With more than 15 seconds left, Villanova still had a chance to avoid overtime and grab the win. They were bringing the ball up-court looking to score (or more likely, draw a foul call from King Karl Hess). Ryan Arcidiacono had killed Pitt all game was bringing the ball up court. Pitt’s defense was solid — but just as important — Villanova didn’t do a good job of executing an attempt at a pick-and-roll (click the link, more explanation, pictures and video to explain). Poor spacing, clogged lanes and good defense led to Arcidiacono having no one to dish the ball to. Instead he had to run into Dante Taylor and hope for a foul call — that even Karl Hess couldn’t make at that point. The ball went out of bounds off of Tayler

Nova still got the ball back with a little more than 3 seconds left. Villanova called a timeout. Jay Wright diagramed up their play.

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Spring practice starts today. Coach Chryst is already speaking with the media. I’m sure he’ll be his usual loquacious and charming self. Guy just doesn’t know when to stop talking. Look at these rambling answers.

Where do you think you guys will make the most progress this year? Or where would you like to see the most progress?

PC: Everywhere, seriously, we need to. The only consistent thing for us last was we were consistently inconsistent. We need to make strides and grow across the board. There’s not two or three things you can say, ‘Well, if we got this squared away we’d be that much better.’ In every area we have to get better.

Not sure what he means by “everywhere.” I only saw issues at QB, O-line, linebackers, special teams and D-line last year. I mean, sure there’s only one returning starter for the receiving corps. A new kicker will have to be found. Someone has to replace Holley at safety. But, um, I feel real good about the cornerbacks, running back and punter.

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