Leibig does more than run for food for ’Nova
“He’s a real cool guy, he’s funny, outgoing and he’s one of my closest friends. We’ve always had fun since the first time I met him on campus when we were freshmen.” — Villanova’s Mikal Bridges on teammate Tom Leibig, a walk-on from Haverford High
RADNOR » Going to the Final Four is a dream come true for Villanova senior Tom Leibig, the walk-on from of Haverford High.
That he will room there with Mikel Bridges, the All-American forward, is something his teammate never dreamed would happen after their first run-in years ago on a basketball court.
Bridges recalls their informal meeting in a middle school game at Haverford. Bridges attended Tredyffrin-Easttown.
“We were in eighth grade,” Bridges said. “He went to Haverford and I went to TE, which is right around the corner. And I think we lost by like one point at the end and their kids rushed the court. And we were surprised. What middle team school team rushes the court like that? Ever since, I never liked Haverford at all, and the kids out there.”
That dislike changed when Bridges and Leibig formally met and had a good laugh over it after getting their room assignments on the Main Line. How tight are they? Whoever hits the local Chipotle is obligated to phone the other just in case he has a craving.
Leibig and walk-ons Denny Grace, Matt Kennedy and Peyton Heck are pretty good friends of all the Villanova regulars and coaches. They’ve done a solid job of preparing the Wildcats for the obstacles ahead in the NCAA tournament that winds to San Antonio for a Saturday night semifinal with the Kansas Jayhawks (8:35 p.m.).
In the East Region at Boston, the walk-ons simulated the full-court pressure brought by West Virginia practicing six against the five starters. Leibig was the extra defender.
That obviously worked as the Wildcats defeated the Mountaineers 90-78.
With a two-day turnaround for the East final, Leibig & Co. did a stellar job simulating the Texas Tech offense the Wildcats would face.
“We had a walkthrough in the hotel where we just went through all of Texas Tech’s cuts,” Leibig said. “They’re a really good team. They do a lot of cutting off action and slip action. So, we had to actually learn basically their whole offense to help our guys out.”
The Jayhawks are champions of the rugged Big 12, where West Virginia and Texas Tech battled this season. One look at what they did to Duke, which arguably had the most talent of any team in the dance, is enough to get the attention of the entire Wildcats team.
For Leibig, it’s another chapter in an interesting basketball career capped by second-team All-Delco honors at Haverford in 2013-14, and leading the school to its first state tournament appearance in 44 years.
“It’s just like a group of guys that love playing together, love being a part of something, a great program, a great coach and you could just see it all through the offseason,” Leibig said. “These guys worked hard in the summer, all the fall workouts, all of the long practices, all of the long film sessions. We got to the games this year, we had a couple losses and it kind of hurt but it’s just a resilient team. Always coming back, coming back. Right now, were playing at our best. We’re defending, we’re rebounding and it’s fun to see.”
Leibig has just enough tickets to the Final Four to accommodate his family, including parents Dave and Anne.
Rest assured Leibig can be counted upon doing whatever it takes to help his guys prevail in San Antonio, including food runs for Bridges. And vice versa.
“He’s a real cool guy, he’s funny, outgoing and he’s one of my closest friends,” Bridges said. “We’ve always had fun since the first time I met him on campus when we were freshmen. We eat Chipotle. If he’s out and I’m like back at the room, he’ll call me and ask me if I need anything. And we do that for each other.”