SAN ANTONIO -- Before taking the Villanova job this past weekend, Kevin Willard had a phone conversation with Jay Wright from the back of Willard’s deck.

Jay Bilas has been vocal about players being held to an unfair standard then coaches and Kevin Willard's situation gave him a perfect example to include.

Speaking after the Knicks' win over the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday night, Hart said he is "super excited" by Willard's hiring and thinks the coach will bring a nice spark to Vi

The Villanova Wildcats have hired Maryland's Kevin Willard as their new coach. Willard had been linked to the Villanova job throughout the NCAA Tournament, where the Terrapins earned a No. 4 seed and reached the Sweet 16 before losing to Florida.

From Eric Dixon breaking the program's all-time scoring record to Kevin Willard being named the head coach, all eyes are on Villanova this week at the College Basketball Crown.

Every step of Kevin Willard’s journey to Villanova from Maryland should be instructive and sobering. It should strip away any remaining sentimentality about the world of college basketball and how Villanova’s leaders view the Wildcats’ place in it.

Maryland is hiring Texas A&M coach Buzz Williams to succeed Kevin Willard, according to CBS Sports analyst Jon Rothstein. The Aggies coach will take over a program without a sitting athletic director after Maryland AD Damon Evans left for the same job at SMU last month.

Freshman center Derik Queen, who made an incredible buzzer-beater to send the Terps to the Sweet Sixteen, reacted emotionally to Willard’s departure, posting a four-emoji response. Queen and Willard were believed to have had a close relationship, so the departure of his head coach may have hit him particularly hard.