I Bleed Blue and White

On a rare Saturday where Villanova didn’t play, the Wildcats needed help from another group of Wildcats to make history.  With Kentucky losing to South Carolina on Tuesday night, Villanova had a chance to become #1 in the nation for the first time in school history.  The Kansas Jayhawks downed the Kansas State Wildcats in a nailbiter though, so in all likelihood, Kansas will be #1 and Villanova #2 when the new polls come out on Monday. 

Not really a big deal if you ask me.  It would be cool to hold the top spot, but being #1 in the very last poll is all that matters.     

One of my favorite things to do is read the quotes from the postgame press conferences following each game.  The script was not available for last night’s postgame press conference at the Palestra, but the following articles provide some reactions from both teams. 

• “Villanova outlasts Saint Joseph’s in Big 5 rivalry” by Mike Kern
• “Against Villanova, Saint Joseph’s hangs around, for 40 minutes” by Dick Jerardi
• “Reynolds, Villanova turn back Saint Joe’s” by Terry Toohey

By the way, there are 16 undefeated teams in Division I basketball currently.  Not surprisingly, 5 of these teams are from the Big East, including Villanova (9-0), Syracuse (8-0)-who is playing Florida right now, Seton Hall (7-0), Georgetown (7-0), and West Virginia (6-0).   

While my input on the blog has considerably declined since work started, I figured I’d chime in cause its the Holy War.

1.     Just an absolute fun game to watch.  St. Joe’s kept it close but I never really felt threatened as our Offense is just UNBELIEVABLE.  We have so many weapons and options, the only person on the court that can’t go for 20 at any point is Sutton.  Like I said in our season preview, I think we have the talent and unselfishness to have 5 or 6 players averaging 10+.  And man can Taylor King shoot.

2.     Our D…I don’t know whether its due to the pace of the game (cause our offense scores so easily) or if its a sign of things to come, but 89 pts is too many.  When we got a lead, the D started to sag a little.  If St Joes ran a pick and pop play, or a backside screen to the top for a 3, there was no one in the shooters face.  97 pts on offense is amazing, but against a subpar team, I’d rather see a dominating D performance.

3.     Good job applying pressure from the ballhandlers, attacking and drawing fouls.  We had 40 FTs and we got to the double bonus early in the 2nd half.  This is huge because we lack the size to compete with some of the big teams (UConn, Syracuse, Kansas when we meet them for the NCAA championship, etc…).  Getting in the lane should do 1 of 2 things, create foul problems for the backcourt giving us room to shoot or create foul trouble with the helpside big men negating their size and giving us more room to finish.

4.     Are Dom and Wayns World going to be special or what!  They aren’t the focal point of the offense, but they take what they’re giving and don’t force things, and they play great D.  Watching them you just get that feeling that they’re going to do big things.  By the end of the season their contributions will be invaluable.

5.     Probably the most important thing:  I’m undeafeated in the picks.  At least according to me, I could be wrong….

Check in later tonight, I’ll have a BigEast Roundup posted around 8 or so.

And somebody tell that damn bird to stop flapping its wings.  GO NOVA!

Each week throughout the college basketball season, ESPN provides an in-depth analysis of the most recent top players and teams, key games to look forward to in the respective week, and much more.  In the latest edition, Andy Katz mentions Villanova in a couple of different spots.  Katz gives “shout-outs” to Miami (Malcolm Grant is noted), Seattle, and the Wildcats of Villanova.  Katz says about Nova:

The Wildcats won the Puerto Rico Tip-Off Classic.  They were tested quite a bit in three days and came through to show they can be an elite team.  Those wins against Dayton and Ole Miss — maybe even the tight one versus George Mason — will look just fine in March.

Although Villanova did gut it out to post an impressive championship in the Puerto Rico Tip-Off Classic, it was another Big East team that stood as the “team of the week.”  As you may have guessed, it was Syracuse, who demolished California and North Carolina at Madison Square Garden in the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic.  Indeed, the Orange did look good in NYC, but it is too early to start crowing them Big East champions, which I have heard from some people. 

The Cats get a nice break this week, with 5 full days of no games.  Their next game is against an improved LaSalle team on Saturday at the Pavilion.  Katz points this game out as one of his “headline destinations.”  LaSalle would love nothing more than to give Villanova a blip on their current Big 5 dominance.  Katz says about the matchup:   

La Salle is supposed to be a sleeper team in the A-10.  Villanova is off to a solid start after escaping against George Mason.  If La Salle wants to be taken seriously in the Big Five this season, knocking off Nova would suffice.  If the Explorers get smacked, it will be hard to take them too seriously.

I agree with Katz’s assessment that the Villanova victories in the Puerto Rico Tip-Off Classic will be resume builders come tournament time.  George Mason shoud contend for the CAA title, just like Dayton will be a threat in the A-10, and Ole Miss will be solid if they can improve their rebounding.  This will probably be my last post until after Thanksgiving, so I hope everyone has a happy and safe holiday. 

Expert bracketologist Joe Lunardi returns for the 2009-2010 campaign with his initial breakdown of the field of 64.  As we all know, this means absolutely nothing, and this bracket will look very different come March.  Anyway, for what it’s worth, Villanova is ranked as a 2 seed in the East (Syracuse) region.

There were a few things that caught my eye right away in terms of the Big East.  First, I don’t think Marquette will be challenging for a bid this year, as Lunardi has them as “one of the first four out.”  Losing Dominic James, Jerel McNeal, and Wesley Mathews is too much to overcome this year in my opinion.  In the “next four out” Lunardi has Cincinnati.  No, this program has not had much success since the Bob Huggins era, but this year’s team has a good chance to make the tournament and even be a decent seed.  They bring back a good nucleus to go along with freshman phenom Lance Stephenson.  Lastly, Pittsburgh was given an 8 seed.  I think Jamie Dixon is a great coach and always admire the toughness of the Pitt teams, but it wouldn’t shock me to see the Panthers on the outside looking in.  No doubt, though, they will be very well prepared and play each game extremely hard.

We will see how it unfolds over the course of the season.  The excitement continues to build as we head towards Friday night and the Fairleigh Dickinson game.

Added by Chris:

I do not like Joe Lunardi one bit, and frankly I am surprised to see him give us this kind of respect this early on. I think we would all sign up for a 2-seed right now, especially with the inexperience of some of our team. That projection is entirely dependent on a lot of guys growing up fast.

As for the other Big East projections, I agree that I have a tough time seeing Marquette in the at-large mix. Hayward is a great player but too many new parts to go along with not much experience. If Jimmy Butler can become a go-to-guy though, they could sneak in. Cincinnati is a near lock for the tournament to me. Too much talent. I actually think Pittsburgh will be higher than an 8 seed. Whenever they are highly-rated they underachieve (last year is a good example) and whenever people think they are rebuilding they tend to exceed expectations.

Villanova links:

• Wright not all that happy with the defense
• Scottie putting up 27
• Nova Notebook: After Kutztown, Wright’s staff focuses on defense

Kutztown links:

• Video: Kutztown gains valuable experience even in defeat
• Cherishing the big-time atmosphere
• Kutztown’s Dennis a D-II player with D-I and possibly NBA talent
• Confidence builder for the future

To give up something you enjoy a great deal is definitely tough, but when it’s for another person, especially a loved one, it might be a little easier.  Brian Lynch, former Villanova basketball player and husband to tennis phenom Kim Clijsters, had to give up his basketball career, at least for now, in order for Kim to get back into tennis.  He takes care of daughter Jada, representing the so called “stay at home dad” these days.  Allowing his wife to get back into tennis certainly paid off, as she won the U.S. Open a few weeks ago.  But what has it been like since dropping basketball?  Frank Fitzpatrick, a writer for the Philadelphia Inquirer, details how Lynch has dealt with the transition.  Some interesting quotes from the article are below.

On his basketball ability:

I knew I wasn’t good enough for the NBA, but I felt like I was a solid player who might be able to go to Europe.

On the sacrifice he made:

But when Kim got back into tennis, we decided I’d hang it up to care for our daughter and to give Kim a normal family life.

Definitely a true family man Lynch is.  It must have been that much sweeter seeing his wife win the prestigious U.S. Open.  Hopefully, he gets the chance to pick up basketball again, whether it’s as a player or a coach. 

As a diehard fan of the New York Mets, this season has been nothing but disappointing.  Through all the negatives, though, there is at least one positive; assistant General Manager John Ricco is a Villanova Alum and his experiences on the Main Line propelled him on the fast track to a big time job in sports.  At Villanova, he was the sports editor of the yearbook and The Villanovan.  Following his graduation in 1990, he landed an internship with the New York Yankees.  He has worked his way up to the assistant General Manager of the New York Mets, and it would not surprise me if he took over the General Manager position very soon.  The success he’s had stems from what he learned at Villanova.  Here are a couple of excellent quotes from the article. 

On his first tour through the Villanova campus, which helped him decide on his college choice:

It was the morning after Villanova won the title, and the place was trashed.  In the Quad, there were kegs everywhere and broken windows.  I was walking through and the tour guide was a little uncomfortable because of the parents.  I looked at my father and he was like, ‘What is this?  What is this all about?’

On his interests other than baseball:

It’s my main diversion.  I’m all baseball so much, but I love to keep track of Villanova basketball.  Plus, everybody knows that I went there.  Anything that comes up in the news, I get e-mails.

This is a fantastic article, regardless of whether you love, hate, or don’t care about the Mets.  It’s more about Villanova than anything and some of the stories he tells are great, in my opinion.  Always nice to see Villanova alums succeed.   

Throughout the summer, NBE, a site dedicated to the coverage of Big East basketball, has been providing in depth reports on each team.  Today, they released their Villanova summer report written by Zach Smart, which covers key losses, key returnees, key newcomers, as well as predictions and expectations for the new look Wildcats.  Here’s a brief idea of what NBE thinks about the 2009-2010 ’Cats:

Villanova is the hands down conference favorite heading into the 2009-2010 season. With one of the nation’s top recruiting classes as well as several top contributors from last season’s Final Four team, Jay Wright could very well have the horses to make another March charge through the field.

A big part of Villanova’s success over the years has been the atmosphere of the games in which they play in.  They play against high-profile schools, in notorious arenas, with an excellent fan base.  But if you were only allowed to attend one more college basketball game, where would the game be and what would be the matchup? The Rivals College Basketball Roundtable, comprised of a group of Rivals college hoops experts, were proposed this question.  Mike Huguenin, one of the experts, responded as follows:

Give me a “Big Five” game at the Palestra in Philadelphia. The “Big Five” series isn’t what it used to be, but the tradition, history and atmosphere at a key matchup between, say, La Salle and Villanova or Villanova and Temple would be fantastic. The key words are “key matchup.” If two “Big Five” teams happen to be good in the same season – say, both in the top 20 – it would be electric and the Palestra would be rocking.

So we want to know your answer to the question, if you were only allowed to attend one more college basketball game, where would the game be and what would be the matchup?

When it comes to the non-conference schedule, the drama and buzz aren’t always present, but tournaments early in the season can create some excitement.  David Fox, college basketball staff writer for Rivals, listed and analyzed the important November/December tourneys for the upcoming hoops season.  The O’Reilly Auto Parts Puerto Rico Tip-Off, which will be played November 19th, 20th, and 22nd, was featured on Fox’s list.  With Georgia Tech, Dayton, Boston University, George Mason, Mississippi, Indiana, Kansas State, and Villanova representing the 8 participants, the matchup Fox wants to see in this bracket is Georgia Tech and Villanova in the 2nd round.  Fox’s analysis of the tip-off is as follows:

The early rounds are loaded with juicy matchups.  A first-round game matches Dayton, the A-10 favorite, and Georgia Tech, a potential top-25 team.  The Yellow Jackets won only two ACC games last season, but should be a league contender with center Derrick Favors, the No. 3 prospect in the 2009 class, joining forward Gani Lawal and guard Iman Shumpert.

The Flyers have a star of their own in 6-8 junior Chris Wright. A strong defensive team, Dayton is poised for a breakout season. … A Final Four team a year ago, Villanova could draw either of those teams in the second round.  Whether the Wildcats face Georgia Tech or Dayton, their frontcourt will need to answer for the loss of leading scorer Dante Cunningham.

Like Villanova, Ole Miss is a backcourt-heavy team when a healthy Chris Warren teams with Terrico White. … Indiana will have a chance to show how well Tom Crean’s rebuilding project is going.  Ole Miss should contend in the SEC West, but the Rebels are hardly an NCAA tournament lock.

We’ll see if Georgetown transfer Jeremiah Rivers and a standout signing class led by forward Christian Watford can compete with Ole Miss. … Thanks to the guard tandem of Denis Clemente and Jacob Pullen, Kansas State could be a sleeper in this field.  The Wildcats didn’t play an NCAA tournament team in their non-conference schedule last season.  That could change if K-State wins a game or two in this tourney.

While Georgia Tech has had a rough go of it in recent years, look for them to be better this year with the addition of the highly touted Derrick Favors.  Winning this tournament could prove to be huge down the stretch for the Wildcats.

Lots of good tourneys leading up to conference play.  Which ones intrigue you the most?