2016–17 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team

The 2016–17 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team represented Villanova University in the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Led by head coach Jay Wright in his 16th year, the Wildcats participated in the Big East Conference and played their home games at The Pavilion, with some select home games at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They finished the season 32–4, 15–3 in Big East play to win the regular season championship. In the Big East tournament, they defeated St. John's, Seton Hall, and Creighton to win the tournament championship.^[1] As a result, they received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. The Wildcats were given the Tournament's overall No. 1 seed as a No. 1 seed in the East region. In the First Round they defeated Mount St. Mary's before being upset by No. 8-seeded Wisconsin in the Second Round.^[2][3] The loss marked the second time in the previous three tournaments that Villanova was upset by an eighth-seeded team.

2016–17 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball
Big East regular season and tournament champions Philadelphia Big 5 champions Charleston Classic champions
NCAA tournament, Second Round
Conference	Big East Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 8
AP	No. 1
Record	32–4 (15–3 Big East)
Head coach	Jay Wright (16th season)
Assistant coaches	Baker Dunleavy Ashley Howard Kyle Neptune
Home arena	The Pavilion Wells Fargo Center
Seasons ← 2015–16 2017–18 →

2016–17 Big East men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
No. 1 Villanova †	15	–	3		.833			32	–	4		.889
No. 21 Butler	12	–	6		.667			25	–	9		.735
Creighton	10	–	8		.556			25	–	10		.714
Seton Hall	10	–	8		.556			21	–	12		.636
Providence	10	–	8		.556			20	–	13		.606
Marquette	10	–	8		.556			19	–	13		.594
Xavier	9	–	9		.500			24	–	14		.632
St. John's	7	–	11		.389			14	–	19		.424
Georgetown	5	–	13		.278			14	–	18		.438
DePaul	2	–	16		.111			9	–	23		.281
† 2017 Big East tournament winner Rankings from AP poll

The season marked the final season for The Pavilion before its temporary closure for a $60 million renovation project.^[4] It reopened for the 2018–19 season with the new name of Finneran Pavilion after a Villanova alum who donated $22.6 million to Villanova.^[5][6] All home games for the 2017–18 season were played at the Wells Fargo Center.^[7]

Previous season

The Wildcats finished the 2015–16 season with a record of 35–5, 16–2 in Big East play to win the Big East regular season championship. In the Big East tournament they defeated Georgetown and Providence, but lost to Seton Hall in the championship game.^[8] The Wildcats received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament, being awarded the No. 2 seed in the South Region. Villanova defeated UNC Asheville and Iowa to advance to the Sweet Sixteen. In the Sweet Sixteen, they defeated Miami and upset overall No. 1 seed Kansas in the Elite Eight to advance to the fifth Final Four in school history.^[9] In the Final Four, the Wildcats defeated Oklahoma to advance to the school's third National Championship game.^[10][11] In the National Championship game, they defeated No. 1 seed North Carolina to earn the second NCAA Championship title in school history, the first since 1985.^[12][13]

Offseason

Departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes
Ryan Arcidiacono	15	PG	6'3"	195	Senior	Langhorne, Pennsylvania	Graduated
Patrick Farrell	20	SF	6'5"	200	Senior	Rockville Centre, New York	Graduated
Henry Lowe	0	PG	5'11"	185	Senior	New York, New York	Graduated
Daniel Ochefu	23	PF	6'11"	245	Senior	Lagos, Nigeria	Graduated
Kevin Rafferty	52	SF	6'8"	215	Senior	Malvern, Pennsylvania	Graduated

2016 signing class

College recruiting information

Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight	Commit date
Omari Spellman No. 3 PF	North Royalton, OH	MacDuffie School	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	272 lb (123 kg)	Feb 20, 2015
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Dylan Painter No. 29 C	Hershey, PA	Hershey	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	Sep 16, 2015
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Overall recruit ranking:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2016 Team Ranking". Rivals. Retrieved June 1, 2015.

Future recruits

2017–18 team recruits

College recruiting information

Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight	Commit date
Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree PF	Philadelphia, PA	Neumann-Goretti High School	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	Apr 5, 2016
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Jermaine Samuels SF	Franklin, MA	The Rivers School	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Aug 27, 2016
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Collin Gillespie PG	Warminster, PA	Archbishop Wood Catholic High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Jan 14, 2017
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Overall recruit ranking:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals. Retrieved June 1, 2015.

Preseason

Prior to the season, Villanova was picked to win the Big East in a poll of Big East coaches.^[14] Josh Hart was named preseason Big East Player of the Year. Kris Jenkins was named to the All-Big East first team and Jalen Brunson received an Honorable Mention.^[14]

Roster

Pregame team huddle

2016–17 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown G 1 Jalen Brunson 6 ft 2.5 in (1.89 m) 190 lb (86 kg) So Stevenson High School Lincolnshire, Illinois F 2 Kris Jenkins 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Sr Gonzaga College High School Upper Marlboro, Maryland G 3 Josh Hart 6 ft 5.5 in (1.97 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Sr Sidwell Friends School Silver Spring, Maryland F 4 Eric Paschall 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 250 lb (113 kg) RS So Fordham Dobbs Ferry, New York G 5 Phil Booth 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Jr Mount Saint Joseph High School Baltimore, Maryland G 10 Donte DiVincenzo 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 205 lb (93 kg) RS Fr Salesianum School Wilmington, Delaware F 14 Omari Spellman (I)  6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 260 lb (118 kg) Fr St. Thomas More School (CT) North Royalton, Ohio F 24 Tom Leibig 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Jr Haverford High School Havertown, Pennsylvania G/F 25 Mikal Bridges 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) RS So Great Valley High School Malvern, Pennsylvania F 34 Tim Delaney 6 ft 8.5 in (2.04 m) 235 lb (107 kg) RS Fr Blair Academy Mullica Hill, New Jersey G 35 Matt Kennedy 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Jr Flint Hill School Fairfax, Virginia G 40 Denny Grace 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Sr Calvert Hall College High School Catonsville, Maryland F 42 Dylan Painter 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Fr Hershey High School Hershey, Pennsylvania F 45 Darryl Reynolds 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Sr Worcester Academy Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	Head coach Jay Wright (Bucknell) Assistant coach(es) Baker Dunleavy (Villanova) Ashley Howard (Drexel) Kyle Neptune (Lehigh) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt Roster

Schedule and results

Late season starting 5 huddle

Date time, TV	Rank#	Opponent#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
November 5, 2016* 12:00 pm	No. 4	IUP	W 94–49	0–0	27 – Hart	8 – Reynolds	5 – Tied	Wells Fargo Center (5,617) Philadelphia, PA
Non-conference regular season
November 11, 2016* 6:30 pm, FS2	No. 4	Lafayette	W 84–44	1–0	17 – Brunson	8 – Tied	4 – Bridges	The Pavilion (6,500) Villanova, PA
November 14, 2016* 7:00 pm, BTN	No. 3	at No. 15 Purdue Gavitt Tipoff Games	W 79–76	2–0	24 – Hart	8 – Reynolds	4 – Brunson	Mackey Arena (14,846) West Lafayette, IN
November 17, 2016* 11:30 am, ESPN2	No. 3	vs. Western Michigan Charleston Classic quarterfinals	W 76–65	3–0	17 – Paschall	8 – Hart	4 – Hart	TD Arena (4,125) Charleston, SC
November 18, 2016* 1:30 pm, ESPN2	No. 3	vs. Wake Forest Charleston Classic semifinals	W 96–77	4–0	30 – Hart	7 – Bridges	6 – Brunson	TD Arena (4,020) Charleston, SC
November 20, 2016* 9:00 pm, ESPN2	No. 3	vs. UCF Charleston Classic championship game	W 67–57	5–0	15 – Hart	6 – Reynolds	4 – Bridges	TD Arena (4,325) Charleston, SC
November 23, 2016* 7:00 pm, FS1	No. 2	College of Charleston	W 63–47	6–0	13 – Hart	11 – Hart	3 – Tied	The Pavilion (6,500) Villanova, PA
November 29, 2016* 7:00 pm, CSN	No. 2	at Penn Philadelphia Big 5	W 82–57	7–0	22 – Jenkins	8 – Reynolds	9 – Hart	The Palestra (7,787) Philadelphia, PA
December 3, 2016* 1:00 pm, CBSSN	No. 2	Saint Joseph's Philadelphia Big 5	W 88–57	8–0	20 – Jenkins	11 – Hart	10 – Hart	The Pavilion (6,500) Villanova, PA
December 6, 2016* 7:00 pm, ESPN2	No. 1	vs. La Salle Philadelphia Big 5	W 89–79	9–0	26 – Brunson	8 – Hart	3 – Brunson	The Palestra (7,120) Philadelphia, PA
December 10, 2016* 12:00 pm, CBS	No. 1	vs. No. 23 Notre Dame Never Forget Tribute Classic	W 74–66	10–0	37 – Hart	11 – Hart	4 – Hart	Prudential Center (18,722) Newark, NJ
December 13, 2016* 7:00 pm, FS1	No. 1	Temple Philadelphia Big 5	W 78–57	11–0	26 – Hart	6 – Jenkins	6 – Brunson	The Pavilion (6,500) Villanova, PA
December 21, 2016* 6:30 pm, FS1	No. 1	American	W 90–48	12–0	20 – Hart	7 – Tied	6 – Brunson	The Pavilion (6,500) Villanova, PA
December 28, 2016 6:30 pm, FS1	No. 1	DePaul	W 68–65	13–0 (1–0)	25 – Hart	7 – Bridges	6 – Brunson	The Pavilion (6,500) Villanova, PA
December 31, 2016 1:00 pm, FS1	No. 1	at No. 10 Creighton	W 80–70	14–0 (2–0)	27 – Brunson	10 – Hart	5 – Brunson	CenturyLink Center (18,831) Omaha, NE
January 4, 2017 6:30 pm, FS1	No. 1	at No. 18 Butler	L 58–66	14–1 (2–1)	23 – Brunson	8 – Hart	3 – Hart	Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,206) Indianapolis, IN
January 7, 2017 7:30 pm, FS1	No. 1	Marquette	W 93–81	15–1 (3–1)	23 – Jenkins	5 – Tied	7 – Hart	Wells Fargo Center (16,891) Philadelphia, PA
January 10, 2017 7:00 pm, FS1	No. 3	No. 15 Xavier	W 79–54	16–1 (4–1)	20 – Tied	6 – Tied	6 – Brunson	The Pavilion (6,500) Villanova, PA
January 14, 2017 12:00 pm, FS1	No. 3	at St. John's	W 70–57	17–1 (5–1)	19 – DiVincenzo	8 – Reynolds	4 – Brunson	Madison Square Garden (17,309) New York, NY
January 16, 2017 6:30 pm, FS1	No. 1	Seton Hall MLK Day Marathon	W 76–46	18–1 (6–1)	16 – Jenkins	9 – Reynolds	6 – Brunson	The Pavilion (6,500) Villanova, PA
Jan 21, 2017 12:00 pm, FOX	No. 1	Providence	W 78–68	19–1 (7–1)	25 – Hart	10 – Reynolds	6 – Brunson	Wells Fargo Center (18,731) Philadelphia, PA
January 24, 2017 8:00 pm, FS1	No. 1	at Marquette	L 72–74	19–2 (7–2)	20 – Bridges	8 – Hart	4 – Brunson	BMO Harris Bradley Center (14,210) Milwaukee, WI
January 29, 2017* 1:00 pm, FOX	No. 1	No. 12 Virginia	W 61–59	20–2	15 – Tied	5 – Tied	4 – Brunson	Wells Fargo Center (20,907) Philadelphia, PA
February 1, 2017 7:00 pm, FS1	No. 4	at Providence	W 66–57	21–2 (8–2)	21 – Brunson	9 – Reynolds	5 – Brunson	Dunkin' Donuts Center (11,999) Providence, RI
February 4, 2017 8:00 pm, CBSSN	No. 4	St. John's	W 92–79	22–2 (9–2)	26 – Hart	9 – Hart	5 – Hart	Wells Fargo Center (18,562) Philadelphia, PA
February 7, 2017 7:00 pm, FS1	No. 2	Georgetown	W 75–64	23–2 (10–2)	25 – Hart	7 – Tied	4 – Brunson	The Pavilion (6,500) Villanova, PA
February 11, 2017 2:30 pm, FOX	No. 2	at No. 24 Xavier	W 73–57	24–2 (11–2)	17 – Tied	7 – Hart	7 – Brunson	Cintas Center (10,558) Cincinnati, OH
February 13, 2017 9:00 pm, CBSSN	No. 2	at DePaul	W 75–62	25–2 (12–2)	18 – Brunson	8 – Jenkins	4 – Brunson	Allstate Arena (6,963) Rosemont, IL
February 18, 2017 12:30 pm, FOX	No. 2	at Seton Hall	W 92–70	26–2 (13–2)	22 – Tied	4 – Tied	10 – Brunson	Prudential Center (16,733) Newark, NJ
February 22, 2017 9:00 pm, FS1	No. 2	No. 22 Butler	L 66–74	26–3 (13–3)	24 – Brunson	6 – Tied	2 – Tied	The Pavilion (6,500) Villanova, PA
February 25, 2017 3:00 pm, FOX	No. 2	No. 23 Creighton	W 79–63	27–3 (14–3)	19 – Paschall	8 – Bridges	3 – Tied	The Pavilion (6,500) Villanova, PA
March 4, 2017 12:08 pm, FOX	No. 2	at Georgetown	W 81–55	28–3 (15–3)	21 – Hart	7 – Tied	3 – Hart	Verizon Center (15,143) Washington, D.C.
Big East tournament
March 9, 2017 12:00 pm, FS1	(1) No. 2	vs. (8) St. John's Quarterfinals	W 108–67	29–3	25 – DiVincenzo	6 – Tied	6 – Jenkins	Madison Square Garden (17,324) New York, NY
March 10, 2017 6:30 pm, FS1	(1) No. 2	vs. (5) Seton Hall Semifinals	W 55–53	30–3	19 – Hart	10 – Hart	2 – Brunson	Madison Square Garden (19,812) New York, NY
March 11, 2017 5:30 pm, FOX	(1) No. 2	vs. (6) Creighton Championship	W 74–60	31–3	29 – Hart	8 – DiVincenzo	5 – Brunson	Madison Square Garden (19,812) New York, NY
NCAA tournament
Mar. 16* 7:10 pm, CBS	(1 E) No. 1	vs. (16 E) Mount St. Mary's First Round	W 76–56	32–3	21 – DiVincenzo	13 – DiVincenzo	3 – Brunson	KeyBank Center (17,619) Buffalo, NY
Mar. 18* 2:40 pm, CBS	(1 E) No. 1	vs. (8 E) No. 25 Wisconsin Second Round	L 62–65	32–4	19 – Hart	7 – Bridges	2 – DiVincenzo	KeyBank Center (19,261) Buffalo, NY
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. E=East. All times are in Eastern Time.

Rankings

See also: 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
( ) = First-place votes

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	Final
AP	4 (4)	3 (5)	2 (21)	2 (20)	1 (57)	1 (56)	1 (56)	1 (56)	1 (59)	3 (1)	1 (28)	1 (35)	4 (4)	2 (6)	2 (5)	2 (5)	2 (2)	1 (59)	1 (59)	Not released
Coaches	3 (1)	3 (2)	2 (4)	2 (5)	1 (28)	1 (28)	1 (28)	1 (27)	1 (30)	3 (1)	2 (4)	2 (11)	4 (1)	2 (4)	2 (3)	3 (5)	3 (5)	1 (27)	1 (27)	8

*AP does not release post-NCAA tournament rankings

Honors

2016–17 All Big East Conference team honorees

Josh Hart, unanimous 1st team, POY, Co-DPOY (& 2017 All-American)

Jalen Brunson, unanimous 1st team

Kris Jenkins, hon. mention

Mikal Bridges, co-DPOY

Donte DiVincenzo, All-Freshman