Villanova had a harder road to the final game because they had to defeat the No. 1 overall-ranked University of Kansas Jayhawks in a game that showed the true potential of their team. Viewers were also shocked by how much of a coin toss the last few seconds truly were. The ball was flung up by both teams, and Villanova’s luck prevailed over UNC’s.
As stated by one of the announcers, Villanova’s five-point lead over North Carolina had been the biggest deficit North Carolina faced in the tournament. As a testament to their skill and mindset as a team, North Carolina dominated and didn’t face the same adversity Villanova had to overcome. Each won their first five tournament games by at least 14 points. North Carolina had been criticized all year for their lack of toughness as a team, but I have never had the pleasure of seeing a tougher performance by anyone on such a big stage.
The Tar Heels trailed by 10 points with only a few minutes left on the clock but found a way to deal with the adversity and make an extraordinary comeback. The shot made by UNC senior guard Marcus Paige with five seconds left is the greatest shot I have ever seen, given the context of the situation and the tremendous body control he exhibited. Although North Carolina played a hard-fought game that left no room for criticism, Villanova succeeded primarily because of their capacity for humility as embodied by their coach Jay Wright and their senior guard Ryan Arcidiacono.
My father served a brief stint as the head coach of the Philadelphia Wings, a professional indoor lacrosse team based in Philadelphia. While he was there for practice at the Philadelphia 76ers home arena, he had the privilege of meeting the head Villanova basketball coach Jay Wright. Prior to meeting Coach Wright, he walked past two 76er players.
My dad ventured to say “hello” to these two giants, but they pretentiously shrugged him off and made it seem like they had no time for him.
After this deflating experience, he found himself in the same room as the Villanova basketball team led by Coach Wright.
While he could have done the same, Coach Wright went out of his way to introduce himself and speak to him with the respect and interest of a true professional.
Coach Wright talked to him about coaching, family, the game of lacrosse and my father’s origins (where he came from and where his career had brought him). My father developed the utmost admiration and respect for Coach Wright and spoke well of his character and his genuine nature. A coach’s philosophy and character translate directly into his team, and nothing is more telling of Coach Wright’s nature than his post-game interview following the championship and his shaping of Arcidiocono.
Following the game-winning shot hit by junior forward Kris Jenkins as time ran out, Coach Wright was undoubtedly happy, but his first course of action was to go over to Roy Williams and shake his hand, offering him the sincerest praise.
When Coach Wright had an opportunity to speak to the media at the post-game press conference, the first thing he talked about was the tremendous respect and admiration he had for North Carolina not only as a team, but also as a program.
He used this opportunity to extol his opponent and showed the true nature and reasoning behind athletic competition.
Arcidiacono completely embodies and symbolizes Coach Wright and his coaching philosophy. Arcidiacono was playing the last game of his college career and did an incredible job of helping Villanova overcome North Carolina.
At the end of the game with five seconds left, the Wildcats inbounded the ball to Arcidiocono and let him move it up the court in an effort to pull off a last-second shot.
Although he desperately wanted the opportunity to seal the deal for the Wildcats and win the national championship on a shot of his own, he had the mental fortitude to understand the situation and find his teammate Jenkins wide open outside the three-point arc. Rather than taking a difficult shot himself, he tossed the ball to Jenkins and trusted him to end the game.
Although this is not the only situation in which Villanova showed humility in their play, it serves as the prime example of how humility overcomes pride in the long run and shows that the greatest things come to those who are selfless. As we can learn from any Greek tragedy, the protagonist almost always suffers from an adherence to hubris or excessive pride. It tends to be obvious who is like that and who is not.
While talent plays a huge part in the success of teams, the ability to know one’s role and defer responsibility when necessary serves as one of the fundamental recipes for success.
Villanova undoubtedly was not the most talented team in the tournament, but they played with the most cohesiveness and overcame bigger, more athletic teams in Kansas and UNC.
