Scottie to Italy
Scottie Reynolds will not be heading to Phoenix for the coming NBA season. Instead he has signed a 1-year deal with Italian LegADue (Second Division) club Prima Veroli.
The contract was arranged by super-agent Arn Tellem and Lee Melchioni, and apparently the guaranteed money is substantial. Read more
Reader Poll – Villanova’s Greatest Small Forward
Jack Devine in 1954
This is the fourth in our series of reader polls to select Villanova’s all-time greatest players, this one to select the greatest small forward. The full list of 35 nominees for all positions and the selection criteria used is provided at the end of this post. There is still time to vote in our prior polls by double-clicking on the following links:
SELECT TWO NAMES from the nominees, listed chronologically on the next page, that represent the two best small forwards in Villanova’s history. In a subsequent poll the readers will determine Villanova’s all-time starting five from the ten finalists.
Friday Open Thread
Feel free to spend your Friday chatting in the comments;
- Recruiting
- Possible Schedule
- Jay Wright’s suits
- Villanova Football
- Barney Rubble vs. Boss Hogg
Markus Kennedy Update
Photo from Scout.com
The recruitment, commitment, and progress of Villanova signee Markus Kennedy is confusing for a lot of Wildcat fans.
Last school year, Kennedy prepped at the Winchendon Academy (after being at the Living Faith Academy the prior year, St. Pat’s the year before that, and Bonner the year before that). In April, we shared with you that the Big Man was taking a prep year and reclassifying as a 2011 player. Now that decision is down to Kennedy’s transfer to another school; either Brewster Academy in New Hampshire or NIA Prep in New Jersey for the 2010-11 school year.
Jay Wright Interviewed
Video/Interview by Dewey Hammond of PlaymakerMobile.com Read more
Cats, Owls and the Story of the Shot Clock
I discovered a forgotten treasure in my attic this weekend, The Year of the ‘Cat – Villanova’s Incredible 1985 NCAA Basketball Championship Story, written by sports journalist Craig Miller. Flipping through the pages, I was struck by one passage covering Villanova’s 46-43 victory over Len Bias’ Maryland team in the 1985 Southeast Regional Semifinal. Mr. Miller wrote, “holding a 43-36 lead and with 5:40 remaining on the clock, Rollie Massimino screamed to his squad ‘ENOUGH!’ The team immediately switched to its delay game, something the trio of seniors had become successful with over the prior four seasons.” Villanova went on to win 46-43. Read more
Big East / SEC Invitational
Villanova by the Numbers just posted the news that the Big East and SEC are likely to let the Big East/SEC Invitational expire after the initial four-year contract ends this season. As greyCat wrote:
The most memorable game in the Invitational series is probably the LSU-Villanova game from the Invitational’s first season (December 2007). Played in the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, Villanova, down through most of the game, and trailing by 15 with 3:30 left in the second half, put on a closing blitz which stunned the Tigers and allowed the Wildcats to win it at the buzzer, 68-67.
VBTN also notes that the Invitational was flawed from the beginning, playing only four games, rather than a true top-to-bottom challenge format like the ACC/Big Ten and without the possibility of the Battle for the Bluegrass match-up between Louisville and Kentucky ever being a part of it. Read more
Football: Chris Whitney Highlights
Video produced by Sean Donovan (but you probably guessed that).
Reader Poll – Villanova’s Greatest Forward
This is the third in our series of reader polls, this one to select our forward on Villanova’s all-time basketball all-star team. The full list of 35 nominees for all positions is provided at the end of this post. There is still time to vote in our prior polls by double-clicking on the following links:
To come up with the nominees, we considered players whose Villanova jerseys have been retired, were among the all-time Villanova statistical leaders, earned All-America recognition, had success in the NCAA tournament, or were selected in the NBA draft. Active Villanova players are not eligible. The NCAA has made significant rule changes over the years that make statistical comparisons of players across generations difficult. To read more on this topic, see our post “Scottie’s Stats Under Howard’s Rules.”
SELECT TWO NAMES from the nominees, listed chronologically on the next page, that represent the two best forwards in Villanova history. In a subsequent poll the readers will determine Villanova’s all-time starting five from the ten finalists. Read more
Big East Roundtable
The East Coast Bias, a blog that specializes in St. Johns basketball and eastern sports has been running a series of Big East blogger Roundtable posts. The first installment is a discussion of departures from various Big East teams as well as the blogger’s anticipation for how those holes will be filled in the coming season.
