Out for Villanova against Kansas: ‘one of the most complete players in the country’
Justin Moore’s surgery went well Monday morning.
That’s the first thing Villanova men’s basketball coach Jay Wright wanted to say, quickly followed by a shout-out to the program’s medical staff that tended to the Wildcats’ standout guard after he tore his Achilles tendon with 35 second remaining in Nova’s regional final victory over Houston.
Then Wright spoke to the enormity of the loss of a player who leads Villanova in minutes, is second in scoring and ranks lower than he should in appreciation.
“I want try to address ... just what an incredible Justin is, how unique he is in our program,” Wright said. “He can defend any position. He’s one of the best rebounding guards in the country. He plays every position for offensively except (center). And he’s a leader out there.
“He’s probably our most valuable player. I just want everybody to know I think he’s underrated. He’s truly one of the most complete players in the country..”
Yet, Wright said, the Wildcats have a week to learn how to play without Moore. Villanova takes on Kansas in the national semifinals opener on Saturday in New Orleans (5:09 p.m. on TBS).
Moore, a 6-foot-4 junior, averages 14.8 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists. The Wildcats have six in the rotation who average at least 25 minutes. No one else averages as many as 10. Some could be getting their most extensive playing time on the biggest stage.
“We believe we can be a really good team without (Moore),” Wright said. “But we know how good Kansas is.”
Moore likely would have been assigned to defend Ochai Agbaji or Christian Braun, the Jayhawks’ top two scorers, or even Remy Martin, a point guard who comes off the bench and was the Midwest Region’s most outstanding player in Chicago.
Wright and the program experienced something similar last year. Guard Collin Gillespie torn his ACL in a late-season loss to Creighton and missed the postseason. The Wildcats fell to eventual national champion Baylor in the Sweet 16.
This story was originally published March 28, 2022 at 1:08 PM.