Coaches and pundits provide their picks of where Villanova basketball sits heading into the season

NEW YORK — Villanova’s men’s and women’s basketball teams were both picked to finish fourth in the Big East in the preseason coaches polls, but the teams find themselves in very different situations.

The men’s team is surrounded by buzz. After bringing in four transfers and returning Justin Moore and Eric Dixon, the Wildcats are expected to, at minimum, return to the NCAA Tournament.

The women’s team has more questions. Maddy Siegrist, the best player in program history, left for the WNBA, so the Wildcats now have a gaping hole to fill.

The Big East hosted its annual media day on Tuesday at Madison Square Garden, where teams answered questions about the season ahead. Chief among them were expectations. There was much to be said about both Villanova programs.

Could the Cats be Final Four good?

Villanova’s men’s program shuns conventional goals. Many teams don’t shy away from national title aspirations, but the Wildcats instead simply aim to be “the best team [they] can be by the end of the season.”

Opposing coaches, meanwhile, don’t hesitate to make projections for this year’s Wildcats.

“I wouldn’t be surprised to see them in the Final Four,” first-year Georgetown coach Ed Cooley said.

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Connecticut coach Dan Hurley went further.

“They’re only picked fourth because they’ve got a lot of new faces, but they’re as talented as anyone in the top four,” Hurley said, referencing the top three of Marquette, Creighton, and UConn. “Any of those teams, man, us included, could go the distance this year.”

Xavier coach Sean Miller was less specific but shared that sentiment.

“I think Villanova will be one of our conference’s best teams,” Miller said. “I really believe that. They’re experienced. … I think they’re going to be a really tough team this year.”

That experience is what stands out. Creighton’s Greg McDermott noted Villanova’s seven seniors and graduates, saying that he prefers coaching older players, noting that Villanova has “got a whole team of them.”

Cooley said the same thing. He said Villanova’s team reminds him of his 2021-22 Providence team, which had seven seniors, went 27-6, and won the Big East regular-season championship. (Villanova beat the Friars twice but had a worse winning percentage after three Providence games were canceled because of COVID-19.)

Marquette coach Shaka Smart is most impressed by Villanova’s overall talent. With the returning players, including a fully healthy Moore, and what he called “probably the best transfer class in the country,” Smart gets the hype.

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Moore and Dixon were both named to All-Big East preseason teams, but the conference’s coaches praised other Wildcats as well. McDermott and Cooley complimented sophomore guard Mark Armstrong, while Cooley said transfer guard TJ Bamba fits Villanova’s profile.

The general consensus among coaches, and the main theme of Tuesday’s event, was that this season’s Big East could be the strongest in conference history. Marquette, UConn, and Creighton are seen as national title contenders. St. John’s and Georgetown will be much improved with new head coaches (St. John’s Rick Pitino and Cooley), while transfer-heavy Xavier and Providence teams will be solid as well.

The conference will be challenging. Nationally, Villanova is seen as a step behind Marquette, UConn, and Creighton, but in the Big East, coaches see how good the Wildcats could be.

Picked fourth: Praise or doubt?

For the women’s team, the fourth-place projection can be seen as a compliment or a question. The Wildcats, who finished in second last season, were placed behind Connecticut, Creighton, and Marquette. Connecticut was the unanimous first-place choice, while Creighton was the near-unanimous runner-up.

An optimist would say a projected fourth-place finish is a sign of the team’s quality, even without Siegrist. The half-empty approach sees it as doubt that the team will be as good without its historic talent.

Those in New York saw both sides.

“I definitely would have said three, for sure,” junior forward Christina Dalce said. “… I’ll take it, but we’re obviously going to push forward to prove it wrong. It’s not bad, but it’s [just] all right.”

Added fellow junior Lucy Olsen: “I think it’s a little bit of both. Maddy was literally unbelievable. It’s so cool that I got to play with her for two years. But that we’re still fourth, I think it shows that we still have something left.”

Olsen, a guard, was a unanimous selection to the preseason All-Big East first team, the only Wildcat to receive recognition.

Coach Denise Dillon is using it to challenge her players.

“I do see it as something great with our players who we have returned,” Dillon said. “I think it’s good for them, and I’ll appreciate them wanting more, expecting more. But that’s something they have to prove.”

However, it’s a different team without Siegrist. Connecticut head coach Geno Auriemma knows it best. He praised Villanova, saying Dillon’s system was difficult to play against, and he acknowledged that others would step up without Siegrist. He also applauded Olsen, saying he’d put her up with any guard in the country.

Despite that, he led with his truth.

“It’s going to be a little more fun to go to Philadelphia than it was the last couple of years,” Auriemma, who grew up in Norristown, said.

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