I Bleed Blue and White

When Brian first texted me yesterday with the news that Reggie Redding had been suspended for the fall semester, I had a few different reactions. My initial words were, “Damn, that’s going to hurt.” And it surely will. Redding was a very big reason why we went to the Final Four. He took his defensive prowess and added a rapidly improving offensive game, and opened up a new chapter in his Villanova career. So yes, missing a senior leader while the team tries to navigate it’s way through the OOC schedule will hurt.

But there are a couple of silver linings in this mess, with the first being increased playing time for Dominic Cheek and Maalik Wayns. Taking Redding out of the backcourt mix for 10-12 games allows the freshman guards to get more of a ‘trial by fire.’ In the short run, it may cost us a couple games as the two young guys go through growing pains, but in the grand scheme of things it will help prepare them for the daunting Big East schedule, and the NCAA Tournament.

In Cheek’s case, he’s already got a little bit of Redding in him. He’s got great length to match up with some of the bigger guards (although the strength probably isn’t there yet) and like Redding, he loves to play defense. He’s got a nice shot from the outside and if you remember the McDonald’s Game, loves to get inside and hit the boards (another ‘Villanova Basketball’ staple.)

Wayns doesn’t play the same position as Redding, but again his minutes will increase because there is one less guy in the rotation. And like Cheek, he’s got the makeup to succeed early because he’s a hard worker who is a classic pass-first point guard.

So while it may not be all good initially, let’s just say I’m very excited to see more of Cheek and Wayns than I am scared to throw them in there because of Redding’s suspension.

Finally, that brings us to Corey Stokes. Stokes was billed with a lethal shot coming in, and hasn’t let anyone down in that department (and actually showed improvement last year). But after a somewhat mixed freshman campaign, he took a major step forward last season as he showed us an increased desire to play top-end defense, as well as an improving offensive game that began to include the dribble-drive and the mid-range jumper.

Stokes has the most to gain in Redding’s absence, because if he was on the fence for a starting spot before the suspension, he’s absolutely in there now. Just for argument’s sake, this is what I believe our starting lineup will be on opening night:

Corey Fisher — Scottie Reynolds — Corey Stokes — Antonio Pena — Mouphtaou Yarou

You can argue that Stokes may have even started at the expense of either Pena or Yarou while Redding was still in the picture, but I believe he would have been the 1st man off the bench.

So now, it is Corey’s time to shine. I don’t want to say he has to fill Reggie’s shoes, because while they play the same position, they have different strength’s and weaknesses. I’d rather see Stokes take charge in his own way. And not only that, but he is an upperclassman now. He’s a leader on this team. That’s a role we haven’t seen him in yet, so how will he respond to that challenge?

Color me very excited for the early portion of the season. I’ve decided that I’m just not going to dwell on what could be if Redding was playing, and rather view him as a mid-season acquisition, much like the Phillies acquired Cliff Lee. Because if this team struggles early, there is some hope on the horizon. But if they gel early and are looking strong, Redding’s return for one last senior hurrah is icing on the cake.

Before getting to my experience this past Thursday night regarding “Attitude of a Champion,” another sports outlet is looking ahead to the college basketball season.  Yahoo! Sports recently posted their bracket projections for the 2010 NCAA Tournament.  For what it’s worth, they have Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan State, and Villanova as #1 seeds. 

On Thursday, August 6th, I made it to the 7:30 pm showing of “Attitude of a Champion” in the Connelly Center Cinema on the campus of Villanova.  My guess is this auditorium seats about 200 people, and there were about 40 people in the room for this particular viewing.  The only person I knew was Scott Graham, who produced and narrated the documentary for Wipeout Productions.  He introduced himself to the audience in the beginning, and I immediately recognized his voice from the show, “Inside Villanova Basketball,” which airs weekly throughout the season.  Graham mentioned that the idea for the documentary took form in the very beginning of the season.  As he put it, “We wanted to have snip-its, just in case something big happened.  Well, something big did happen.”  He also mentioned how it was the most fun he’s ever had on a project and wishes he was still working on it.  Anyways, the airing I saw was 56 minutes in length.  It follows the team’s journey throughout the season, through the ups and downs, the peaks and valleys.  More importantly, though, the team’s seniors, Dante Cunningham, Frank Tchuisi, Dwayne Anderson, and Shane Clark, truly are the focal point of the video, just like they were on the team.  Watching the documentary made me want to go back and re-live the amazing ride it was.  Everything, from the footage to the narration to the interviews, was excellent.  After the airing, I purchased the DVD outside the Cinema for $20.  It will be made available for sale online on August 10th on villanova.com.  Obviously, the 2008-2009 season was an unforgettable one, and the “Attitude of a Champion” video truly encapsulates how special of a year it was.  In my opinion, a definite must-see.

It appears that it’s all but official that Scottie Reynolds will be entering his name into the NBA Draft pool this year, although should he not hire an agent, he can always return to Villanova for his senior season.

As many have surmised both on here, the various draft websites, and all around Villanova, it is no lock that Reynolds would even be drafted. For whatever reason, it seems that NBA scouts are not completely sold on Reynolds. So with that in mind, why is Reynolds going to enter his name into the draft? Let’s take a look.

Some people are going to be upset with the following, but it’s time to face facts. Scottie Reynolds does not have great size, nor does he have the traditional NBA-athleticism. And when I say that, I don’t mean he isn’t athletic. He certainly is. But he doesn’t have that blazing first step like Eric Maynor or the wicked handle like Jonny Flynn. Again, that’s not to say Reynolds isn’t as good as those players, because he is . But the NBA is about how the scouts view you, and Scottie Reynolds is not nearly viewed in the same regard as many other guards. Whether that is right or wrong is left to opinion, but the fact that he is viewed that way is what it is.

The other thing hurting Reynolds is his lack of a defined position. He’s widely known as a great scorer who is better off-the-ball. But he lacks the height desired in an NBA two guard. But has he proven he can be a stellar point guard? Tough to say, especially with the emergence of Corey Fisher this year. Personally, I do think Reynolds could develop into a decent NBA point guard – but again it’s not about what I think.

And lastly, his pre-draft agenda could hurt him. As is being reported by many draft websites, Reynolds probably won’t garner an invite to the pre-draft camp. And in a down economy, teams aren’t going to go crazy holding private workouts, so how many chances does Scottie get to showcase his ability? Tough to say.

So why is Reynolds going to declare? Well, the most obvious reason to me is that he has nothing to lose by ‘testing the waters.’ You can only enter and later withdraw once if I’m not mistaken, so with just one year of eligilibity left, Reynolds can use that option now without having to worry about wasting the test for future years.

Also, how much higher will his stock climb? The team is coming off a Final Four run, he’s in the national spotlight following the Pittsburgh win, and a core of the team (Cunningham, Clark and Anderson) is leaving. So how good with Villanova be next year? Well, definitely not as good if Reynolds leaves, but even with him, will they repeat their success? With 6 new players suiting up, it’s hard to gauge what will happen.

So I see why Reynolds could be thinking about bolting. But in the end, I think it would be wise for him to stay. Next year, this will undoubtedly be his team. His chances to showcase himself should only increase with the loss of Cunningham down low as well.

When the time comes to decide, I do think Reynolds will withdraw his name and return, as I’ve said many times. But right now, I can’t blame him for taking a look. It’s a no-lose situation for him.

This is going to be my 2nd to last post (the last will be the typical preGame post) before I head to Detroit. I’m leaving around 3-4 a.m. and I’m hoping to be in Detroit in the early afternoon. Long drive, ugh. But at the end of that is the proverbial pot of gold. So it’s all worth it.

Since I finished up school for the week I’ve been listening to the radio and TV trying to get a sense of what the media thinks about this game. After listening to the talking heads, I’ve come to the conclusion that while everyone would love to see the upset, nobody is really giving us a chance at all.

After all, we’re up against big bad North Carolina and their roster of future pros. Heck, if I hadn’t been watching our team all year, I might even think we have no chance. Half the country still doesn’t know our team. They know Scottie Reynolds, sure. And probably Dante Cunningham as well since even though he’s relatively new on the scene. But the rest? Just a ragtag group of guys who don’t belong.

Even our suit-connoisseur of a coach (who we think Roy Williams has a crush on) is new to the party.

And I really wouldn’t have it any other way. Cunningham and Tyler Hansbrough (as much as we’ve ragged on him) should have a great matchup. Ty Lawson is clearly (in my opinion) the best player in this tournament, but is he ready for the bevy of players that will bump him and bother him?

Who is stopping Corey Fisher from getting into the lane? Lawson is quick, but nobody on UNC cares about defense.

Which brings me to my main point. Boomer Esiason pointed out on WFAN that defense wins this time of year. Did anyone see Michigan State stomping Louisville like that? Of course not, but it is because they played D. North Carolina will score against ‘Nova. They are that good. But they aren’t going to score 90, or even 80. And when they play in the 60s and 70s, they aren’t as good. Because they can’t rely on themselves to get a stop when they need it.

Villanova on the other hand has had everyone raving about the way they defend. Raving about the way they punch people in the mouth. Raving about how they refuse to back down. Now all of a sudden, they aren’t going to do those things? Give me a break.

Here’s what I think. Nobody gives us a chance, and that helps us. We’re locked in. We’re focused. Meanwhile Ty Lawson is at the casinos. Nevermind the fact that we are familiar with the awful Ford Field setup from last year, or the fact that we got screwed at the hands of the officials 4 years go to this very same program. We can do this without all of that motivation.

So are you ready to give up on our boys? I’m certainly not. They may not be the most flashy and they are not talked about as future lottery picks, but they are winners.

See you in Detroit.

Before, we showed you the ‘heart and soul’ of North Carolina. Down in ACC country, they refer to that man as ‘Pyscho T’ for some reason, even though Tyler was crying because Gerald Henderson was mean to him.

Well, this is our heart and soul. He doesn’t have any nicknames that try and puff up his reputation. He doesn’t cry. And most importantly, he doesn’t take shit from anyone. And really, you could say that about anyone on Villanova. Because our players don’t feel entitled to anyone. They don’t whine to the refs. They get in your face, put a scowl on, and put a whooping on you.

But this man especially, is why we have the attitude on our team that we do. He doesn’t accept losing, and he doesn’t let anyone push him around. And that rubs off on every other player around him.

Let’s just say I’m really happy that we have #22.

I rewatched the win over Pittsburgh for the first time tonight, and I can’t tell you how enjoyable it was. Not only to see the game from a different angle, but you just pick up on so much more than when you are there. At the game, I was an out of control lunatic screaming and jumping and cheering. I couldn’t analyze what was happening at all. Now I finally can. Here are some more thoughts.

• With 12 minutes left in the 1st half, Shane Clark had outscored Pitt 9-8. I cannot overstate how huge he was early in the game. His three triples deserved a Puuurrreee call from Gus Johnson. None of them touched the rim.
• With just over 8 minutes left in the 1st half, Sam Young scored to get Pitt within 5. Jay Wright immediately called timeout. Great job there to stop things before Pitt made a huge run.
• We did not shoot well at all, and still put 78 points on Pitt, and won. I’m very, very impressed by that.
• We stopped attacking the rim near the end of the first half, and that is why we were losing at the half.
• Verne Lundquist and Bill Raftery did a phenomenal job calling this game, although I thought the last play could have been better called.
• At the game, I thought Sam Young killed us. After watching him play, he destroyed us. We harrassed him, double teamed him, poked him in the eye, stepped on his toes, everything. He was just that good.
• I will not miss Levance Fields, Sam Young, and possibly even DeJuan Blair at all. Good luck to them, and good riddance. I hated playing them. They are freaking good.
• Corey Stokes made one three, but it was a big one.
• Dwayne Anderson was ice cold all night, and then came up huuuuuuuuge down the stretch.
• The last play will be played for years and years. I’ll never forget that moment. It was pure heroics by Reggie Redding, Dante Cunningham and most of all Scottie Reynolds.
• I love this team.

This afternoon, a group of students gathered in front of The Pavilion to cheer the team on as they loaded onto their buses and headed for Boston. As part of the promotion, a raffle was held and 35 students were selected and sold tickets to the Sweet Sixteen and Elight Eight games this weekend.

As for the raffle, the IBBW guys cleaned up, snaring some tickets for their trip to Boston. Good for us.

As for the sendoff itself, I’ve got to say that I’m a little disappointed in the students. We aren’t the biggest school in the world, but I’d be surprised if there was even 250 total people there. Disappointing is really the only word I can use to describe it. This team is our pride and joy, and the students (especially the seniors) should have been out in full force.

I understand that people have class and such, but you won’t convince me that the overwhelming majority of the campus had night class.

As for the actual sendoff, it was fun. The team slowly came out in groups of 2 or 3, got some nice cheers from the students on hand and had what felt like 10 TV crews filming the entire thing.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Dante Cunningham, Shane Clark, Frank Tchuisi, Dwayne Anderson and Scottie Reynolds emerged to enormous cheers and instead of heading for the bus like the rest of the team, made a beeline straight for the students and made their way through the crowd and started high fiving everyone and cheering with the rest of us. It was special.

They then headed onto the bus, but after a few minutes Dante re-emerged to give a speech to the students. His essential message was that he really appreciated all the support, let us know that Jay Wright had some meetings and had left early, and then told us that he’d see us in Boston and we were all going to win together. I liked that.

Dante definitely gets it. It’s funny cause you see those guys come out and they are like rock stars. They could play the arrogant athlete and leave their headphones on and act too cool, but they came over and got rowdy with the students, and they understand that we live and die by the team. He’s giving his speech and he’s got this sheepish grin on his face like he can’t contain his excitement. Too funny. But I respect the hell out of the guy (as well as the rest of the team) because when they step on the court it’s all business, and when they lose you can tell their night is ruined.

I’ve got a good feeling about this weekend. I don’t want to jinx anything but it definitely feels like the stars are alining. Go Cats!

Villanova’s biggest strength heading into their game with Duke is their guard play. ‘Nova attacked the rim with disdain against UCLA, and with great success. Against the slower Dukies, one would figure that the dribble-drive would again figure prominently into the game plan.

But could it hurt Villanova? With the way that Coach K teaches the flop, it could. Duke is widely known for their questionable flops that only Kristof Ongenaet has been able to rival so far this season. When Corey Fisher, Scottie Reynolds, Reggie Redding and Dwayne Anderson attack the rim, they are going to need to be mindful that there is a flop waiting to happen.

And more importantly, Dante Cunningham is going to need to be very careful. He likes to throw his muscle around a bit in the post, but he’s going to need to be careful that he doesn’t give the refs anything to call.

With any luck, the game will be called the right way and flops, such as the one by newly discovered junk-lover Greg Paulus, will not be called.

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I’m in a couple different pools. I’m a perfect 7-7 right now in one, and 6-7 in another. I missed my BYU pick in the latter. Pretty good hoops day so far. I just got back to my apartment after spending most of the afternoon at my friend Joey’s watching the games. We both have Memphis going down in the Sweet 16, so we were rooting like hell for Cal State-Northridge. The end of that game was a damn shame, and I now know why I was right to doubt the Tigers all year. They aren’t good at all. An after seeing UConn take Chattanooga to the woodshed today, I seriously doubt Memphis can hang with them should they meet up.

Under 2 hours til the start of the Villanova game. Jamie is down at The Wachovia Center, so he’ll hopefully have some feedback on the pulse of the arena later tonight.

But back to my main question — how’s your bracket looking thus far?

The Selection Show is tonight at 6 p.m. ET on CBS, but there isn’t going to be any drama this time around. One year ago, we were all glued to our TV screens as we anxiously awaited the teams to be announced. We had no idea if Villanova’s name was going to be called, or what our seed would be.

When it was finally announced — #12 Villanova vs. #5 Clemson — it felt like we had just hit a buzzer beater. Some friends and gave the fist-pump and exchanged high-fives, and then let out a deep sigh of relief.

Not this year though, and I’ve got to say, I like this feeling a lot better. We’re definitely in the tournament field, so all that’s left is to find out who we’ll be playing and where the game will take place.

Michigan State lost yesterday, which is a result that pushes us back into the Philly pod if you check out Jerry Palm’s latest bracket. For what it’s worth, Joe Lunardi still has us in Philly as well.

I’ve felt like we’re a lock for a #3 and Philly since we squeaked by Marquette, but it is more comforting to see other people out there (especially Palm) think the same. Now I’m really just hoping that our draw is going to be favorable. I’ve already gotten to the point where I realize that we are going to be in North Carolina and Oklahoma’s bracket for whatever reason (and if we aren’t, all the better), so I’m just hoping for a couple lighter games en route to the Sweet Sixteen.

I’ll be doing some updates as the Selection Show happens tonight, but I’m sure you won’t need them as you’re already on the couch for the next 8 hours like me.