Collin Gillespie was named to the class 5A All-State First Team as well as 5A Player of the Year.

Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree was named First Team All-State in the 3A division. He was joined on that team by long shot Nova target Cameron Reddish.

Full list of honorees here: http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/...gh-School-Boys-Basketball-All-State-Team.html

Hart takes home Player of the Year, DiVincenzo earns Rookie of the Year, and coach Wright grabbed Coach of the Year. Brunson was the Scholar Athlete of the Year and joined Hart and Jenkins on the First Team. Bridges was elected to the Second Team.

http://www.villanova.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/041117aaa.html

Rivals has released their final Rivals 150 rankings for the 2017 class.

Jermaine Samuels #45
Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree #80
And Collin Gillespie has crept into the rankings at #150

https://n.rivals.com/prospect_rankings/rivals150/2017

Cody Daniel takes a look at what needs must be filled with the class of 2018 while highlighting some potential recruits who could do the job.

https://villanova.rivals.com/news/addressing-the-needs-and-importance-of-the-2018-class

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Villanova is visiting one of it's top, and likely most talented target this morning. Everything about Reddish's recruitment screams Duke, but Villanova will likely remain in the mix until the end.

Rivals' Corey Evans looks at some potential breakout players in each major conference, with Omari Spellman as his pick for the Big East. (Typo in the last sentence of Spellman section, should read "Spellman" not "Huff".)

https://basketballrecruiting.rivals.com/news/conference-call-redshirts-primed-to-breakout-in-2017-18

Cody Daniel with an update on Elijah Weaver, who has started to narrow his recruitment a bit, with Nova still squarely in the mix.

https://villanova.rivals.com/news/weaver-begins-to-narrow-his-recruitment

Per sources, Patrick Ewing has been named the head coach at Georgetown.

Coach Wright joined Mike & Mike today and discussed a variety of topics.

http://www.espn.com/espnradio/playPopup?id=19065735

Grades for each player as we look at contributions during the 2016-17 season.

https://villanova.rivals.com/news/handing-out-season-grades

Here we highlight some names to know heading into the summer as the Cats look to build the class of 2018.

https://villanova.rivals.com/news/names-to-know-heading-into-summer-2017

A key target in the 2018, Hubb trimmed his list to six. Nova made the cut.

https://villanova.rivals.com/news/cats-included-in-top-6-for-2018-sg-prentiss-hubb

...have the Villanova Wildcats at the top of the list. Obviously, this is to be taken with a grain of salt, as there is a long way to go between now and next season and a lot can happen, but at the very least something positive to chew on during a long offseason.

http://kenpom.com/blog/2018-pre-season-top-ten/

A look at the staggering accomplishments of this year's senior class.

https://villanova.rivals.com/news/appreciating-the-greatness-of-the-2017-senior-class

Thanks to Cody Daniel for putting this together as I'm under the weather. Things looked good when Nova went up 57-50, but a 15-5 run to end the game crushed any hopes of a Villanova repeat.

https://villanova.rivals.com/news/cats-lost-to-wisconsin-65-62-season-over

This is what happens when the selection committee screws up. This should never have been a round of 32 matchup.

A shame the Cats couldn't put them away when they were up 57-50.

Jay made a mistake calling the final timeout in between the free throws in my opinion.

I think Omari Spellman could have made a big difference in this game.

Finally, thank you to Josh Hart, Kris Jenkins, and Darryl Reynolds. Incredible accomplishments in their four years at Nova and played a major role in elevating the program.

A look at tomorrow's round of 32 matchup with Wisconsin.

https://villanova.rivals.com/news/a-look-at-the-badgers-5

Cody Daniel takes a closer look at completely different team we saw in the first and second halves.

https://villanova.rivals.com/news/a-closer-look-at-last-night-s-completely-different-halves

After a brutal start, the Cats found their footing and put together a dominant second half to advance.

https://villanova.rivals.com/news/cats-overcome-rough-start-run-away-from-mount-st-mary-s-to-advance

I'm curious how everyone was feeling after the first few minutes. I'm wondering if the majority was calm and collected, fully expecting Nova to get it together, or if frustration and worry were the dominant emotions.

Rivals' contributor Dan McDonald caught up with Tucker, getting an update on his recruitment and when a decision may come.

https://basketballrecruiting.rivals.com/news/georgia-tech-enters-fray-for-four-star-jordan-tucker

Unload any thoughts you have on the opening day of the tournament here.

So far...

Notre Dame survives Princeton.
Very entertaining game between Virginia and UNC Wilmington.
Butler handling business.
South Dakota State trying to hang with Gonzaga.

Tournament is off to a pretty entertaining start. Let's talk some hoops!

Hey guys, Rivals is pushing into the home stretch on the homepage makeovers. I've been given the option to opt out of the switch, but I was hoping to get some feedback from everyone on the new layout. I provided a link to a trial of the new design, but no one offered any opinions. I'll re-post the link here, please let me know if anyone would prefer to keep the current layout.

https://villanova.rivals.com/homepage_redesign

Also, the new design would place some messages from the forum on the front page. There are several options to regulate those messages, including which forums they are drawn from as well as including/excluding certain users. Based on the current state of discussion, I would have to include the free board in this display due to the lack of discussion here. I would prefer to not do that, as I feel it is something that should be reserved for Nova subscribers. Furthermore, if there is anyone who would like to be specifically included or excluded, now is your chance to say so.

Again, this is your chance to offer any opinions on the new design, determine where front page forum messages are drawn from (if we make the switch), and to let me know if you would like to have your messages prioritized to the front page. I would prefer to limit those messages to those from this specific board, but obviously I need you guys to comment in order to do that. Also, the site is for you guys, so if you have a preference between old and new layout, now is the time to let me know. Your thoughts and opinions would be greatly appreciated. Enjoy the start of the madness and the game tonight.

From Cody Daniel and myself, a complete look at the tournament. We discuss the toughest/easiest regions, highlight some of the most intriguing matchups, identify potential upsets, and give our predictions for the Elite Eight and Final Four.

https://villanova.rivals.com/news/2017-ncaa-tournament-preview

We'd love to hear what games you are most looking forward to, who you think is prone to an upset, and who you see getting to the Elite Eight and Final Four. Enjoy the Madness.

Mt. St. Mary's defeated New Orleans 67-66 on Tuesday night to earn a date with the defending champs on Thursday. The Mountaineers shot 53.2% from the field and 52.6% from three. They got nice contributions from 5-5 guard Junior Robinson (23 points and three assists) and 6-5 guard Miles Wilson (17 points, 11 rebounds, and four assists.) It was Wilson's second straight double-double. Greg Alexander also showed a nice stroke from deep, coming off the bench to hit 3-5 threes.

For the season the Mountaineers averaged 68.3 points while giving up 68.6. They shot 44% from the field, 36% from three, and 68% from the free throw line. Elijah Long was quiet on Tuesday night, but leads the team in scoring for the season with 15.4 points per game. He adds 5.4 rebounds and 4.4 assists.

Mt. St. Mary's relies heavily on guard play. They are led by Long, Robinson, Wilson, and Alexander, all backcourt players. 6-8 Chris Wray and 6-9 Mawdo Sallah join Long in leading the team in rebounding. The Mountaineers are relatively young, with only two seniors, neither of which average more than 13 minutes per game.

As we await Thursday's kick-off of the title defense, here are a couple of Nova articles that I found interesting.

Larry Platt for GQ on coach Wright: http://www.gq.com/story/jay-wright-villanova-the-anti-coach

Alan Siegel for The Ringer on Kris Jenkins and moving on from "the shot": https://theringer.com/villanova-201...t-49f028eb011f?curator=SportsREDEF#.vvsl3shdf