Villanova, seeded No. 8, lost to No. 9 Utah State 86-76 in a first-round game of the 2026 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament on Friday at Viejas Arena in San Diego, California.[1]
During an in-game interview with TNT's Lauren Shehadi, head coach Kevin Willard reacted to Utah State's early dominance in the paint, saying, "I'm going to fire my staff." Shehadi replied, "Not now." Willard added, "Yeah, I am," blaming poor out-of-bounds defense that allowed eight points.
After the defeat, Willard repeated the sentiment in his postgame news conference: "We gave up a big three late. I'm probably going to have to make some changes to my staff just because of how bad we were."
When another reporter began to question the remarks, Willard interrupted, calling it "a joke. God bless it." Asked about online criticism, he said, "I don't care. Welcome to my life."
Kevin Willard is in his first season at Villanova after three years at Maryland.[2] The loss marked his eighth NCAA tournament appearance as a head coach, though he has never advanced past the Sweet 16.[2]
The NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament features 68 teams in a single-elimination format, with the first round consisting of 32 games across four regionals.[3]
Villanova competes in the Big East Conference.
Sources
- Wikipedia. "Viejas Arena." Accessed October 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viejas_Arena
- Wikipedia. "Kevin Willard." Accessed October 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Willard
- Wikipedia. "NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament." Accessed October 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NCAA_Division_I_men%27s_basketball_tournament
