March 16, 2008

VILLANOVA, Pa. - Villanova received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Wildcats are a No. 12 seed in the Midwest Region and will play No. 5 seed Clemson on Friday. Below are quotes from head coach Jay Wright and players Scottie Reynolds, Dante Cunningham and Dwayne Anderson.

Head Coach Jay Wright...

Opening Statement: We are thrilled to be in the NCAA Tournament. We were going to be thrilled to keep playing anywhere but this is great for us and great for this young team. It's great for these four guys right here with me; Dante Cunningham, Dwayne Anderson, Shane Clark and Scottie Reynolds. They are our captains and they did a great job with this young crew. These four held us together and put us in a position to play our best basketball at the end of the season.

We have won seven of our last 11 games and the four losses were two to Georgetown and one to Marquette and Louisville. We are playing good basketball. We feel good about how we are playing. I am proud of the leadership that we have had on this team and I feel good about the four guys right here.

On whether he thought a bid was possible at the beginning of the season: I thought it was. I knew it would be a lot of work and I knew it was very possible that it wouldn't happen. We got with these four guys and we told them that this was their team to take over and they really did. These captains really carried this team and I can't say enough about that. We talk about young people and the troubles that they can have but these four young men really carried our team to this point.

On the lead up to the bracket announcement and the results of other conference tournaments: I didn't sleep well and I always can sleep. I never let this stuff bother me but this year more than any other there were so many wild things happening and it seemed like things were too good for us the way the other tournaments were going. That's why I didn't sleep last night. I thought that everything had to go wrong today. It didn't but it kind of looks like it wouldn't have affected us anyway.

The last couple of days I tried to stay busy and leave the guys alone as much as I could. I just sent e-mails to them. I wanted to try to let them concentrate on their academic and getting some rest. As a staff we tried to stay busy. I didn't want to watch all of the other games that were going on. Today we practiced and watched film after practice from our game against Georgetown and from the game between Pittsburgh and Georgetown. I went for a run so I wouldn't have to watch the Georgia game and then I came back in and my whole family was watching that game.

On being a bubble team: That is what might have been the most anxious thing for me. I know we have a good team this year but you never know what is going to happen. I thought this team got to where it was good enough and I am really proud of them. However, we put ourselves in a position where we were leaving the decision in the hands of the selection committee. I knew we were good enough but I wanted for these guys to be rewarded and have the honor of keeping it going.

On Clemson: I didn't see their game today. We were in a staff meeting but our guys know a lot about them. I know that K.C. Rivers is a great scorer and that James Mays is a great athlete. We will watch film and get to know them but the players know a lot about them and told me all about them.

On why Villanova got in: I think what got us in is being in the BIG EAST and the respect that is out there for the BIG EAST. There were some things down the stretch that helped us. The win at Temple early in the season became a big win. We beat George Mason and they wound up winning their conference championship. Hartford was another win and they played in the championship game of their conference tournament. We have a win over Pittsburgh and they went on to win the BIG EAST Championship.

In the end I think our schedule was a lot tougher than people gave it credit for early on. You never know how good your schedule is until the end of the year. Our schedule, playing in the BIG EAST and the teams we played and beat down the stretch helped us get in. Our four losses in the last 11 games were all to top 25 teams. We beat three conference champions during the year and had three wins over top-30 teams. I felt like we had a very tight resume going into it but there is a human element to it and you never know how that is going to work.

On three Big Five teams making the field: I think that Temple helped us, I really do. It is awesome for three Big Five teams to be in it. Temple is another conference champion and another road win that helped us. The Big Five teams raised our RPI because they had great seasons. That is the great thing about the Big Five and that is the way it should be.

On the reaction by the team when they saw the selection: The place went crazy. There is a TV in our lobby and a TV in the cinema we were watching it in. The one in the lobby was a little bit ahead of the cinema and someone outside was watching. We heard a reaction and then the place just went crazy. We have a young and emotional team and this season some of our guys faced adversity for the first time. It would have been cool for everyone to see the reaction this way but if we didn't make it I think the guys would have been crushed and I didn't want everyone seeing that.

On Villanova being mentally prepared whether or not they made the tournament: I hope we were prepared. We had a long practice today and then we watched film and talked about this. During the season there were a lot of things we could have controlled up to this point and we were going to learn about that either way. We are in now and we can be ecstatic and learn a lesson from sticking together as a team and not giving in to adversity. If we didn't make it we would learn a lesson about not taking care of some things. We would have had to accept it and make the best of the next situation. That's what is great about college. I love that. I think we prepared the guys either way but you never know.

On this season compared to other seasons Villanova made the tournament: I think anyone who is a parent would understand this. You tell a child that if they do the right things then it will work out for them but you always know that there is a chance things may not work out. But when things do work out you are so happy that they can learn that lesson.

On Dante Cunningham: Dante invested more than maybe anyone else this year. While everyone was jumping up and down he was there in his seat. He was the first from the junior class to step up and to say they had to take control of this team. Dwayne Anderson and Shane Clark and Scottie Reynolds as a sophomore all followed that lead. It is so gratifying for me to see them learn this lesson. It is a great feeling.

Sophomore guard Scottie Reynolds...

On the selection: This is a special time for the team. The juniors did a great job for the program and for me and the rest of the guys to be a part of that is special just to be part of the tradition here and carry it on. We are happy not just about making the tournament but about never quitting even through hard times. We stuck together and that is what gave us a boost through a five-game losing streak and some tough losses. We stuck with it every day. We are excited now to be in this position and we are anxious to get to work tomorrow.

On the loss to Georgetown in the BIG EAST quarterfinals: The game is kind of like our season. We never quit and we made a run to take the lead but it didn't work out for us. The last couple of days we have learned from that game just like we learned from the other games we lost.

On what he knows about Clemson: I played with K.C. Rivers and James Mays at a camp and spent a good deal of time with them. I got to understand their situation and how they do things at Clemson. I have great respect for Mays because he is a senior and has battled through so many injuries. He made big free throws yesterday to get them to the championship game. That showed his heart and how hard he plays.

On being a bubble team: Coach told us that this situation was kind of new to everyone here. There was nothing we could have done unless we won the BIG EAST Championship so today we just had to sit there and watch. In the BIG EAST tournament we were put with one of the best teams and didn't come up with a win. Now that we are in I think the way Coach and everyone else approached things every day puts things in perspective.

On whether Georgia winning the SEC could have hurt Villanova's chances: That story has been incredible over the last 24 hours. I am really happy for them and I know that everyone around the country is happy to see what they overcame. We know we can't control things like that on the outside so we have to take care of our own business and put our resume out there like everyone else. We are thankful for this opportunity.

Junior forward Dante Cunningham...

On the team's potential to win NCAA Tournament games: It doesn't matter. We were prepared to go out and play that next game whatever it was. That's the only thing we can do. The only game that we can control now is the next one we play and that is how we have to look at it.

On the team's hopes for an at-large selection: All we can do is put our resume out there with everyone else and hope for the best.

Junior guard/forward Dwayne Anderson...

On watching the selection show: Most of the guys were nervous with some butterflies and sweating it out. I couldn't sleep last night but once they called our name the whole room erupted and it was a great feeling.

On earning a bid: It puts in a new light all the times we would have a difficult practice or a tough loss. We stuck with it and the coaching staff has been there and did the same thing.

On Clemson: They are a great team. We know they are very athletic and are on a great run. They barely lost to North Carolina in the ACC title game so they are a great team.