Before Ryan Arcidiacono got to the bench during the final minute of Villanova’s 84-71 win over Georgetown in Saturday’s regular-season finale, head coach Jay Wright stopped him with a question.
“How cool is this?” Wright asked as the sold-out crowd at the Wells Fargo Center roared for the do-it-all senior.
“I don’t even think I said anything,” Arcidiacono would say later. “I was still kind of in shock because I was surprised my four years are done at the Wells Fargo Center. It was pretty special.”
Arcidiacono’s regular-season college basketball career indeed ended Sunday, as did standout center Daniel Ochefu’s. But there is still a chance they’ll return to the Wells Fargo Center, which will host the East regional semifinals and finals of the NCAA Tournament in three weeks.
But like his coach, the four-year starting point guard who helped bring the Villanova program back to prominence, knows he can’t afford to even think about that yet, not when there are so many games and practices in between.
Besides, there were enough special things happening this weekend to occupy his thoughts as Arcidiacono not only came out of Sunday’s game to a raucous standing ovation but also became the fifth player in program history to reach the 500-assist milestone, joining Kenny Wilson, Stewart Granger, Alvin Williams and Chris Ford.
And the day before Villanova won its final home game and then celebrated its third straight regular-season Big East title, Arcidiacono spoke to his teammates during the team’s emotional senior night festivities.
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“I was the last one to speak,” Arcidiacono said. “It wasn’t about winning Big East championships or how successful we have been. It was just about the little things in the process and the grind of a college basketball season, especially at Villanova and how great we have it. The managers, coaches, office staff, everyone makes it just a positive environment.
“I just tried to thank the coaches and tell the younger guys don’t ever take for granted winning because there’s such a small difference between good teams and great teams. And if you don’t come to practice every single day trying to get better, other teams are gonna get you.”
Arcidiacono certainly knows how small the difference between winning and losing is after failing to get out of the first weekend of the Big Dance during his first three years in college. The last two exits were especially jarring since the Wildcats were expected to make Final Four runs after cruising past the Big East competition all season.
Does it bother him at all that the casual fan might not give the Wildcats enough credit for their impressive regular seasons while focusing solely on their March failures?
“Everyone has a right to say what we want,” Arcidiacono said. “Like Coach says, we judge ourselves on the regular season and we’ll go from there into the tournament and have fun with it. When we’ve been in the NCAA Tournament, we haven’t been successful. That’s on us. We can own up to that. And everyone has the right to get mad at us if they want to. But we’re trying to be the best team we can be by the end of the year. We haven’t done that so far in the tournament but hopefully we can do that this year.”
Time will tell if the Wildcats can change the narrative this time around. But the fact that the Wildcats will once again go into the Big Dance as a legitimate national championship contender is, in large part, a testament to how Arcidiacono changed the program, stepping in as a starter the season after Villanova sputtered to a 13-19 record and running the point with poise, efficiency and endless hustle.
That’s why Wright decided to honor him Saturday — and why the fans bellowed in appreciation.
“He’s meant everything to our program,” Wright said. “You’re a Philly kid and you end your college career walking off the floor at the Wells Fargo Center to a standing ovation? There’s not much better than that.”
Arcidiacono, who grew up going to games in the same building as a kid, certainly agreed the moment was a special one.
“Growing up in Langhorne, I was always a Sixers fan, a Philadelphia sports fan,” he said. “I never really thought of being able to play here and being as successful we have been at Villanova. But it was a pretty cool experience and something I’ll never forget.”
When a reporter asked if he’s still a Sixers fan, Arcidiacono flashed a winning smile.
“For sure,” he said. “Trust the process.”