Once spectators to a title, DiVincenzo and Paschall want to come home with one
RADNOR » Eric Paschall and Donte DiVincenzo were spectators the last time Villanova made the Sweet 16, for completely different reasons, although both were redshirts when the Wildcats made their run to the national championship two years ago.
Paschall sat out the 201516 season after transferring from Fordham. DiVincenco was sidelined after he fractured the fifth metatarsal bone in his right foot in the eighth game of the season. Though he did practice with the team later in the season and could have returned to the lineup, the decision was made to keep DiVincenzo out of game action. He was later granted a medical redshirt.
As a transfer, Paschall was prohibited from traveling with the team or to be on the bench for away games under NCAA rules. So he had to make his own way to Brooklyn, Louisville and then Houston for the Final Four to be part of Villanova’s magical run to the national title.
DiVincenzo did not have the same restrictions. He had a front-row seat. He could travel with the team and participate in all team functions, which included sitting on the bench for all six NCAA tournament games because he was still technically on the roster.
A lot has changed for both players as the top-seeded Wildcats (32-4) prepare to take on fifth-seeded West Virginia (26-10) in the East Region semifinals night at TD Garden (7:30, TBS).
Two years later, the 6-foot9, 255-pound Paschall is a starter averaging 10.2 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game. The 6-5, 205-pound DiVincenzo is the Big East’s Sixth Man of the Year and averaging 13.1 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.6 assists per outing.
For both of them, the journey was worth it.
“Even though I didn’t play I learned a lot that year I had to sit out,” Paschall said. “I learned what was expected of me and I’ve carried that into the next year and this year.”
“Watching it was amazing,” DiVincenzo said. “There was a little bit of pressure because I wanted our guys to win, but there was no pressure being out there on the court making mistakes or anything like that.
“This year, being one of the options offensively and being one of the guys that a lot of the responsibility falls on defensively, there’s more outside pressure. But within our locker room and with our coaches there’s no pressure because we know what we’re doing.”
That lesson began to sink in when DiVincenzo played the role of Buddy Hield on the scout team as the Wildcats prepared for a rematch with Oklahoma in the national semifinals.
Hield burned the Wildcats for 18 points and connected on 4 of 9 shots from 3-point land as the Sooners rolled to a 78-55 victory in the Pearl Harbor Invitational earlier Friday in Boston that season. Hield only had nine points as Villanova avenged that loss with a 9551 destruction of the Sooners in the national semifinals.
It was an eye-opening experience. DiVincenzo did not have the same confidence in himself that the coaches did, but playing the role of Hield changed DiVincenzo’s perspective.
“Honestly, when that whole Buddy Hield thing happened and we got past them and ended up winning the championship, I realized what I actually bring to the table,” DiVincenzo said. “It took off from there. After that, that summer, I lived in the gym. I had a good freshman year last year and that just boosted my confidence and I was in the gym every day.”
That moment was revealing for Jay Wright and his staff, too.
“Watching him that year, as a staff, we were saying going into that game that Buddy Hield wasn’t that much better than him because we’re not having success stopping him,” Wright said. “After we played Buddy Hield in that game, we obviously knew Buddy was better. But we said, ‘Donte was harder to guard in practice,’ and we talked to him about that. We just said that you have to figure out how to use that in game situations, but you’ve got it. You’ve got it and he does.”
DiVincenzo has proven he has what it takes to shine on the big stage. He is averaging 12.5 points, 3.0 rebounds and 6.5 assists in the NCAA tournament and 15.25 points, 6.25 rebounds and 4.25 assists in four tournament games in his career.
Paschall has also been solid in the postseason, averaging nine points, five rebounds and 2.5 assists this season, and 9.25 points, four rebounds and 1.5 assists per game in his career.
“Sitting out that year and having to travel on my own to be part of that whole experience was difficult, but I’m glad I did it,” Paschall said. “I got to see what the NCAA Tournament is all about and it prepared me for the future.”
*** NOTES » More honors for Jalen Brunson and Mikal Bridges. Both were named All-America by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC). Brunson was a first-team selection and Bridges was a thirdteam choice. It’s the fifth AllAmerica honor for Brunson and second for Bridges. The only major All-America team yet to be announced is from the Associated Press . ... The Wildcats moved up their departure time because of the snow. Villanova was slated to leave campus at 6:45 Wednesday night but moved it up three hours. The team bus had trouble making the turn from the driveway between the Pavilion and the Davis Center onto Ithan Ave. The bus was able to make the turn on the 10th try, according 6ABC, and make the 20mile drive to Philadelphia International Airport for its charter flight to Boston.