Defense has a learning curve as Villanova gets set to tip
RADNOR >> One thing is certain as Villanova prepares to open the season Friday night at home against Fairleigh Dickinson: The Wildcats will score.
There is no doubt that.
With Ryan Arcidiacono, Daniel Ochefu, Josh Hart, Kris Jenkins and Phil Booth returning, and prized freshman Jalen Brunson in the fold, the 11th-ranked Wildcats have plenty of firepower, not to mention three point guards, which will wreak havoc on opposing defenses.
As far as defense, well, as head coach Jay Wright likes to say, that’s a work in progress.
“We have Wright said.
Something else is evident, too. When the 6-11 Ochefu comes out of the lineup, the Wildcats get small in a hurry.
With freshman forward Tim Delaney most likely out for the season following hip surgery, Ochefu and junior Darryl Reynolds are the only players in the rotation 6-8 or taller, so team rebounding will be key.
Yet this is a team with high expectations, and deservedly so, even though the Wildcats did not make it out of the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year last season, and lost three key players from that team that went
a
way
about
to
go,” 33-3 and won the Big East regular-season and tournament championships.
Villanova was a unanimous choice to win the Big East title for the second year in a row, and it is a veteran team.
It starts with Arcidiacono and Ochefu, who have seemingly been around forever.
Arcidiacono is the reigning Big East co-Player of the Year, along with Providence guard Kris Dunn. And Arch, as he is called, was a preseason All-Big East selection by the coaches. The 6-3 senior is a 1,000-point scorer (1,106 career points) and 17th on the career assist list (366).
Ochefu is 25th on the career rebound list (651) and has a chance to become the eighth player in program history to grab 900 rebounds in a career, if he has another year like last season. He’s one of 20 players on the Kareem Abdul Jabbar watch list as the top center in the country. Ochefu is receiving a lot of attention from NBA scouts, as is Brunson. He was the MVP of the FIBA U19 World Championships and was selected as the Big East Rookie of the Year. The experience with USA basketball helped him make the transition from high school to college player.
“You’re playing against pros over there,” Brunson said. “The players in Europe don’t necessarily go to college. They’re already in a league for two-to-three years, so playing against professionals is a different type of game and I really learned from that experience.”
Still, there are holes to fill. The Wildcats must replace Darrun Hilliard, who was taken by the Detroit Pistons in the second round of the NBA Draft. They also have to replace forward JayVaughn Pinkston, who tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee while playing with the Brooklyn Nets in July. Hilliard and Pinkston graduated as one of the highest-scoring duos in school history (3,101 career points). More than that, though, they were the heartand-soul of the team. Also gone is guard Dylan Ennis, who transferred to Oregon.
Arcidiacono and Ochefu have filled the leadership role. Hart, Jenkins, Booth, Brunson, Reynolds, redshirt freshman guard Mikal Bridges and freshman guard Donte DeVencenzo are being counted on to fill the other gaps. Hart is up to the task. “My role is going to change a little bit,” Hart said. “Last year, I was the fourth or fifth guy on the scouting report, but now I’ll probably be in the top three. But a lot of the other things are the same. I’m still expected to get myself going and get the other players going on the offensive end. On the defensive end it’s more of the same, play as hard as I can, guard the best player and make them have to work for everything they get. It’s a little bit of a change from last year, but a lot of it’s the same. I’m looking forward to it.”
Jenkins, Booth and Reynolds will see their roles expand, too. Jenkins started in the 80-45 exhibition romp over Pace and hit 3 of 4 from 3-point range. Booth had five points, four assists and no turnovers. Reynolds will be counted on to give Ochefu a breather or fill in when the big fella gets in foul trouble.
DeVencenzo is expected to provide depth and Wright said he is still trying to figure out what role Bridges will play. He sat out last season as a redshirt. He did score 10 points in 19 minutes in the exhibition game.
With that many players vying for minutes, one might think chemistry could be an issue. Not so, Arcidiacono said.
“It’s great; every single year I’ve been here the chemistry has been awesome,” he said. “Every single year we’ve gotten better, both on and off the court. We have to continue to develop good chemistry on the defensive end and we have to have good chemistry on the offensive end. We have to continue to push each other in practice throughout the season to get better.”
Will that be enough to help the Wildcats get over the hump in March and get into the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament?
“I don’t know if I’ve got the answer for that yet,” Wright said, “but when we get there, if we get there, then I might have an answer.”