In our Champions Rewind series, we'll look at the seasons of past National Champions, breaking down both their offensive and defensive systems.
This week, we'll look at the 2015-16 Villanova Wildcats, who have one of the most memorable shots in college basketball history to cap their season.
Season Recap
Coming off the 2014-15 season, which saw Villanova lose only three games total but fall in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, there was growing concern about whether Jay Wright could get it done in March again. It had been 6 seasons since Villanova went to the Final Four, and that was the last time the Wildcats made it past the first weekend.
Villanova returned nearly 60% of their minutes from the previous season, including Josh Hart, Kris Jenkins, Ryan Arcidiacono, and Daniel Ochefu. They also brought in a freshman class that included Jalen Brunson and Donte DiVincenzo, while Mikal Bridges was coming off a redshirt freshman season.
Starters
- Jalen Brunson - 6'2 - Freshman - Combo Guard
- Ryan Arcidiacono - 6'3 - Senior - Combo Guard
- Josh Hart - 6'5 - Junior - Small Forward
- Kris Jenkins - 6'6 - Junior - Forward
- Dnaiel Ochefu - 6'11 - Senior - Center
Bench
- Phil Booth - 6'3 - Sophomore - Shooting Guard
- Mikal Bridges - 6'7 - Freshman - Wing
- Darryl Reynolds - 6'8 - Junior - Forward
With all of that, Villanova was ranked 11th in the preseason AP Poll.
