Villanova’s newest trip to the NCAA Tournament round of 16 is Sweet as ever

No net-cutting ceremonies for winning NCAA Tournament second-round games, just back to the locker room, quick meal, get the bags at the hotel, back to the airport … in Villanova’s case, flying back to Philadelphia on a Sunday, flying out from Philadelphia on a Tuesday, next stop San Antonio, the Sweet 16.

Stop the tape.

When you’re a No. 2 seed like the Villanova Wildcats, you’ve just cleared maybe the most significant bar of your season. Whatever happens from here – starting with the Michigan Wolverines on Thursday, 7:15 p.m. Eastern time in San Antonio – is the gravy. Lose in the second round as a No. 2 seed, there’s an asterisk to your season.

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(*Lost in second round for the Xth time in X years, that kind of thing.)

Reach the Sweet 16, the * goes the other way. (*Reached Sweet 16 for fourth time in six years, in Villanova’s case.)

The distinction may seem subtle. You can end up facing the same team in either round, it plays out the same way, yet your season is judged in an entirely different way. (*Stupid, also real.) That’s the way the NCAA Tournament is set up, two games at a time, each week an exceedingly bigger deal, the Final Four a rocket ship ride into your school’s history books. (Only two No. 2 seeds are still alive, Villanova and Duke. Bye bye, Kentucky and Auburn.)

Growing up, watching March Madness, the Sweet 16 – is that term meaningful?

“I think it’s something you can’t take for granted,” said Villanova big man Eric Dixon, now 2-for-2 in his career, with a huge role in making this one happen. “It’s something, as a kid you think about, you hear – Sweet 16, Elite Eight. It’s something we try not to get too deep into our heads.”

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No parade for Dixon in Abington yet.

“Business as usual,” Dixon said. “Left the gym, got on the plane.”

Last weekend, talking in Pittsburgh, Jay Wright was both explaining and downplaying the importance of rounds won or lost in the scheme of things. Tuesday, before his team left campus for the airport, Villanova’s coach could play it a bit differently.

“It’s huge for our players – huge,” Wright said of getting over that bar, artificial or not. “To have had the experience of playing in the Sweet 16 – last year, us playing in the Sweet 16, even though there was no fans – there’s a pressure to that, that you feel in the second round. If you haven’t been through that before, it can get to you.”

Wright thought getting over that hurdle last season factored in Sunday as Ohio State closed in. He saw “a strong mindset” from his players.

“Because it’s all about the players,” Wright said. “It doesn’t matter how many times a coach has been there. Yeah, a little bit of impact. But it’s that situation, handling it – Ohio State makes the run. You’re in a big-time game, a big-time atmosphere. Do you know you can get through that?”

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Now, a different thing. Not just Phil Martelli being there with Michigan. (*Crazy.) Same city as the 2018 Final Four. (*Different arena, AT&T Center, not Alamodome.) Michigan, same opponent as the 2018 championship game. (*Different Wolverines coach, different players.)

“You know what’s funny – when we’re down there, you’re locked in a hotel and you go to the arena – I never saw anything in San Antonio while we’re there,” Wright said. “It’s just a matter of going to our hotel and another arena for us.” (*Get to Elite Eight, you’re 40 minutes from the Final Four.)

Event description: While Villanova heads to San Antonio for the tournament’s South Regional, the East Regional is coming to Philly and The Inquirer will be in both locations every step of the way. Join college hoops experts Mike Jensen and Mike Sielski as they offer an insider’s look at Villanova’s tournament run and break down the rest of the field during a special edition of Gameday Central. Tune in Friday, March 25 at 2:15 PM as Jensen and Sielski chat with Inquirer columnist David Murphy on Inquirer LIVE.

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