Villanova Coaching Search: Willard at Play, Pitino’s Big East Blood?

While there hasn’t been much public movement on the Villanova Wildcats’ national head coaching search in the wake of Kyle Neptune’s firing, names continue to trickle out.

Some, like UCLA’s Mick Cronin, Maryland’s Kevin Willard, Northwestern’s Chris Collins and VCU’s Ryan Odom, have already received coverage from Philadelphia Sports Now, but according to a March 19 report from college basketball insider Adam Zagoria, one can add New Mexico’s Richard Pitino and Princeton’s Mitch Henderson to the list.

Zagoria also noted that the situation remains up in the air… no surprise for Wildcats fans as the hiring cycle seems to stagnate.

Notably, Zagoria didn’t include Odom in his latest report. That could indicate the Rams’ head man’s reluctance to talk contracts as VCU prepares for the Round of 64, or the presence of a deal already in place with another team in the market for a new coach like the Virginia Cavaliers.

The Terrapins, meanwhile, are pushing hard to retain Willard, per a report from Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports, but the last update on that front came over the weekend, meaning the Wildcats still have a chance of snapping him up.

New Additions

Pitino, the son of St. John’s head coach Rick Pitino, brought the Lobos to the NCAA Tournament this season, winning the Mountain West — a selection committee darling in recent years — with a 26-7 record. Before that, he coached at Minnesota and FIU, and possesses a 1-3 tournament record. Seeing the 42-year-old compete against his Hall of Famer father in the Big East would make for a fascinating storyline, and per a stipulation in his contract, he’d have a 50 percent cheaper buyout as a result of the Lobos changing athletic directors.

Henderson, 49, has coached the Princeton Tigers since 2011, making a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances… including a trip to the Sweet Sixteen in 2023. Henderson’s contract details aren’t publicly available, so it’s difficult to say what it would take for Villanova to lure him away from the Ivy League, but he remains a name to watch regardless.

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