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The eyes of college basketball will be upon the Champions Classic on Tuesday night in the “World’s Most Famous Arena” as No. 2 Kentucky faces No. 13 Michigan State, followed by No. 1 Duke taking on No. 7 Kansas in Madison Square Garden. More than half of the 2016 ESPN 100’s top 10 players will be on display during the doubleheader. Many of their names -- such as Bam Adebayo, Miles Bridges Frank Jackson and Josh Jackson -- already have a familiar ring to them despite being freshmen. NBA scouts will get information to watch. And even casual fans will tune in to see if the players can get their production to align with the hype that preceded them. The Final Four potential of those four programs will likely be discussed, too. But let’s not forget where the reigning champion resides.  No. 3 Villanova just sent all of college basketball a reminder of that Monday with its 79-76 win over No. 15 Purdue in West Lafayette, Indiana. Villanova, not the teams with the shiny freshmen, captured the 2016 championship. And the Wildcats are poised to make it two in a row this season.
There may not be a player better at slashing to the basket than Nova’s Josh Hart. The 6-foot-5 guard considered leaving for the NBA a year early, but returned for his senior season. He may not be a talent pro teams consider tanking the season for, but he knows how to play. How many guards could drop 24 points on the Boilermakers with only one 3-pointer? Hart is not flashy, but he knows how to impact the game in many ways. By constantly challenging 7-footer Isaac Haas at the rim, he got the Purdue big man in early foul trouble. The Boilermakers made their run as expected at home, pulling within one point six different times in the last 12 minutes, including three times in the game’s final minute. Each time, Villanova had an answer. That, folks, is championship mettle. It’s what coach Jay Wright relied on as he rolled out his undersized frontcourt of 6-9 Darryl Reynolds and 6-7 Eric Paschall to contend with Purdue’s tandem of Hass and the 6-9 Caleb Swanigan. It’s why the Wildcats didn’t have a turnover in the game’s final four minutes, with Purdue pulling within one possession. It’s how sophomore guard Jalen Brunson, who hadn’t attempted a free throw the entire game, coolly stepped to the line and made four in the final 23 seconds. And no matter how high draft boards have a player getting picked, that kind of fortitude is earned only through experience. Not too long ago, like 10 to 15 years ago, a national champion that returned as many key players as Nova did would be a clear-cut pick for No. 1. That, of course, is no longer the case. Duke received top billing with its fine assembly of what many experts considered the No. 1 freshman recruiting class (Kentucky was ranked No. 1 in ESPN's rankings). Never mind that injuries have sidelined Harry Giles, Jayson Tatum and Marques Bolden and that the trio will possibly be the most talented DNP’s to visit Madison Square Garden this season. Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said this past Saturday that until he had his full roster playing, his team would be about “survival” and that he hoped once healthy it could be the team he thinks it can be. Well, Villanova has that team right now. If anyone is paying attention.
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