Vintage Villanova? Maybe Not. Does It Matter?

This Wildcats team may not be as talented as Jay Wright’s two championship squads. But they proved their worth in a hard-nosed win that puts them back in the Final Four.

Gillespie grabbed the final rebound and sprinted across the court at the AT&T Center. He threw the ball toward the ceiling and unleashed a medieval scream. Anyone who caught that moment, brief as it was, would never have believed that Villanova and its Super Senior guard had just won a game so ugly, and so bruising, that it left a mark—several, really—that could be felt next week in New Orleans.

The contrast was evident immediately, the gulf between what Villanova had accomplished and how much it had cost them made painfully clear. While fans waved signs that read WE BELIEVE and the Wildcats’ mascot hopped on the back of a male cheerleader, the ladder taken out for net cutting remained empty, as did the makeshift stage set up for the celebration.

Villanova and Duke advance to Final Four

Vintage Villanova? Maybe Not. Does It Matter?

This Wildcats team may not be as talented as Jay Wright’s two championship squads. But they proved their worth in a hard-nosed win that puts them back in the Final Four.

GREG BISHOP46 MINUTES AGO

SAN ANTONIO – Villanova guard Collin Gillespie grabbed the final rebound and sprinted across the court at the AT&T Center. He threw the ball toward the ceiling and unleashed a medieval scream. Anyone who caught that moment, brief as it was, would never have believed that Villanova and its Super Senior guard had just won a game so ugly, and so bruising, that it left a mark—several, really—that could be felt next week in New Orleans.

The contrast was evident immediately, the gulf between what Villanova had accomplished and how much it had cost them made painfully clear. While fans waved signs that read WE BELIEVE and the Wildcats’ mascot hopped on the back of a male cheerleader, the ladder taken out for net cutting remained empty, as did the makeshift stage set up for the celebration.

Instead, Gillespie beelined for a teammate. Most Wildcats gathered in a corner near their cheering section. They were surrounded by photographers, security guards and team officials, everyone huddled around guard Justin Moore, who had fallen late in the second half and was unable to rise without assistance. Armchair doctors across the country wondered if Moore had torn his right Achilles tendon, lowering the championship hopes of a team with shallow depth and an already hobbled captain in Gillespie.

Villanova (30–7) players wore championship hats as they checked on their fallen comrade, the juxtaposition striking, still. On any other night, with any other ending, the celebration would have been not just heightened but justified. This is a program that’s 20–3 in its last six NCAA tournaments, the mere three losses in five previous NCAAs owing to a pair of national titles, won in 2016 and ’18. This is a team that doesn’t feature an NBA lottery pick, that wasn’t a powerhouse all season (like Arizona, the region’s top seed) and wasn’t a trendy analytics darling (like Houston, the fifth seed and the Wildcats’ opponent Saturday night). While pundits questioned Villanova’s depth and the talent in its rotation, the Wildcats did what they have done all season. They won, moved forward and proved a lot of people wrong.