Summer Reports, Villanova News, Zach Smart

VILLANOVA SUMMER REPORT

Could a return trip to Final Four be possible for 2009-2010 Wildcats?

by Zach Smart

Scottie Reynolds is back after watching his 2009 draft stock crank up a notch. What does this mean for Villanova, which rose to the top of the guard-geared Big East with a final four berth?

They will have one of the country’s elite backcourts led by the savvy veteran Reynolds whose been making headlines since his freshman season running the show. The Wildcats will have considerable balance in this top-tier backcourt, strengthened by the arrival of blue chips Dominic Cheek and Maalik Wayns and return of junior Corey Fisher, who could be on the cusp of a breakout campaign.

Losing Dante Cunningham, who was claimed by the Portland Trail Blazers in the 2009 NBA draft, takes some punch out of the frontcourt. While the Big East’s Most Improved Player paced the Wildcats to the tune of 16.2 points and 7.3 boards, redshirt junior Antonio Pena could help cushion the loss. Pena’s game faltered after a fast start last season, but the 6-foot-8 kid from Brooklyn can take bigs out of the post by draining jumpers. Taylor King, a transfer via Duke, will also help recover some of the scoring. King is a 6-foot-6 shooter who will stretch out defenses with his perimeter game.

Maurice Sutton could help replace the presences of the departed Cunningham, Dwayne Anderson and Shane Clark. Isaiah Armwood and Mouphtaou Yarou could offer meaningful minutes right from the get-go. Both freshmen registered amongst the top-ranked prep forwards in the nation last year. Don’t hit the pillow on them.

The focus, however, is flipped on the ratcheted up backcourt.

Remember that ultra-entertaining Quentin Tarantino film starring Tim Roth, Four Rooms?

Well this Villanova team displays a similar show this year. Call it, “Four Guards.”

Similar to the 2005-2006 team dubbed GUARD-U, which boasted Allan Ray, Randy Foye, Kyle Lowry and Mike Nardi, ‘Nova has plenty of depth in the guard category this year. With Corey Stokes also returning, along with senior Reggie Redding in December (see below) and the highly-touted newcomers Wright has penned, don’t be deceived if Wright implements a four-guard set at times.

Expect the Wildcats to pick up where they left off, with memories of Reynolds’ epic buzzer-beater pumping adrenaline through the team’s veins and the superior guard play garnering them an early presence in the national polls.

KEY LOSSES:

Dante Cunningham, 6-8 F: Maryland basketball junkies will tell you that this Blue Devils AAU product who was shaped by a health food-crazy family and good basketball bloodline (Cunningham’s sister, Davalyn Cunningham, played in the WNBA) was NBA-bound. The athletic, pogo-stick leaper and his 16 points, 7 boards per will be missed…

Dwayne Anderson, 6-6 G/F: Role player averaged 9.2 points and 6.2 boards his final season and boasted a solid all-around game, a defensive prowess and solid chemistry with Cunningham.

Shane Clark, 6-7 F: Solid backup from Philly provided meaningful minutes off the pine the past three seasons…

KEY RETURNEES:

Scottie Reynolds, 6-2 G: Should steer the ship back into charted Final Four territory. Reynolds averaged 15.3 points last season and shouldered the onus of high-pressure player and leader. The Wildcats will go as Reynolds—who needs to make consistency a necessity—goes. Has been carving up opponents since his freshman year in 2006-2007, when he hit up UConn for a 40-spot.

Corey Fisher, 6-1 G: Bronx Boy had plenty of silver linings last year, shot the eyes out of the ball many a times. 10.8 PPG and a propensity to go lights out every now and then.,.Must also tackle consistency issues.

Corey Stokes, 6-5 G: New Jersey product averaged 9.3 points and earned the name Corey Strokes after surfacing as the squad’s 3-point assailant.

Reggie Redding, 6-5 G: Another experienced, savvy guard who can knock down threes and balance the scoring attack, as the Philly-bred guard proved while turning in a 18-pound, 7-board show in a 67-57 win over Pitt last season. However, Redding, who also doubles as the resident defensive-stopper for the club, will be unavailable until December as he is suspended from the team due to a run-in with campus police that resulted in a marijuana charge this summer.

Antonio Pena, 6-8 F: Started off Big East play smoking, including a 13 ppg average in three consecutive games against Louisville, St. John’s and UConn. His numbers dipped, significantly, down the stretch. Look for Wright to get the best out of Pena, who should receive an uptick in minutes with the departure of the aforementioned forwards.

*Also expect redshirt frosh Maurice Sutton, a 6-11 Center who runs the floor well and possesses athleticism, agility and shot-blocking ability, to play meaningful minutes and make an impact.

KEY NEWCOMERS:

Taylor King, 6-6 G-F : Expect this rangy sniper to make an immediate impact after sitting out a year due to NCAA transfer rules..

Dominic Cheek, 6-6 G: McDonald’s All-American averaged 14.2 points, 9 boards, and four dimes playing for legendary Bob Hurley Sr. at St. Anthony’s HS. Jersey City product can create his own shot or dial in from downtown, scoring in a variety of ways overall. He’s also got springy hops and rebounds well.

Maalik Wayns, 6-1 G: Innate point guard with court vision and quickness beyond his years..McDonald’s All-American and Philly native averaged 19.2 points, 5.1 rebounds and 5.5 assists at Roman Catholic last season.

Isaiah Armwood, 6-7 F: Athletic forward from B-more played at traditional hoops breeding ground Montrose Christian last season…Brings to the table a blend of mid-range shooting, boardwork, and ability to run the floor and finish well in transition. Averaged 12 points and eight boards his senior year.

Mouphtaou Yarou, 6-10 F/C: You know he’s a special player when Jay Wright made the grueling, 20-whatever hour flight to Africa to recruit this young man. Polished post-up game and great hands and feel for the game. Like Armwood, Yarou also played at Montrose Christian. Big fella averaged 20 points, 12 rebounds and three swats his senior season.

NBE Blogger Says…

Villanova is the hands down conference favorite heading into the 2009-2010 season. With one of the nation’s top recruiting classes as well as several top contributors from last season’s Final Four team, Jay Wright could very well have the horses to make another March charge through the field.

While the loss of Dante Cunningham will be tough to replace, as will the under-appreciated contributions of Shane Clark and Dwayne Anderson, ‘Nova has players with more potential and upside ready to step in this season.

With eight former top 50 high school recruits on the roster, this is definitely a blue-chip squad assembled by Wright and his staff. Look for the Wildcats to be among the top three teams in the Big East from start to finish and, heading into the season, they are the favorite to carry the Big East banner deepest in March. They will be challenged in the conference and will have several new faces to work in the mix, so there will be some ups and downs as the youngsters get acclimated to defended and the physicality of the conference, but in the end, this is one Wildcat squad that has the goods to build on last year’s exciting finish.

Previous Summer Reports:
Cincinnati Summer Report
Connecticut Summer Report
DePaul Summer Report
Georgetown Summer Report
Providence Summer Report
Marquette Summer Report
Rutgers Summer Report
South Florida Summer Report
St. John’s Summer Report
Syracuse Summer Report
West Virgina Summer Report