Villanova Wildcats - 2016 National Champions

CoRP

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MillarTime said:
Think there used to be a Sons of Jake Nevin thread. Maybe I'll revive....
 
The Cats are finally a 1-Seed (which means they will probably end up losing their next game now that I have started a new thread about them).  I don't really have much to say right now because I am at work but I liked your analysis of Jay Wright in the PC thread so I thought I would start this.
 
edit: Here's a nice article about JayVaughn Pinkston  He really has come a long way since he beat the crap out of those two a-holes that locked him in the laundry room.
 

MillarTime

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Really hard not to be excited about this program. Obviously having a great year this year, but also have Arcidiacono, Ochefu, Ennis (as seniors), Hart, Jenkins (juniors), and Booth (sophomore) all back next year. They also have McDonald's All American Jalen Brunson entering the program in the fall and potential McDAA Omari Spellman committed for 2016. Wright has this program in a great place.
 

WayBackVazquez

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I put $100 on them to win it all at 28-1 a couple of weeks ago, so I'm a big fan for the next month or so, Go Cats!
 

bandito0

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MillarTime said:
Really hard not to be excited about this program. Obviously having a great year this year, but also have Arcidiacono, Ochefu, Ennis (as seniors), Hart, Jenkins (juniors), and Booth (sophomore) all back next year. They also have McDonald's All American Jalen Brunson entering the program in the fall and potential McDAA Omari Spellman committed for 2016. Wright has this program in a great place.
 
I'm not an alumni but I've been a fan of 'Nova hoops since the Kittles era, and this year's team is the most enjoyable group I've ever watched.  Like you said in the PC thread, Jay Wright has made a conscious effort to recruit and build a team, which is reflected by the fact that you have 6 guys averaging 9.0 points or more on the team because they share the ball so well.  This is a team built to play defense and outwork opponents, which should translate into an actual run in March this year.
 
Very excited about the future of the program as well, and don't forget about Mikal Bridges, a 6'7 sharpshooter who Jay redshirted in November to add more weight.  He could absolutely step into a 7th/8th  man role next season and provide a little shooting off the bench.
 
Very excited to see how this last week and the BET shakes down this year.  I'm not expecting them to flame out like they did last year, this team seems like it's built to last this March.
 

HomeRunBaker

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WayBackVazquez said:
I put $100 on them to win it all at 28-1 a couple of weeks ago, so I'm a big fan for the next month or so, Go Cats!
Wow that's a great price. Good Luck!!
 

MillarTime

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A couple things....quote from Jay Wright below that should make everyone around Nova very happy...
 
 
@FOXSports1: "I can't see coaching another university I just love this too much. I don't think anywhere could live up to Villanova to me"-@VUCoachJWright
 
 
Also...below is a nice recruiting analysis on Nova from ESPN recruiting. Really hit on the point that Wright lives in the #50-100 range and tries to build a team that will stay vs. a collection of talent.
 
http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=12431122
 

Clears Cleaver

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I can't say that I've been watching CBB all year as UConn has been unwatchable, but of the top teams that I've seen (UVa, Duke, AZ, gonzaga, etc) the team with the best chance to beat Kentucky is Villanova IMHO. they can spread KY out on D and they play the kind of team D that will cause KY to struggle in the half court. My biggest concern si that I don't know who can creat his own shot as the shot clock ticks down like Napier and Boatright did for Uconn last year. But I love the team D. If they can double the posts without getting killed on the defensive glass, they can stay with KY
 
I'd love to see it.  
 

CoRP

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Clears Cleaver said:
I can't say that I've been watching CBB all year as UConn has been unwatchable, but of the top teams that I've seen (UVa, Duke, AZ, gonzaga, etc) the team with the best chance to beat Kentucky is Villanova IMHO. they can spread KY out on D and they play the kind of team D that will cause KY to struggle in the half court. My biggest concern si that I don't know who can creat his own shot as the shot clock ticks down like Napier and Boatright did for Uconn last year. But I love the team D. If they can double the posts without getting killed on the defensive glass, they can stay with KY
 
I'd love to see it.  
I have had similar thoughts. They have solid defending bigs in Ochefu and Pinkston and they are really deep everywhere else.  Their 3-point shooting has been crazy-good too.  They make almost 9 a game which puts them in the top-15 in the country.
 

Auger34

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CoRP said:
I have had similar thoughts. They have solid defending bigs in Ochefu and Pinkston and they are really deep everywhere else.  Their 3-point shooting has been crazy-good too.  They make almost 9 a game which puts them in the top-15 in the country.
I think that there are 3 teams that have a legitimate shot at beating UK. Nova, Duke, and Wisconsin. I think out of those 3 Duke has the best shot. They have a big (Okafor) that is skilled enough to score and challenge UK's bigs and they have 3 point shooting.
The key to beating UK is the ability to make 3's and the 3 teams I mentioned have that ability. (Kaminsky can also take Cauley-Stein out of the paint with his shooting which is another huge advantage.
Logically, I can't see anyone beating UK but I just can't fathom a team going undefeated in college basketball with the current landscape and I don't think Kentucky is a super team
 

HoyaSoxa

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MillarTime said:
 
Can we all agree this is ridiculous? I was very surprised to see him make first team, but totally shocked by this. Wonderful season by the Cats, Wright's Coach of the Year award was well-deserved and I understand giving POY to a player from the best team, but do any of you even believe Arch was the team MVP? I would take Hilliard, Ochefu, and probably Pinkston before Arcidiacono. 
 

MillarTime

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I was shocked as well. Hilliard would've been a fine (yet probably still controversial) choice. No way I pick Ochefu or Pinkston.

I guess they were trying to pick an MVP from "the best team" and there was no clear choice, so they went with the intangibles angle, given Arch is the undisputed floor leader of the team?
 

CoRP

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HoyaSoxa said:
 
Can we all agree this is ridiculous? I was very surprised to see him make first team, but totally shocked by this. Wonderful season by the Cats, Wright's Coach of the Year award was well-deserved and I understand giving POY to a player from the best team, but do any of you even believe Arch was the team MVP? I would take Hilliard, Ochefu, and probably Pinkston before Arcidiacono. 
yeah...This feels a little bit like a "plays the game the right way" acknowledgment.  I would take Hilliurd and Ochefu over Arch as well.  
 
In other news, Cats win by 35.  On to the Friars/Johnnies winner.  Not sure which I would prefer.
 

luckysox

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I played on the Hofstra women's b-ball team when Jay Wright got his start there.  Babysat his son a few times. He was a colossal jerk there, but nevertheless, he could coach and I've watched him every season out of the corner of my eye since then. I really thought they had a chance at the Final Four this year.  A game like Saturday's self-immolation was the only thing that would keep them from advancing, in my opinion. I don't think many teams (save Kentucky) would be favorites to beat them when they're at between 75 and 100% of their best, which was most games this season. But that shooting performance and subsequent psychological implosion was awful.  It seems the one thing Jay couldn't prepare them for was their own failure to do what they do well. With the exception of Hilliard, these guys were really up inside their own heads when the shots wouldn't fall. It seemed like once they got down and NC State had momentum, they just assumed they'd lose.  They should not have lost that game.  I put most of that on Wright and the coaching staff. He didn't have an answer for his own guys beating themselves up to the point that they could't perform the way they needed to. 
 

MillarTime

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Just a colossal disappointment. The two seniors were the only guys who showed up. With NC State's size, they needed a good game out of Ochefu and he was an abomination.

Agree luckysox, it seemed like they psyched themselves out a bit when the 3s weren't falling early. This was a game they could have and should have won.

The last three times they were a top 2 seed, they've been upset in the round of 32 and this is definitely stigma that will now surround the program and Wright (and rightly so). That said, given the resources, Nova isn't doing any better than Wright as a coach/recruiter.

They should have a great team again next year. Need to get over the hump.
 

CoRP

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The looks on their faces in the second half compared to the looks on the faces of the NC State players told you everything you needed to know about who was going to win that game.
 

Clears Cleaver

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luckysox said:
I played on the Hofstra women's b-ball team when Jay Wright got his start there.  Babysat his son a few times. He was a colossal jerk there, but nevertheless, he could coach and I've watched him every season out of the corner of my eye since then. I really thought they had a chance at the Final Four this year.  A game like Saturday's self-immolation was the only thing that would keep them from advancing, in my opinion. I don't think many teams (save Kentucky) would be favorites to beat them when they're at between 75 and 100% of their best, which was most games this season. But that shooting performance and subsequent psychological implosion was awful.  It seems the one thing Jay couldn't prepare them for was their own failure to do what they do well. With the exception of Hilliard, these guys were really up inside their own heads when the shots wouldn't fall. It seemed like once they got down and NC State had momentum, they just assumed they'd lose.  They should not have lost that game.  I put most of that on Wright and the coaching staff. He didn't have an answer for his own guys beating themselves up to the point that they could't perform the way they needed to. 
 
Great analysis. I have several good friends who are Nova alums and close followers of the program. They were terrified of the NC State/LSU winner and the tourney in general. When i listened to them and then saw the implosion this past weekend, I got it. Those kids were so ill-equipped to handle adversity, in this case more athletic players who forced them out of their comfort zone, Ennis, Achediacano and Pinkston were nonexistent. and after Ochefu got his shot blocked, he cowered. WTF????
 
I really thought Nova was the one team that beat Kentucky. That seems laughable now. As one of my friends said, always look at how many NBA players are on a team and take the one with the most. Nova has 0. ugh
 

Dehere

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luckysox said:
But that shooting performance and subsequent psychological implosion was awful.  It seems the one thing Jay couldn't prepare them for was their own failure to do what they do well. With the exception of Hilliard, these guys were really up inside their own heads when the shots wouldn't fall. It seemed like once they got down and NC State had momentum, they just assumed they'd lose.  They should not have lost that game.  I put most of that on Wright and the coaching staff. He didn't have an answer for his own guys beating themselves up to the point that they could't perform the way they needed to. 
 
I think psychological implosion is exactly the right phrasing. As a Mizzou alum the look of a team having a "here we go again" panic attack in the tournament was painfully familiar. They looked to me like a team that was down ten and feeling like they had to get all ten back on one possession. I like Wright a lot but have to agree that's largely on him.
 

MillarTime

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Dylan Ennis transferring for senior season because he wants to start at PG for somebody. That wouldn't have happened here with Arch, Booth, and Brunson coming in, but the depth at guard certainly takes a big hit.
 

MillarTime

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College basketball, get ready for Jalen Brunson
 
The freshman class of 2015 may not have a blockbuster NBA-prospect point guard, but it has at least one future college star at that position. Jalen Brunson, the 6'1", left-handed, Villanova-bound son of former NBA guard Rick Brunson, was the biggest revelation of this tournament and its clear MVP. Fans may very well mistake the younger Brunson for an upperclassman from Day 1 at Villanova, given his composure and heady combination of facilitating and scoring.
 
On July 4th, in front of a 99.5% pro-Greek crowd wilder than anything he'll experience in the Big East next season, Brunson scored 30 points against the Greeks on 9-of-13 shooting, then came back the next day and played 40 turnover-less minutes (with seven assists) in an overtime win over Croatia in the gold-medal game. U.S. coach Sean Miller was left with a clear impression of what Brunson could become in college.
"That kid," Miller said, "is a Final Four point guard."
 
http://www.si.com/college-basketball/2015/07/06/fiba-u19-world-championship-usa-jalen-brunson-harry-giles
 

MillarTime

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Nova wins preseason NIT and Brunson is the tourney MVP. Some good wins, but the sledding gets tougher with Oklahoma and Virginia coming up.
 

CoRP

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Just saw this. Providence away worried me a lot more than Marquette. Will the AP put them at #1 this week? If they do, it will be the kiss of death.
 

MillarTime

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Just saw this. Providence away worried me a lot more than Marquette. Will the AP put them at #1 this week? If they do, it will be the kiss of death.
They've never been ranked #1 during a season (obviously were end of year #1 in '85), so it would be a nice accomplishment. But, agree, I don't think it means very much in terms of this year. There are probably 20 teams that have a legit shot at the Final 4.
 

MillarTime

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And it's over.
I enjoyed the 16-day run.

They didn't play well....like at all...but I give Xavier a ton a credit for that. They are a great team who clearly outplayed the Nova all night on both ends of the court. The Cintas Center was an absolutely madhouse...great atmosphere for a big game. Sumner, in particular, was exceptional....Nova had no answer for him all night. Hoping those two teams play again in the BE tourney.

That said, Nova is still in great spot for high seed...even a #1 is still in play if they can run the table.
 

CoRP

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#1 seed in the East is still on the table in spite of last night's shit show. They don't deserve it but they'll probably get it with the UVA loss.

I can see them being the first #1 seed to be bounced in the first round. They, and the Big East, are WAY overrated. Ken Pom will need to fix his algo in the offseason.
 

CoRP

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Ochefu is back. So there's that. But I have little confidence that this team will make it to next weekend.
 

MillarTime

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One of the best performances of the year yesterday. That defense was absolutely swarming. Miami up next...should be a excellent game.
 

jablo1312

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Nova opens up as 4.5 point favorites against Miami. The Hurricanes will have one extra day of rest by virtue of playing on Saturday instead of Sunday, but I doubt that little extra bit of rest will play much of a factor.
 

johnmd20

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Nova opens up as 4.5 point favorites against Miami. The Hurricanes will have one extra day of rest by virtue of playing on Saturday instead of Sunday, but I doubt that little extra bit of rest will play much of a factor.
It is beyond a non factor. We're talking about 20 year olds. They are all rested completely by tomorrow.
 

bandito0

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They can't keep shooting 60%. But they can keep playing good defense.

This game is going to reminiscent of the Pitt game back in 09. I just hope Chef's ankle holds up.


Enough said. Go Nova.