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8 | VILLANOVA
ALL HE DOES IS DO IT ALL
Ryan Arcidiacono has been the Wildcats' most important player in each of his three seasons, even if most of the country hasn't noticed. But what the 6'3" senior point guard lacks in flash, he makes up for in productivity and dependability. As a freshman he started every game, led the team in minutes and assists and was Villanova's second-leading scorer. Since then Arcidiacono has only gotten better. He earned Big East co--player of the year honors last season, in part because he has become more efficient (improving his assist to turnover ratio to nearly 3:1) as well as stronger and more active on defense. He enters this season as the unquestioned leader of a team that lost three key veterans in Darrun Hilliard, JayVaughn Pinkston and Dylan Ennis. He also leads a class that, with 21 more wins, will be the most successful in Villanova's 95-year history.
Coach Jay Wright plans to press and run more to compensate for their lack of height, which means an even greater load for Arch. "He really is like a coach on the floor," Wright says. "So in practice you don't have to spend time with him. You can develop the other guys. And in game situations, he's going to make the right play. Whatever it is."
PROJECTED TEAM STATS
OFFENSIVE EFFICIENCY 116.9 (6)
DEFENSIVE EFFICIENCY 94.6 (33rd)
BIG EAST RECORD 14--4 (1st)
X-FACTOR
As the sixth man last year Josh Hart averaged 10.1 points (tied for second on the team) and was MVP of the Big East tournament. But his defense and rebounding will be "pivotal" now that he's a starter, says coach Jay Wright.
STAT SHEET
With 2015--16 projections for the top six scorers
Coach Jay Wright (15th season)
[This article contains a table. Please see hardcopy of magazine or PDF.]
PPG | RPG | APG | OFF. RATING | USAGE | ||
G-F | Josh Hart* 6'5" Jr. | 12.4 | 5.2 | 1.6 | 125.7 | 20.2% |
PG | Ryan Arcidiacono* 6'3" Sr. | 11.9 | 2.5 | 3.8 | 116.6 | 20.1% |
SG | Phil Booth* 6'3" Soph. | 10.3 | 2.7 | 2.1 | 122.7 | 19.8% |
F | Daniel Ochefu* 6'11" Sr. | 10.0 | 8.4 | 1.6 | 114.4 | 21.8% |
F | Kris Jenkins* 6'6" Jr. | 9.9 | 3.5 | 1.3 | 122.0 | 17.9% |
PG | Jalen Brunson 6'2" Fr. | 8.8 | 2.8 | 3.2 | 107.4 | 21.7% |
*Starter
TOURNAMENT TRACKER
[The following text appears within a chart. Please see hardcopy or PDF for actual chart.]
TITLE GAME
FINAL FOUR
ELITE EIGHT
SWEET 16
ROUND OF 32
ROUND OF 64
'11--12
'12--13
'13--14
'14--15
'15--16
PHOTO
MATT SLOCUM/AP (ARCIDIACONO)
PHOTO
LAURENCE KESTERSON/AP (HART)
CHART
