The late, great Rollie Massimino might have smiled down on UMBC shocking the world and making history as the first 16-seed to beat a 1-seed, and on Loyola-Chicago advancing to the Sweet 16, because his Villanova team became a forever Cinderella that magical night it stunned Patrick Ewing and Georgetown at Rupp Arena.
That was 33 — Ewing’s jersey number — years ago.
This Villanova team won’t shock the world if it wins a second national championship in three years.
The way Nova has rampaged through the early would-be ides of March, it would be more of a shock if it doesn’t cut down the nets on the last Monday night of the season in San Antonio.
In a bracket-busting NCAA Tournament that saw fellow No. 1 seeds Virginia and Xavier fail to survive and advance out of the first weekend, and No. 1 Kansas vulnerable against Seton Hall, Villanova has the look of a menacing Goliath,
It is a first-class program, built to endure by Jay Wright with Massimino’s same obsession on family, if not linguine with clam sauce.
Now Wright knows all too well how Maddening March can be: a second-round loss in 2014 to No. 7 UConn; a second-round loss as a No. 1 seed in 2015 to No. 8 North Carolina State; another second-round loss as a No. 1 seed in 2017 to No. 8 Wisconsin.
But this Villanova team simply scoffed at any Curse of the Second Round and cruised past ninth-seeded Alabama to an East Region Sweet 16 matchup against West Virginia on Friday night in Boston.
“They’re the best team in the tournament in my opinion,” Mountaineer assistant coach Ronnie Everhart said.
Villanova is the highest-scoring team left in the tournament and is peaking at the right time.
And in National Player of the Year favorite Jalen Brunson, it has the best floor general in the country.
And in wing Mikal Bridges, it has an NBA lottery pick.
And a ratcheted-up commitment to defense.
And the experience gained by five key players from the 2016 national championship run.
And an elite coach.
And mantras that are parroted everywhere you turn in the locker room.
“Our motto is ‘Next game up,’ ” reserve energizer bunny Collin Gillespie said, “so we worry about that team, and then if we’re lucky enough to get by that team, then we’ll prepare whoever we play next with two other good teams.”
In other words, no looking past West Virginia to the Texas Tech-Purdue winner.
The Villanova players, to a man, often sound like Wright cult followers.
Ask junior guard Phil Booth what he likes best about this team.
“The commitment we have to get better,” he said. “Sometimes teams this time of year know what they are and they’re kinda complacent. But I think this team loves to get better, and everyone’s eagerness to learn and be coachable.”
Wright has built a culture that fosters close-knit teams.
“As a group of guys on the court, we’re really together, but even off the court, we have a stronger bond than we do on the court,” Gillespie said.
The balanced Big East tournament champs made 17 3-pointers against Alabama.
“All of us are confident offensively, but the biggest thing is Coach has confidence in us,” sophomore guard Donte DiVincenzo said, “so we don’t worry about missing shots at all. He stresses getting a stop and getting a rebound on the other end, so if we’re doing that at a high rate, then the green light is just awesome for us.
“ ‘Shoot ’em up and sleep in the streets’ is our motto. If we have open shots, we’re gonna shoot ’em. If we go down and we’re not making shots, we have the ability to grind it out defensively, that we can stay in a game even if we’re missing shots.”
Oh, and UMBC is no longer in the way.
Goliath still lives.
