Villanova and No. 1 UConn tip off at the Wells Fargo Center on Saturday night. (Photo: Aaron Bracy)
By AARON BRACY
January 20, 2024
Big5Hoops.com
PHILADELPHIA – Let’s be clear about one thing: At this level, as Herm Edwards would say, you play to win the games.
This is big-time Division I basketball. No one is celebrating any close calls.
Villanova players slumped into the postgame media room, ticked off after dropping a 66-65 defeat to No. 1 UConn at a packed Wells Fargo Center, featuring a rowdy, electric atmosphere fueled by 18,966 strong.
Kyle Neptune didn’t want to hear about how close Villanova came to upsetting the Huskies.
Didn’t want to hear about a late foul call that went against the Wildcats.
Didn’t want to hear about moral victories.
This is the Big East. Villanova isn’t playing these games to come close to winning.
“A lot of credit to them,” Neptune said. “They came out and played really hard. We have some things to clean up.”
That’s true. Starting the game by spotting the top-ranked team in the country 11 points is far from ideal.
“I think we have to come out and throw the first punch,” said Justin Moore, whose 15 points matched TJ Bamba for team high. “That hurt us a lot in this game.”
Yeah, that start is something to clean up.
Villanova hasn’t been a great shooting team from long range all season and went 7 of 23 from distance against UConn.
Yeah, that’s another thing to clean up – or at least keep practicing.
Here’s the thing, though, and this is probably not music to the ears of Neptune, his players or Villanova’s Nova Nation faithful: Saturday’s game against UConn was the best the Wildcats have looked all season.
Better than the Bahamas, when they beat Texas Tech, North Carolina and Memphis.
Better than their Big East-opening win at Creighton.
For me, and I’ve seen just about every minute either in person or on TV this season with the exception of Le Moyne, American and Marquette, this was the closest to “Villanova basketball” I’ve seen the Wildcats play not only this season but since Neptune took over for Jay Wright after Wright’s surprise retirement in April 2022.
Villanova’s defense, outside of that 11-0 Huskies run to start the contest, was suffocating.
Neptune, though disappointed, even acknowledged as much.
“I was proud of our effort,” he said. “Take out that first run, and those things are going to happen, I was proud of our intensity throughout.”
Just after Villanova’s coach got done speaking, Huskies coach Dan Hurley was pouring praise on the Wildcats’ defense.
“They’ve got men,” he said. “Those are some of the most physical perimeter defenders in the country.”
Besides defense, the Wildcats showed the kind of fortitude you expect from them. They didn’t hang their heads after that poor start, surging in front 17-16 on a Moore 3-pointer with 6:14 left in the half. After falling behind by nine with 10:14 left, Villanova recovered to tie the contest three times, the last on Bamba’s two free throws with 3:02 left.
“We fought to the end,” Moore said. “I’m proud of that.”
Moore, Villanova’s on-court leader, had the ball with a chance to tie or take the lead, trailing 62-60 in the waning seconds, when he was whistled for an offensive foul. He was called for a similar foul with 1:25 play. For me, it was a bit soft in that moment – especially with the physicality in which that game was played.
Neither Neptune nor Moore would go there.
“I think refs do a great job,” Neptune said. “They have a really tough job. I wouldn’t want to do their job. I wouldn’t complain about refs or calls or anything like that. I bet there were like 20 things we could’ve done better throughout the game. They’re not yelling at us, saying, ‘Why didn’t you hold your follow through?’ ‘Why didn’t you make a better call, Coach.’ They do a good job.”
(As an aside, I think that’s one of the most thoughtful, most praiseworthy responses I’ve ever heard from a coach or player in response to a questionable call.)
That foul call on Moore with 18.8 seconds to play was the end of the Wildcats’ upset hopes.
No, they weren’t going to pull off what would have been their signature win of the season.
For me, though, they put out their signature performance of the season.
That’s what Villanova basketball looks like.
That is a performance on which to build.
Today, it is a loss. Handled right, it could be a win for the season.
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Aaron Bracy has been covering Philadelphia sports since 1996. His byline regularly appears on Associated Press stories. Big5Hoops.com is his second website dedicated to Philadelphia college basketball. Follow Bracy on X: @Aaron_Bracy and like his Facebook and Instagram pages.