The 2017–18 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team represented
Villanova University in the
2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
The 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 10, 2017. The first tournament was the 2K Sports Classic and the season ended with the Final Four in San Antonio on April 2, 2018. Practices officially began on September 2 ...
. Led by head coach
Jay Wright in his 17th year, the Wildcats played their home games at the
Wells Fargo Center in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania as members of the
Big East Conference. The Wildcats finished the season 36–4, 14–4 in
Big East play to finish in second place. They defeated
Marquette,
Butler
A butler is a person who works in a house serving and is a domestic worker in a large household. In great houses, the household is sometimes divided into departments with the butler in charge of the dining room, wine cellar, and pantry. Some a ...
, and
Providence
Providence often refers to:
* Providentia, the divine personification of foresight in ancient Roman religion
* Divine providence, divinely ordained events and outcomes in Christianity
* Providence, Rhode Island, the capital of Rhode Island in the ...
to win the
Big East tournament championship. As a result, they received the conference's automatic bid to the
NCAA tournament as the No. 1 seed in the East region, their third No.1 seed in four years. They defeated
Radford
Radford may refer to:
Places England
* Radford, Coventry, West Midlands
* Radford, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire
* Radford, Plymstock, Devon
*Radford, Oxfordshire
* Radford, Somerset
*Radford, Worcestershire
*Radford Cave in Devon
*Radford Semele, ...
,
Alabama,
West Virginia, and
Texas Tech to advance to the Final Four for the second time in three years. In the National Semifinal, they defeated
Kansas before defeating
Michigan in the
National Championship game to win their second national championship in three years. They won every game of the tournament by a double-digit margin and the team's tournament run is widely considered the most dominant ever along with being called among the best seasons of all time.
The Wildcats' home court,
The Pavilion
A pavilion is a type of building.
Pavilion or Pavillion may also refer to:
Places United States
*Pavilion, New York, a town
** Pavilion (CDP), New York, census-designated place within the town
*Pavillion, Wyoming, a town
Canada
*Pavilion, Brit ...
, underwent a temporary closure for a $60 million renovation project during the season. It reopened for the 2018–19 season with the new name of Finneran Pavilion after a Villanova alum who donated $22.6 million to Villanova. Accordingly, all home games for the 2017–18 season but one were played at the Wells Fargo Center. The exception was the November 29, 2017 game with
Big 5 rival
Penn; it was instead held at
Jake Nevin Field House
The Jake Nevin Field House (originally known as the Villanova Field House) is an arena located at Villanova University in Villanova, Pennsylvania. The arena, built in 1932, is the former home of the Villanova men's basketball program prior to the ...
, which had been home to the team before the Pavilion's initial 1986 opening.
Previous season
The
Wildcats finished the
2016–17 season 32–4, 15–3 in
Big East play to win the regular season championship. In the
Big East tournament, they defeated
St. John's,
Seton Hall, and
Creighton to win the tournament championship. As a result, they received the conference's automatic bid to the
NCAA tournament. The Wildcats were given the Tournament's overall No. 1 seed as a No. 1 seed in the East region. In the First Round they defeated
Mount St. Mary's before being upset by No. 8-seeded
Wisconsin in the Second Round. The loss marked the second time in the previous three tournaments that Villanova was upset by an eighth-seeded team.
Offseason
Departures
2017 recruiting class
Future recruits
2018 recruiting class
Preseason
In its annual preseason preview, Blue Ribbon Yearbook ranked the Wildcats No. 12 in the country.
Jalen Brunson was named a third team preseason All-American.
Villanova was picked to win the Big East in the conference's preseason Coaches' Poll for the fourth consecutive year.
Jalen Brunson was named the unanimous preseason All-Big East player of the year.
Roster
Schedule and results
, -
!colspan=9 style=, Exhibition
, -
!colspan=12 style=, Regular season
, -
!colspan=9 style=,
Big East tournament
, -
!colspan=9 style=,
NCAA tournament
Rankings
^Coaches Poll did not release a Week 2 poll at the same time AP did.
*AP does not release post-NCAA tournament rankings
Gallery
File:Villanova Parade 2018 01.jpg, Crowd at parade
File:Villanova Parade 2018 11.jpg, Bus with Championship Trophy
File:Villanova Parade 2018 07.jpg, Players with trophy
File:Villanova Parade 2018 06.jpg, Players on bus
File:Villanova Parade 2018 04.jpg, Eric Paschall
Eric Paschall (; born November 4, 1996) is an American professional basketball player who is currently a free agent. He played college basketball for the Fordham Rams and the Villanova Wildcats. He was selected with the 41st overall pick in the 2 ...
, Donte DiVincenzo, Omari Spellman, Collin Gillespie, and Jalen Brunson
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:2017-18 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team
Villanova
Villanova Wildcats men's basketball seasons
Villanova
Villanova
Villanova
NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament Final Four seasons
NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament championship seasons