Scottie Reynolds recalls play that shot 'Nova into 2009 Final Four

OTHER THAN that magical April Fools', Jake Nevin-inspired night in Lexington 31 years ago, it remains the shining moment in Villanova basketball lore.

Reggie Redding to Dante Cunningham to Scottie Reynolds to the 2009 Final Four.

Just as the Wildcats had drawn it up.

"I don't think it was a fluke that it happened," Reynolds recalled, as if it happened yesterday. "It worked in practice. But that was different."

You think?

The Wildcats, who'd finished fourth in the Big East that season, were the No. 3 seed in the East Region. Pitt, which came in second behind Louisville, was a one. They met in the Elite Eight at TD Banknorth Garden in Boston. Villanova had beaten the third-ranked Panthers at the Spectrum exactly two months earlier by 10. This time there were would be 15 lead changes. The Wildcats were down four with 3 1/2 minutes to go. Pitt tied things for the ninth time with 5.5 seconds left when Levance Fields made two free throws following a turnover. The stage was there for the taking.

Without calling a timeout, Redding inbounded from under the basket. He almost didn't get the pass off before the five-second clock expired. But the ball went to Cunningham, who'd posted up his guy about halfway between the foul line and midcourt. Villanova's big man went up high to catch it and, almost in the same motion, fed Reynolds, who was streaking past him at what seemed like warp speed. Reynolds took four dribbles, cutting from the right side to the lane in the process, and put up a short runner over a defender who couldn't afford to take a chance on committing a foul. The shot went in at 0.5, and there was nothing left to do but cut down nets. See you in Detroit.

Well over an hour later, Reynolds was still sitting in front of his locker cradling that ball.

"I went to sleep with it," he recalled from Israel, where he's now playing again after spending some time doing his thing in Italy. "I was taking it everywhere. It's in a safe place, my mom's house (in Virginia).

"She's got a whole lot of stuff there."

Understandably. But certainly none more meaningful.

Few have had a better career on the Main Line. And it was made possible by Oklahoma coach Kelvin Sampson, who got into trouble with the NCAA. That prompted Reynolds to transfer before he ever played for the Sooners, whom Villanova plays Saturday in Houston in a national semifinal, its first trip to the last weekend since Reynolds' end-to-end dash.

He was the bridge between the 2006 Final Eight team and that Final Four run three years later. Coach Jay Wright has said the Wildcats wouldn't have made the tournament in 2007 without him. Maybe not in 2008, either, when they snuck in as a 12 seed and made it to the Sweet 16 (also in Detroit).

The Wildcats would lose to eventual-national champion North Carolina in the '09 semifinals. The following season, as a senior, Reynolds averaged 18.2 points a game and was a first-team All-America. The Big East rookie of the year and four-time all-Big 5 selection scored 2,222 points, second in program history behind Kerry Kittles (2,243).

Still, it's one bucket that will always continue to define him.

"We'd tried it before, but I don't think in an end-of-game situation like that," Reynolds said. "Maybe going into halftime. And they probably didn't work. Other teams kind of knew what we were running. I actually think we did it once against Pitt. And it didn't work . . . I'm not sure.

"What do I think of it now? I look at what it kind of symbolized. It wasn't about me. It kind of symbolized everything that we had gone through, good and bad, the sacrifices we all made, you know. It was as much for the guys that came before me. I talked to Mike Nardi, Kyle Lowry, Randy Foye. I never wanted to let them down. That was the big thing. That (play) kind of brought us together. Those bonds are forever. We're always going to be brothers.

"It was special. And it's part of our lives. I know we can count on each other, no matter if we talk every day, once a month or once a year. I don't want to think of if it didn't happen. We'd still all be close. But there's something about that moment . . . It's hard to explain, if you weren't part of it."

Reynolds was different. Still is. But in a good way. If you asked him a question, he thought about it for a few moments before responding. Then he'd give you a thoughtful answer, something out of the ordinary, something you might not have expected. He was often deep. It was always something those of us who covered him for a living appreciated.

But back to the play . . .

"They were trying to deny me the ball," Reynolds said. "I forgot who (was guarding me), Lance (Fields) or (Jermaine) Dixon. That's kind of what we wanted. Once the ball went to Dante, they were going to be on my back (behind him). I wanted to have that head start. I knew how many dribbles I could take in that amount of time. I knew I was going to the basket, to finish it off or dump it off. I had that option. Shane (Clark) was there (alone on the right baseline). I think he would have had enough time (to score), but I didn't want to risk it.

"It's just something I had to read myself, when I was in the air. In my head, I'm thinking how much time do I have. Each dribble is a second. I didn't want to put Shane in that position. Who knows? I just believe it was there (for me). You get to a point where you know you're going all the way. Once I took one dribble and saw all that floor space, I wanted to make an aggressive play, maybe draw a foul. I didn't want to bail out. I knew I got it off in time.

"If you see my reaction, I ran down to the other end of the court, away form the team. They were chasing me. I didn't know how to react. I was just running. Then I ran into the mat on the other side of the basket, and (Corey Fisher) was there. And everybody was running toward me. I was more happy for them than myself. I was just happy I was able to do that for them. You could see the look on everybody's face. Just pure joy. No egos, no nothing. That's the beauty of it. It wouldn't have mattered who it was. Everybody would have reacted the same way. We knew what went into it. I was just trying to be a leader, all that stuff."

Reynolds acknowledges that he doesn't keep up much with what's going on back at Villanova, for whatever the reasons. He hasn't talked to Wright in "probably" a few years. He's on the other side of the world by himself, now that his young daughter is living with her mother in the States. But he sounds as if he's doing mostly what he wants to. He found out that these Wildcats had made it to another Final Four when Allan Ray called him, not long after their Elite Eight win over Kansas. It's his way.

"It's my sixth year (over there), and I love it," he said. "If this is what you want to do, you kind of make it work. It's hard being away from your family, but you realize you're doing it for a bigger purpose.

"I haven't met a player since I left. I've got so many other things I'm concentrating on. The only player I could name is Jalen Brunson, and that's just because of his father Rick. But I stay in close contact to a lot of the guys I was with. They tell me what's going on. I knew they had a chance to go (to Houston). I'm happy for the program. I had my time. I want everybody else to have theirs."

It's just that his time was so unlike almost any other.

"It wasn't a regular game," Reynolds said. "That's why everyone was watching. You can't not think about it. It happened for us at the right time. But I don't want people to just remember that. I want that to be a part of me. It was an unbelievable experience. But we couldn't have got there if not for the guys who came before."

One day, his No. 1 will be up in the Pavilion rafters. That's also Nevin's given number.

"I'd like to see A-Ray's (14, which was also worn by Larry Hennessy and Hubie White) retired first," Reynolds insisted. "I want to see those guys get recognized before I start taking the spotlight."

Besides, it's hard to top the magical place he already owns.

@mikekerndn