Is Villanova back as a force in the Big East? Wildcats season outlook

Villanova is entering its second season under head coach Kevin Willard and has high aspirations after returning to the NCAA tournament in March, where it fell in the first round to the Utah State Aggies. Though the team lost 2 of its top 3 scorers in points-per-game terms from last year, Duke Brennan(transferred to Oklahoma) and Bryce Lindsay(transferred to Indiana), they still retained their top scorer in Tyler Perkins and also brought back a key veteran guard in Devin Askew.

The biggest add was former Ohio State forward Devin Royals to fill the void left by the departures of Brennan and Lindsay. With the scoring boost and upside of Royals added into a prominent, smooth-flowing system like Kevin Willard’s, Royal should get off to a fast start.

If there is one thing we know about Kevin Willard’s teams from the past, they play resilient, physical basketball and run the offense through guards thwy can facilitate for their Bigs and also create shots. That is exactly what Tyler Perkins will bring to the table for this squad, and it will create better looks for the teams two big forwards, Royal and Kwame Browne Jr.

Not to mention this team will have a much improved bench compared to last year, with the main marker being former UIC Flames guard Elijah Crawford, who averaged 14 points in his sophomore season and made it to the Missouri Valley Conference Championship game.

With all of the additions this team made, even with Drake Lindsay leaving, there is no doubt that this team will be a dark horse team to make a run to the NCAA tournament and beyond.

The Wildcats play their first game this Sunday against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and will look to repeat the season they had last year and make it back to the Big Dance.

Photo Creds: The Villlanovian