Wildcats know only winning will cure their ills

CLEVELAND - Villanova has been playing basketball since 1920. Only twice have the Wildcats finished a season worse than this one. In 1943-44, they lost their last six games to go 9-11 for the legendary Al Severance.

And you have to figure World War II had something to do with that, since that was the first of three consecutive losing seasons for a man who had only two others in his quarter-century on the Main Line.

And in 1992-93, Steve Lappas' first season, they lost their last eight to end up 8-19. In case it makes any difference, three were one-pointers, with another by three.

Which brings us to today's 2:10 p.m. second-round NCAA East Regional matchup against No. 8 seed George Mason at Quicken Loans Arena. Jay Wright's ninth-seeded team, which was once 16-1, has lost five in a row and seven of its last nine. The only wins were by three at Seton Hall and in overtime at DePaul, neither of which made even the NIT. The Wildcats have beaten nine teams that are in the 68-team field, although the last such victory came in early February.

The Wildcats have won 12 NCAA games in the last six seasons, including their Final Four appearance 2 years ago. How many programs can say that? Still, they lost their second game last March as a 2 seed against a 10, after nearly losing to a 15. Now, they've gone from the Top 10 to out of the rankings for the first time in 3 years. And even if they beat the Patriots (26-6), who won the regular-season Colonial Athletic Association title and 16 of their last 17 games, a lot of folks really don't see Villanova getting beyond the likely prospect of No. 1 Ohio State on Sunday.

So what's the point, since it probably will go down as a disappointment/underachievement either way, right?

"I can't argue with that [line of reasoning], but we can't think that way," Wright said yesterday. "And we don't think that way.

"There's nothing that's been written about us or said that isn't true. Now, we know why some of those things happened. I think the kids have done a great job of understanding that comes with the territory. But we've got to evaluate ourselves from the inside. Right now, given what these guys have gone through, I think they're very excited to be playing George Mason. And beating George Mason would be a huge win for them. Then whatever the next challenge is, they're going to be excited about that.

"Everything you do in the tournament is important. Like last year. The Robert Morris game [overtime win], no one was happy with that. But it got these sophomores another game. And now they've played in two NCAA games. If we win [this], we'll get to play again. Then they'll have four games. That's always going to help us, no matter what [the perceptions]."

The reality is, expectations have gone way up. Maybe that's unfair. Yet for better or worse, it is the way it is. It's better than winning three NCAA games in 16 seasons, which is what happened from 1989-2004. And sometimes, this stuff isn't so much about the 21-11 record as how you got there.

"I think last year they learned it doesn't just happen," Wright said. "The senior class, in their first year, went to a Sweet 16 [as a 12 seed], and it was kind of a satisfying Sweet 16. Then they went to a Final Four, and I think they felt that you come to Villanova and it just happens. I think they realize how fragile all of this is and how to appreciate every moment. And I do think this team is coming into this tournament, and it's because of our seniors, with a great appreciation for being here and a respect for the process of preparing. It's been a very businesslike attitude. I really like that.

"I think we all get better at what we do based on our experiences. I'm really proud of how these guys have handled expectations, how they've handled this [bad] run here. That's what a season is, how you endure that. We've had some success for a number of years. If you had asked me going into the season would we be better than 21-11, I would have said yes. Basketballwise, we could have done some better things. But the fact that everybody has stuck together . . . That's going to be their legacy in my mind."

Others, of course, might see it differently, regardless of what happens this afternoon.

"We can't control none of that, what [anybody] is saying on the outside," said leading scorer Corey Fisher, one of the three senior starters. "We struggled down the end, but we feel we worked hard. And we've had great practices. I think we're ready.

"We're not going to talk. We're just going to prove ourselves, and that's starting with me, Antonio [Pena] and [Corey] Stokes and the coaching staff. We know how good we are, and that's really all that matters."

The Wildcats, for whatever reasons, haven't played well in NCAA openers even in better times. There was obviously last year's near-disaster against Robert Morris. Two years ago, they were trailing 14th seed American by double digits early in the second half at what was then the Wachovia Center. In 2008, they came back from 18 down in the final 20 minutes against fifth-seeded Clemson. In 2006, they struggled with 16th-seeded Monmouth for a half, also in South Philly. In 2005, they beat 12th seed New Mexico by only eight. And in 2007, they lost an 8-9 game to Kentucky.

This time, it's basically a pick'em. Villanova beat George Mason early last season in Puerto Rico, by one on a late three-pointer by freshman Isaiah Armwood, so far the only one he's made in his career. He's taken two.

"Being the underdog is good, but we don't consider ourselves being the underdog," Fisher said. "If we would have won [more] games, everything would have been different. Then you might hear from somebody else, 'Villanova can win this, can win that.' But you can't get into that . . .

"Just knowing that we have basketball left, we still have [confidence]. When you're losing, it's tough. We went 9-9 [in the Big East], one of the best leagues in the country. For a lot of people, that's not good. But if you're trying to achieve something, you're not going to stop. I know it's going to be a good game. We're going to go out strong."

Or else they could exit on the wrong kind of historic note. *