Villanova Wildcats

2023-24 Result: 18-16 (10-10 Big East), NIT Appearance

Projected Starting Lineup

Head Coach: Kyle Neptune (3rd Season)

Guard: Jhamir Brickus (5th year)

Guard: Wooga Poplar (SR)

Guard: Jordan Longino (SR)

Forward: Eric Dixon (5th year)

Center: Enoch Boakye (SR)

Villanova head coach Kyle Neptune comes into this season under heavy fire. After Jay Wright retired, Neptune took over and his first two seasons at the helm have his job in question. Villanova went from powerhouse and title contender to missing the NCAA tournament. Now this year’s team has a lot of turnover, losing TJ Bamba, Justin Moore, Mark Armstrong, and Hakim Hart. This leaves a lot of question marks in regards to the backcourt and the depth. Neptune brought in Wooga Poplar, Jhamir Brickus, and Tyler Perkins to replace the backcourt, and 4-star freshman Matthew Hodge and Enoch Boakye to add to the front court.

Villanova made games ugly in the 2023 season. For anyone that watched them play, they played at a slow, inefficient pace, which led them to need to not give up many points on the other end. They turned games very physical, leading to low scoring games, which produced the 22nd best points per game allowed in the country. They forced their opponents into very difficult shots, and a lot of that came from the versatility that they had at the guard position. Neptune’s team might not have been very good, but they competed on the defensive end, which kept them in games and around the bubble of the NCAA tournament. However, this season, the Wildcats saw many departures. Their backcourt defense is taking a huge hit, as they lost the catalysts and the versatility that they had to an entirely different, and less deep, backcourt. This year’s team at least brought in a little bit of rim protection in Enoch Boakye, but they will rely on him heavily with the depleted backcourt defense. Eric Dixon is not a rim protector, so his lack of impact on the defensive end will likely be more evident this season with more exposure. Villanova’s defense will not be at the same level it has been in recent years.

Offensively, it is unclear where the Wildcats are headed outside of Eric Dixon. He led their team last season with 16.6 points per game, but that isn’t saying much because they were the 276th best offense in terms of points per game and 288th in field goal percentage. Jhamir Brickus will run the show at guard, but this is a big step up from La Salle. He will greatly improve their three-point shooting, as he shot it at over 40% last season. Wooga Poplar will also help in that category, but they also won’t be getting the same looks at Villanova as they did previously because they are going to be defended differently and not just a piece of the puzzle. Villanova’s lack of depth on offense is alarming. The offense is going to need to play at a slow pace to stay in games against the best teams because they will not be scoring with the best of them, per usual.

Kyle Neptune may be searching for a new job by March. Villanova lost their entire backcourt and defensive versatility from last season, which was already not a great team. Defensively, they will be fine because of their offensive pace, but offensively, they might struggle even more than they did last year. Outside of Dixon, they do not have much to turn to and will need to rely too heavily on role players to be their main guys. If Villanova is going to make the tournament, Eric Dixon will need to be all-world this season. More than likely, the season will end with no postseason basketball and a new head coach for the Wildcats heading into 2025.