2011-12 Out of Conference Schedule

This is good news.  With these early season tournaments and getting together to play in Europe, I am hoping the team bonds, the 1st and 2nd year players gain experience and confidence, and the team exceeds all our expectations for 2011-2012. I would rather lose 4 or 5 games early and then finish strong than what we have seen the last two years: start really strong (against fairly week opponents) and then fizzle out by the end of the year.

And the 4 or 5 other games will be mostly regional cupcake Home games….hmmm….maybe Bucknell again?    maybe Delaware and/or Monmouth again?   possibly Lehigh or Lafayette unless Jay opts for Navy if Billy Lange wants to throw his former players a bone with some OOC high level exposure.
  
I suppose that Chamber’s BU team might be considered for the one OOC away game at 7,200 Agganis Center (unless they get the TD Garden) but they may have too much of a pulse for Jay to want to face them among his cupcakes.  However, with the Missouri game in MSG, Jay might want to have a OOC game in another Eastern city like Boston to spread it around.  

Yes i think this route is much better. Rollie always lost some early season games but almost always his teams were tourny tough by Mrch. I think the cupcake route of the past few seasons is fools gold.
I like the tougher non conference and early season schedule..who cares about being in the AP  top twenty by New Years….means nothing.

this is good news 

Not sure what you are looking at but so far this is the exact same formula as the last few seasons.  

2010-11  was preseason NIT (Marist, BU, UCLA, Tennessee)  + Maryland + cupcakes.

2011-12  is 76 Classic in Anaheim (3 games)  +  Missouri  + .cupcakes   
 

 http://thebiglead.com/index.php/2011/05/17/2011-2012-college-basketball-preseason-top-25/ 

FWIW, another Top 25 list has Villanova 25th but not a very inciteful breakdown.

25. Villanova – Wildcats lost three key seniors, but bring back a strong backcourt of Wayns and Cheek.  If Yarou develops quickly, and Sutton/Armwood provide key minutes, they should win 20 games again. 

Missouri is listed 18th on that list returning their Top 6 players with their new head coach..

Nillachil….Missouri is the only top school on the list!!!….The 76 classic is kind of a joke….BC, OK, NM, St.L, UC Riverside and Wash St….this is a tougher Non conference schedule ????AP top 20 means a lot in college basketball…..media hype, fan support and recruiting  

I am a Cheek fan and hope he breaks out but why is he considered part of a “strong backcourt”………. a couple of good games in 2 years for Cheek.

Just from my own perspective but I think any discussion of next year’s potential has to include contributions by Pinkston as a starter.   Wayns & Yarou are the starting points for the offense but JVP has to give them another wide shouldered alternative in the starting line-up for scoring and rebounding.  

Cheek’s emergence is important, but I think there are fallback options if Bell, TJ or Yacoubou pitch in to score. 

WVU shooting guard Dalton Pepper might be transfering to Temple to get closer to his ailing father.     
http://www.thehoopsreport.com/article.aspx?id=725
 

Monmouth is booked at our place

in reply to BarneyRubble

I hear you BR it IS the same formula. I am just hoping that we get more battle tested opponents in the mix in the nonconference schedule and you are right this is the same formula…my bad

in reply to Stevie V

you make good points Steve, I just think that being ranked early in the season and into January in the top 10 the last two years made Nova seem to be a better team than it actually was….I think the talent was there but the Cats digressed rather than improved…
So as far as media hype goes…forget that crap…it does not help you get to a  Final Four…id rather fly below the radar and steadily improve as the season progresses…a couple strong weeks in March far outweighs being ranked in the top 10 in early January 

See B Hurley from time to time in my North Jersey town and he knows I am a Villonova alumni and I like talking hoops with him. He is trying to book an away hame for Wagner with either Nova or Syracuse.   Syracuse has the appeal of the Dome but Nova is a more reasonable road trip for them.

Very interesting nugget.  I know the school very well.  Holy awful looking game on the schedule.  Count that one as a no win situation.  Nothing like a match up with that Staten Island juggernaut of a rebuilding program to (not) prepare you for the big boys and (not) boost your RPI.  But does Jay take it to stay in good stead with the Hurley clan?  

 For what it’s worth, Villanova hasn’t been using the schedule board website that most other D1 schools have used, so we don’t get the easy look into the schedule openings, etc.

Yes, Jay might do just that.  Keep the Hurley’s happy.

You know a couple of these Home games at the Pavillion are flat out gimme wins so really doesn’t matter if it is Wagner (2000 undergrads)  or some other crappola patsy with an RPI above 150.   With hopes that at least 2 of Penn, LaSalle or St Joe’s might actually have a beating pulse next year, we may have room for slug like Wagner to get the freshman like Hilliard & Yacoubou on the court.  

Just saw that Wagner had a 170 RPI last year..we have played far worse OOC opponents than that.

The BE schedule +, Missouri + maybe 1 or 2 of those 76Classic games will keep the Villanova SOS & RPI propped up if the team wins 21 games.   I am not saying I like it but it is the usual formula that Jay attempts to achieve. 

Jay might be ”oblivious” to the existence of that D1 schedule board. 

That’s my new chosen word to excuse any poor showing by Jay or the team in this upcoming season…OBLIVIOUS.  Funny how the perception of the guy went from suave cunning “007″ of Coaches to the absent minded professor over night….lol 

After particular bad losses, I reserve the right to refer to him as “Mr Magoo”.

Actually the formula is not so bad for THIS team that SHOULD be a work on progress.  I expect them to be a far better group in February-March than they were in November just based on their initial lack of experience.    The last two teams had a lot of experienced Starters that made the early schedule an unproductive test for them.   In 2012-13, I would hope that Jay beefs up the OOC again as we currently expect to return every rotation player but Wayns so the experience should be deeper.  

Monmouth and whatever other OOC games added are going to have experienced college players that can test the crap out of the 6 very inexperienced players that Villanova has on it’s roster next year (including Bell) even if the final score shows we spanked them.   If Jay is going to get off his burn diet, he is going to need a ton of opportunities early to teach the youngsters and re-train the Juniors in game situations.  

With 12 roster players, the practices should have a lot tougher intrasquad scrimmaging than last season and Jay can use someone like 6’4 Hilliard to play opposing PG like he did with Bilal Benn to toughen up the 2006 guards. 

Nick Faust RECOMMITS to Maryland.   

http://www.zagsblog.com/2011/05/17/faust-recommits-to-maryland-breunig-visits-uw/ 
 
“Coach Turgeon’s goal is to win a national championship and I would play a big part in that immediately,” Faust said by text, confirming news first reported by Scout.com.

Another Reynolds story that I am not sure was linked here before.      
http://dimemag.com/2011/03/reynolds-rap-jersey-numbers-sweating-the-ipad-2-behind-the-scenes-with-the-chicago-bulls/#more-72920 

And more reason to believe that Ed Pinckney remains one of the best individuals to ever wear a Wildcat uniform. 

Totally missed that.  Good update Barney.  Loved this kid in high school.  Saw him single handedly almost beat Chester (led by Pitt’s Nasir Robinson) in the state semis at the Palestra when he was a junior.  Also seen him drop 46 at the Donofrio in Conshohocken when he was a senior.  His athleticism is highly underrated and this is a great get for Temple.  Nova was on his final short list when he committed. I wonder if he ever considered Nova or if Jay even had any interest in him.  We could use his shooting on the wing.

Even if he had interest in Villanova,  I am not sure Pepper could transfer within the Big East.  It is generally not something you would easily get a release from your present school to do.   I think it’s pretty much an unwritten rule among the schools.    Temple would be a good fit for him as a sharpshooter and his new teammate Khalif Wyatt (norristown) seems to agree.

http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/colleges/20110518_Pennsbury_star_Pepper_transferring_from_West_Virginia__might_pick_Temple.html 

http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/colleges/Pepper-appears-to-be-Temple-bound.html  

Kennedy, Ochefu, Arcidiacono & Goodman might be coming to Villanova but Dunphy has not done too badly with Philly area kids either.   Let’s just hope he misses on both of the upcoming Jeffersons that are available.

Transfers within the Big East require the player to sit out 2 years. 

6’6 SF/G  Brandon Austin (2013) out of Philadelphia’s Imhotep Charter School (PIAA AA State Champions) has Villanova on his mind and has reportedly received an OFFER from Coach Wright.  He is playing with Team Philly AAU this summer which has spawned Kyle Lowery, Shane Clark, Reggie Redding and Maalik Wayns.   

http://www.nbebasketball.com/w3/2011-0517/brandon-austin-making-a-name-for-himself-out-of-philly/ 
      >>>  “The schools that are recruiting me are Syracuse, Villanova, Providence, Rutgers, Temple, Pittsburgh and Drexel.“ Austin also added that, “all of them [have] offered.”
A self-described playmaker, Austin tells NBE he feels a strength of his is his versatility off the bounce with the basketball.
“As a player I’m a playmaker for other players. [I'm] versatile off the bounce and I’m a combo guard,” said Austin.
Austin mentioned recently that he is improving on his shooting and defense but the youngster has already drawn the attention of the Philadelphia’s most prominent college basketball coach.
“Jay Wright,” responded Austin when asked if he had developed any good relationships with college coaches thus far. “I’ve talked to Jay Wright a couple of times.”  <<< 

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/recruiting/player/_/id/125784/brandon-austin   
http://combines.underarmour.com/basketball/athletes/9545 

This sophomore is flat out SKINNY but once you get past that part, he is long and skilled with room to grow in his last 2 years of high school.  He skipped 8th grade before entering Imhotep Charter's 9th grade, but age-wise that was a move that put him back with his peers at the time.  He was middle school sensation who was impressing people at camps even before high school.    
Physically, he tends to remind me of Shane Clark but his perimeter shot is still a question mark at this point.   Imhotep is a very talented program although as a Charter school that can pull public school students from the entire city of Philladelphia, it's less meaningful that they are winning AA State Championships.  They do, however, play some elite programs during their regular season schedule.  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rl0Wrhv-MWs   

Can we please start recruiting some shooters again?  This will be the first season in a long time I can remember that we don’t have a consistent, dangerous outside shooter on our roster.  I think we all know how different teams played against our guard oriented attack (or lack thereof) when Stokes was not on the floor.

HB,
As much as I can tell from our limited look, JBell is our best chance in fullfilling the “shooters” role vacated by Stokes. …and maybe a little from JVP? 

LM 92 I think we need JVP around the basket not on the perimeter…..if he could duplicate Pena’s #’s down low (before Jay let him wander away from the hoop) I would be thrilled.

We seem to have a lot of medium range jump shooters and JVP should not be one of them.

Keep in mind we can not expect much scoring from Sutton and Armwood. 

Next year should be very interesting especially the first half when nobody has any clue on our WHO, WHEN, WHERE ….

We can be an opposing coaches worst nightnare or greatest gift.  Should be fun to see how things shake out.  Too early to start the countdown. 

I don’t mind cupcakes early.  Bottom line is that Nova needs to go 10-8 or better in Big East play to get a tourney birth.  If they go 8-10 or worse in the Big East they won’t make it.  Facing Duke, North Carolina or Kentucky early may be fun to watch, but does nothing for a tournament birth (maybe seeding, but not a birth)…with a young team it is probably better for Jay to see where the chemistry is as he prepares for the grind of another brutal Big East schedule

 Don’t forget that chances are that Villanova will be involved in the Big East/SEC Challenge this year. The challenge expands to include all SEC teams and a slate of 12 Big East teams. Unless Villanova is one of the four who will sit it out, expect to have another major conference opponent on the out-of-conference slate.

That will be announced tomorrow.

From what I saw from JVP in the Blue & White scrimmage last year (doesnt mean much tho) he’s not a natural shooter

I expect that he improved tho

If it isn’t Kentucky, Florida or Vanderbilt, it better be a Home game for Villanova….lol  

The new BIG EAST/SEC Challenge format will feature 12 games over three days beginning on the Thursday after Thanksgiving of each year. All 12 games each year will be played at home campus sites with each conference hosting six games a year.

With our luck, we will get stuck with an awful team like Auburn or LSU and have to travel south to play them.
      

76 Classic preview…   
http://76classic.com/home/fields/2011-field 

http://76classic.com/home/   

Wow, totally forgot about the transferring in conference thing. Never happens 

St John’s AT Kentucky  – Rupp Arena.

http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/college/basketball/st_john_adds_kentucky_game_GG3Wfl4s2SlS5DMpsSpPhO    
    >>>The Post also learned that Arizona guard Lamont “MoMo” Jones of Harlem, will transfer to St John’s and could be eligible to play this upcomong serason under NCAA hardship rules. <<<

Apparently, the NCAA is taking lessons from the NBA in going out of their way to manipulate anything they can in favor of certain markets.   The only hardship Jones has that Dalton Pepper and every other similar transfer doesn't also have is JONES wants to play in NYC.  
Next up….a Draft where St John's gets the Ewing Lottery (wink wink) pick to choose any High School players they want and the kids will be forced by NCAA to attend.     

Saw this kid play at the Eddie Griffin Challenge sophomore game last year in Trenton when he led Team Philly over Team NJ (only kid I can remember on NJ is Alabama committ Jaren Sina). Didn’t know who he was walking into the gym but everybody knew who he was after the game.  He was MVP and led Team Philly in scoring.  He played pretty much straight point guard which I was suprised to see from a kid at 6’6″.  I thought he might be recruited the same as a Kyle Anderson (MVP of Juniors game) to play the point/point forward position. Haven’t seem him play since as didn’t go to any Imhotep games but he should be an interesting prospect to watch.

 nice info.

Where are all these “point forwards” types coming from all of a sudden? 
6’8 Kyle Anderson burst on the scene a while back and now we see 6’6 Rondae Jefferson & 6’6 Brandon Austin playing as HS or AAU point guards.   Maybe that’s the new wave coming through….until some matchbox like A.Carr brings back the attention to the smaller guards….lol.

We may even see big burly Markus leading the team in assists in a few years with his passing ability.    

 DateGameThu, Dec 1St. John’s at No. 2 Kentucky Georgetown at No. 14 Alabama Providence at South Carolina
 Mississippi at DePaulFri, Dec 2No. 7 Vanderbilt at No. 9 Louisville No. 12 Florida at No. 4 Syracuse No. 19 Cincinnati at Georgia
 Auburn at Seton HallSat, Dec 3Arkansas at No. 6 Connecticut No. 17 Pittsburgh at Tennessee West Virginia at Mississippi State 

http://www.espnmediazone3.com/us/2011/05/19/matchups-for-inaugural-big-eastsec-challenge-dec-1-3/LSU at Rutgers

Thu, Dec 1

St. John’s at No. 2 Kentucky  
Georgetown at No. 14 Alabama  
Providence at South Carolina  
Mississippi at DePaul

Fri, Dec 2

No. 7 Vanderbilt at No. 9 Louisville   
No. 12 Florida at No. 4 Syracuse   
No. 19 Cincinnati at Georgia  
Auburn at Seton Hall

Sat, Dec 3

Arkansas at No. 6 Connecticut    
No. 17 Pittsburgh at Tennessee 
West Virginia at Mississippi State  
LSU at Rutgers  

Rubster: Why do you use the subjunctive: “Kennedy, Ochefu, Arcidiacono & Goodman MIGHT BE coming to Villanova (caps mine)”

They ARE coming to Villanova, right? 

YES, they are ours…pending signed LOI’s from those last 3 players this Fall. 

My wording was just to comment that although Jay is doing very well locally with recruits, Dunphy is not completely missing out on Philly talent either with the pending addition of Pepper to his program.  I don’t care for Temple, but I like Dunphy as a Coach and I wouldn’t underestimate him keeping some more local talent in town. 

Dunphy is at a public University and can take a bigger chance on a marginal student-athlete which may assist him on dealing with regular Philly Public League players that have not been a good fit for Villanova’s program over several decades.  Outside the city, even long time state powerhouse Chester High School has had issues getting some past players to qualify for college scholarships.

In repairing some of Massimino’s weak legacy among Philly HS Coaches, Villanova has had better luck recently with Philly Catholic League and regional Private Schools and I notice Jay is giving solid looks toward the new breed of Charter schools within the Philly public school district. 

After watching the NCAA “championship” game, which was a joke, I wonder why the Cats can’t make it to this level. Butler? Please. College b-ball ain’t what it used to be, with most of NBA players never getting past year one at college, and the Butlers and VCU’s seem to thrive. With the talent Jay still recruits, why can’t we beat those VCU’s? It’s c,early superior to what a Butler gets. What gives?