‘We’ll figure it out’: Six key questions from Villanova men’s loss to Notre Dame in Rome

ROME — There were off-court reasons why the last four days in Italy were a success for Villanova, and coach Kevin Willard called meeting the pope “a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”

“To see his love for Villanova, to see what he’s done for the Catholic church and really for people all over, it was a little bit … I don’t have the words yet to be perfectly honest with you," Willard said. “That’s how special it was.”

But the four-day spectacle ended for the men’s basketball team with a 74-72 loss to Notre Dame in which the Wildcats held a 10-point lead with 10 minutes to go.

It was an ugly start to the season, and there were plenty of worrying things about how it happened.

» READ MORE: South Jersey’s Hannah Hidalgo starts her Player of the Year campaign in win over Villanova

“I think it’s going to be a good learning process for us,” Willard said. “When you put a team together, you’re learning stuff new every day.”

What do the Wildcats need to learn most? Here are six key questions — a full slate of who, what, when, where, why, and how — that come to mind after Sunday’s loss.

Villanova’s first starting lineup of the season featured Darryl “Buddy” Simmons, Jake Fiegen, Tyler Perkins, Devin Royal, and Luigi Suigo.

Kwame Evans Jr., a 6-foot-10 Oregon transfer who may be the key to Villanova’s defensive connectivity this season, came off the bench. Evans missed the entire three-game exhibition slate while working his way back from an offseason leg injury. He still played 22 minutes and had seven points and seven rebounds, but he led Villanova with five turnovers.

“I think until Kwame gets acclimated with being on the court for as long as he needs to, that lineup probably gives us our best chance to defend and rebound,” Willard said afterward.

There was some tinkering, though. Willard played only eight guys, but the Wildcats had different combinations out there. Evans got the backup center minutes when Suigo was on the bench. That may be the case regardless, but Villanova didn’t have reserve center Nico Onyekwere, who had a visa issue and didn’t travel with the team.

There seemed to be more consistent stretches with Elijah Crawford and not Simmons on the floor. Which begs the question ...

Simmons started, but Crawford played the bulk of the second-half minutes.

Bonus question: If you have two point guards, do you even have one?

Crawford, a transfer from Illinois-Chicago, was expected to be the starter when he signed with Villanova. But Crawford had a rough time during the exhibitions, and Simmons, who was one of the best scorers in the Atlantic 10 last season with St. Bonaventure, earned the start.

Crawford turned 25 minutes into 12 points on 4-for-7 shooting (he made all four of his free-throw attempts) to go with five assists, three rebounds, and three steals. But he canceled out those steals with four turnovers.

Simmons was inconsistent, too. They are different players. Crawford is more of a creator who thrives off of ball screens while Simmons is more of a score-first guard.

“I think we’re still trying to figure out which lineups work well with each other,” Willard said. “I think they both bring unique abilities, but just trying to figure out which guy fits with each guy has been a little bit of a challenge. But we’ll figure it out.”

Simmons made just one of his six three-point attempts and finished with five points and three assists in 15 minutes. He also turned the ball over twice.

» READ MORE: Villanova collapses late in season-opening loss to Notre Dame in Rome

Turnovers were a major storyline for Villanova. The Wildcats had 15 in the first half and finished with 20. More than half of them came from forwards or centers, but a better or more consistent initiator on offense would limit some of those miscues.

The star of the preseason schedule was nowhere to be found on Sunday.

Royal, who scored 20 vs. Rutgers, 25 vs. George Mason, and 21 vs. Virginia during the exhibitions, barely was noticeable.

The Ohio State transfer scored five points and missed the only shot attempt he wasn’t fouled on. He was 5-for-6 from the free-throw line and grabbed eight rebounds.

He, too, had turnover problems, including a pivotal giveaway out of a timeout inside of two minutes with Villanova clinging to a one-point lead.

Notre Dame deserves credit for denying Royal opportunities, but he’s too important of a scoring option on this roster to have that kind of stat line. Willard and his staff are going to have to figure out how to get him more involved.

Suigo had two big moments on the offensive end Sunday. The first resulted in a nice crowd pop in his home country after Crawford found him on a lob and he finished an alley-oop dunk to give Villanova its first double-digit lead early in the second half.

He later hit a three-pointer, prompting the Italian PA announcer to yell “Luigi Su Su Su Suigo!”

But Suigo’s debut was far from perfect. Willard used the phrase “growing pains” two weeks ago to describe what this process will be like for Suigo acclimating to a different style of basketball.

That was evident on Sunday. Twice in the first half Suigo put the ball on the floor from the perimeter and either had it stolen or lost control.

Villanova also struggled mightily on the defensive glass, allowing 17 offensive rebounds. Suigo is 7-3 and only had four defensive rebounds. Villanova needs more in that department from the 19-year-old freshman.

There were flashes from a player who was a potential late-first-round pick in this past NBA draft. But it also has been apparent in the last few weeks why Suigo is playing college basketball this year.

There weren’t many positives to take from a first half that saw Villanova turn it over 15 times, but freshman Adam Oumiddoch made a major impact in seven minutes, scoring seven points on 3-for-4 shooting.

He hit a corner transition three as well as a contested layup and a well-defended fadeaway in the paint.

» READ MORE: Ed Hastings played at Villanova, became a priest, and now helps athletes find the joy in losing

Willard then had him on the floor for two minutes in the second half. The offense did not have any rhythm over the final 10 minutes, and it’s fair to wonder why Willard didn’t try Oumiddoch for a few minutes during a prolonged scoring drought.

A run-stopping three. A defensive rebound. A stop. Villanova could’ve used any of those a few different times Sunday.

Matt Hodge, who can help in those categories, didn’t dress Sunday and it’s unclear when he’ll be ready to make his debut.

Hodge, who tore his ACL and had surgery in March, looked good at practice on Thursday in Rome going through a workout with assistant coach Ashley Howard, but he did not take part in most of the practice drills.

Willard recently said Hodge hadn’t yet been cleared for full contact. The sooner that happens, some of these concerns may be solved for Villanova. But that still may be some time from Sunday, and of all the questions that Sunday brought to mind, it’s the one with the least clear answer.