Villanova hires Maryland's Kevin Willard as basketball coach

Villanova hired Maryland’s Kevin Willard as its new coach Sunday to replace the fired Kyle Neptune.

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. Maryland went 27-9 this season and 14-6 in the Big Ten Conference.

“Coach Willard quickly stood out among an impressive pool of candidates during a comprehensive national search,” Villanova’s president, the Rev. Peter M. Donohue, said in a statement. “Throughout the process, Coach Willard demonstrated that he has the vision and experience to guide Villanova Basketball in the changing world of college athletics. Beyond his notable success on the court, we were also impressed by his ability to articulate how Villanova Basketball fits into the overarching mission of the University.”

Willard expressed concerns with the direction of Maryland’s program on the eve of the Terrapins’ opening game in the NCAA Tournament. He had not signed an extension before the tournament, a matter complicated when the Terps’ athletic director, Damon Evans, bolted the program for the same job at SMU.

“My biggest concerns in life right now: I don’t know who my boss is going to be,” Willard said last week when asked if there was something Maryland could do to keep him. “The guy that brought me here who I really like and am appreciative of him bringing me to College Park is not here anymore, and I don’t know who we’re going to hire. And in today’s day and age, that worries me a little bit. I’m just being honest.”

Willard said Evans gave him a “term sheet” last Sunday, but he didn’t sign it because his focus was on the team. Willard had called out Maryland for a lack of support for the basketball program. Among the changes he wanted to see was with Maryland’s plan for revenue sharing with athletes. He said a majority was expected to go to the football team.

That won’t be a problem at Villanova, where the Big East school does not field a Division I football team.

Villanova fired Neptune earlier this month after a three-year run in which he succeeded Hall of Fame coach Jay Wright and failed to make the NCAA Tournament. Wright, who was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2021, guided Villanova to titles in 2016 and 2018 and led the Wildcats to two other Final Four appearances before his 2022 retirement.

Neptune went 54-47 overall and 31-29 in the Big East in three seasons with the Wildcats, including a 19-14 record this season.

“Villanova Basketball has a deep tradition of excellence and a culture that is second to none in college basketball,” Willard said in a statement. “We are thrilled to be a part of it and join the Villanova community.”

The Wildcats will play in the new College Basketball Crown tournament later this week in Las Vegas under interim coach Mike Nardi.

Willard, who turns 50 on April 6, led Maryland to a 65-39 overall record in three seasons at the school, with two March Madness appearances in three seasons. This was his seventh NCAA Tournament berth overall after getting there five times with Seton Hall, and his first time in the Sweet 16.

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