A part of Shabazz Napier’s legendary run to the 2014 national championship included scoring 21 points in the second half of the East Region quarterfinals to help the Huskies upset the No. 2-seeded Villanova Wildcats. It was a disappointing end to a surprise season that saw Jay Wright’s team finish the season 29-5.
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While other teams rebuild Wright returns everybody worth mentioning from that team except James Bell. In the first
the Wildcats find themselves ranked 12th. It is not an exaggeration to say the Wildcats are loaded which every preseason review confirms by picking them to win the Big East going away.
This year the Wildcats will not surprise anyone; they will be the hunted as they are the only Big East team expected to be ranked heading into the season.
This year’s team will be led by experience, which is often a crucial element for a national championship contender (unless Anthony Davis or Carmelo Anthony are on your roster). Darrun Hilliard and JayVaughn Pinkston are the type of players who lead teams deep into March.
These two are seniors, battle-tested, and competitors. Their numbers from last year are pretty indicative that they will lead the team this year.
Hilliard has improved every year in nearly every statistical category. The senior returns after averaging 14.3 points per game and shooting 48.6 percent from the field and 41.4 percent from 3. Hilliard is a candidate for Big East Player of the Year and playing himself into a late first round pick in the 2015 NBA Draft.
He is a physical guard who could do some damage scoring even more so than last year. He already shot the ball well and with more attempts and most likely more plays designed to put the ball in his hands he could erupt as a big time scorer this season.
While Hilliard is likely to carry this team at times offensively, expect Pinkston to be the most important contributor if Villanova plans to make it to Indianapolis. He is the all-around glue guy for this team. He will also be in contention for Big East player of the year.
Pinkston is intriguing because he has size, athleticism and a nice skill set to score in different ways from all over the floor. He averaged 14.1 points per game and 6.1 rebounds per game. The Wildcats would be well-served by Pinkston rebounding more and not trying to impress scouts by falling in love with the three point line where he has never been a major threat.
Ryan Arcidiacono will be in charge of taking care of the ball making shots. He averaged 31.1 minutes per game last year and managed an impressive 2.46 assist to turnover ratio. If Arcidiacono can maintain that and get other guys around him the ball expect Jay Wright to be pleased.
He shot the 3 at a decent clip of 34.5 percent so he has to be respected and will likely get a lot of open looks with Hilliard and Pinkston getting most of the attention from opposing defenses.
Rounding out the most likely starting lineup for the Wildcats will be sophomore and 2013 ESPN 100 recruit, Josh Hart and junior Daniel Ochefu. These two will need to provide scoring and defense.
Hart could emerge as a all-conference caliber player and have a breakout sophomore season. He shoots it well and with improved percentages and more playing time with the departure of James Bell, he could be one of the best third options in the Big East by seasons end.
Jay Wright has assembled a potentially great team as he continues to build his legacy as one of the best coaches in college basketball over the past ten years. Wright had a taste of the Final Four in the 2008-2009 season and this may be his best chance to make it back and join an elite class of coaches by winning a national championship.