By JOSH NEWMAN
NEW YORK – Villanova head coach Jay Wright does not fancy himself a ‘Bracketologist,’ but if the Wildcats win the Big East Tournament against Xavier on Saturday night, he knows exactly where they should be seeded.
“Honestly, I don’t know enough about it, I really don’t,” Wright said Friday night after top-seeded Villanova outlasted No. 4 seed Providence, 63-61, Friday night in one semifinal. “I don’t follow it and I couldn’t give you an honest answer.”
“I think if we win it, we deserve one, but I don’t know all the other parameters to give you an honest answer.”
If the Wildcats (31-2) do indeed win Saturday night at MSG for the program’s first Big East Tournament crown since 1995, they would arguably be a mortal lock as a No. 1 seed. That said, Friday night’s win may have gotten them there regardless.
Entering Friday, Villanova (West), Virginia (East), Duke (South) and Kentucky (Midwest) represented the four No. 1 seeds according to ESPN’s Joe Lunardi. The only one of those four to slip up on Friday was Virginia, which lost to North Carolina in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament.
Those four No. 1 seeds will remain intact going into Saturday, but there could be a lot of movement tomorrow and Sunday. If Arizona, Wisconsin and Kansas win their respective conference tournaments over the weekend, all would hold legitimate cases to be No. 1 seeds. The Jayhawks in particular have a compelling case if they win the Big 12 Tournament. Currently, they are just 26-7, but boast a No. 2 RPI, No. 1 out of conference RPI and No. 1 strength of schedule in the nation.
Regardless of whether or not Villanova is a No. 1 or a No. 2, this Wildcats team is primed for a March run after the disappointments of a year ago.
Last season’s Villanova team lost just twice in the regular season, both to Doug McDermott and Creighton, while peaking at No. 4 in the Top 25. The Wildcats then lost in the quarterfinals of the Big East Tournament to Seton Hall on a Sterling Gibbs buzzer-beater, then in the NCAA Tournamanent’s round of 32 to eventual-national champion Connecticut.
With the exception of senior James Bell, every key rotation player returned for Wright.
“They’ve been through so much,” Wright said. “Everybody on this team, the top seven guys have all been in big games, they’ve all played in the Big East Tournament, they’ve all already lost in the Big East Tournament, they’ve all played in the NCAA Tournament. They’ve already been a 1-seed in the Big East Tournament and those things make a huge difference.”
“That’s not something to be taken lightly.”
Photo: USA Today Sports
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