PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Rollie Massimino took the stage surrounded by a band, students, and scores of blue-and-white balloons and delivered a speech as fiery as one of his Villanova halftime pep talks.
Thirty one years after Massimino brought an improbable national championship to Villanova, the 80-year-old coaching lifer exhorted protege Jay Wright to win a second title.
"We're going to win tonight! We're going to win tonight!" he commanded as the crowd in Houston roared. "You have family here that is part of your own personal family, but you're part of the Villanova family. That's why we're going to win!