SAN ANTONIO — After the last time Villanova lost, against Creighton in Omaha a mere 37 days ago, the team held a meeting back on campus. Coach Jay Wright and the captains, Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges and Phil Booth, opened the discussion, but eventually everyone was chiming in. The focus was simple: Play better defense.
In the next practice, the team took five or six shots, total. Each drill demanded physicality, communication, rebounding. Practice ran for about three hours. Almost every practice after that one, for the next five weeks, lasted nearly as long, with almost every drill designed around defending.