those who'll have something to say about it, just because. Of course a national championship could probably go a long way toward silencing the skeptics for keeps. Maybe we'll get to find out.

Until then . . .

"Jay doesn't get enough credit for what he's done," said Saint Joseph's coach Phil Martelli. "That's (other people's) problem."

It's not like he's getting it done with lottery picks. Yes, he has really good players. Mostly really good college players, many of whom will become non-NBA pros. And there's nothing wrong with that. The Wildcats reached No. 1 this season for the first time. They've lost twice in the Big East each of the last three seasons. It shouldn't matter that it's not the old Big East. That's still 48-6, which is pretty strong in any league. They've won 93 of their last 106. How many others out there have done that? Or even come close? But we live in a place where you're judged on March. That shouldn't mean all the rest of it hardly counts.

"His demeanor and focus has never wavered," said Villanova assistant head coach Baker Dunleavy, who played for Wright from 2002-06, when the Wildcats went from the NIT to the Sweet 16 and then an Elite Eight. "There's a trust factor, knowing that this guy has been there before multiple times. We all kind of buy in and follow his lead.

"When you lose, you can't help but evaluate and question certain things. There's so many variables that go into it. But in terms of leadership or the identity of this program, I don't think anybody questioned that.

"When you hit your lowest point, you're not dreaming of championships or winning every game. You want to represent this the way it should be represented, get back to that base. And we know good things will follow. I think that's probably where we are."

And with all that comes more than a little perspective.

"Even when doing things the right way, working hard, there's no guarantee it's going to happen for you," Dunleavy went on. "A lot of good things have to align. Those low points are really hard. One thing coach teaches is just how to continue to carry yourself as if those results don't matter, just work the process every day. We've maintained that continuity.

"Knowing the range (of possibilities) can be valuable in life. But you don't want to go back there, so we can get humbled again. But when you do, if you can climb out of it, what you gain is important.

"When things don't go right, you want to point at a lot of things (as being the reason). His job is to say, 'No, this is what (defines us). We have to keep building. This is what we have to do.' "

Stability can't be a bad thing. But maybe when you've had a decade or so like Villanova has, the expectations simply grow too whatever. And as the Wildcats reminded us after they beat Iowa on Sunday, their goal is to win a national championship too.

I can only think of maybe 325 programs that would be up for trading dilemmas.

"I think (Wright's) just a tremendous individual, great coach," said his Miami counterpart, Jim Larranaga, who took George Mason to a Final Four 10 years ago. "He's built . . . a perennial powerhouse.

"Their style of play, I think, is very inviting to high school recruits."

Ask freshman Jalen Brunson. Or Omari Spellman, another big-timer who's coming next season. And he's a power forward, the kind of prospect who Wright supposedly couldn't get. So this run doesn't figure to be going away any time soon.

Last weekend, before the Wildcats beat somebody seeded higher than 15 for the first time in seven years, Wright was asked if he was going to do anything differently this time around. He shook his head.

"We've worked all year to create habits that will make us successful in the postseason," he said Wednesday. "And it worked in '05 and '06 and '09. It didn't work the last couple of years. But if we would have changed it, we would have been saying we don't really believe in that. And whatever we said going forward, they would have said, 'Well, are we going to change this?' And we change a lot of things basketballwise. Not the core values.

"And that's what was really important about getting to the Sweet 16. I don't think any of these guys doubted it, but I think it strengthened it for the young guys, that they see it work.

"People were just saying you can't call them an elite program, they're (only) great in the regular season. It's not enjoyable, but it's part of being (in the arena). And now that we've kind of come full circle, I'm glad they experienced it.

"I don't want to go back (to 2012-13)," he added. "But you know what? I know it's possible. And I know it's not going to be the end of the world. You just have to deal with it."

And now that they have, it's time to see how far they can retake this.

@mikekerndn