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Why picking Villanova to reach the Final Four is a must

Steven Ryan / Getty Images Sport / Getty

The two-time reigning Big East champion Wildcats may have bowed out prematurely during 2017's edition of March Madness, but this time around, Jay Wright's men from Villanova are primed to make some serious noise.

A second-round loss to an upstart Wisconsin squad ended Nova's 2017 bid to repeat as national champions, but 2018 feels different for a Wildcats team currently firing on all cylinders.

Villanova enters the tournament as one of the hotter teams in the nation, with only three Ls since the calendar flipped to 2018 and currently on a five-game win streak - three of which came against tournament teams (No. 8 Seton Hall, No. 10 Butler, and No. 10 Providence).

But that's not the main reason why you should be riding the Wildcats all the way to to the Final Four, and perhaps beyond. That reasoning lays with their stellar backcourt, ease of path to the Big Dance, and well-balanced attack.

Here's exactly why you must pick Villanova to reach the Final Four:

Bridges, Brunson form beastly backcourt

The backcourt combination of Mikal Bridges and Jalen Brunson is easily Villanova's biggest on-court strength.

Coming off a season in which they both averaged 18 points per game or better, the Wildcats' path to San Antonio most definitely runs through the high-scoring duo.

Brunson is a projected second-rounder who led his team in points per game (19.4) and assists (4.7), and rode a recent hot hand to a Naismith Award finalist nomination. Bridges is a Wooden Award contender with top-10 draft potential.

Any way you slice it, this uptempo combination of pure shooters is bound to give opposing defenses fits - especially from beyond the arc, where both Brunson and Bridges shoot better than 40 percent.

Bridges has the type of two-way, game-changing ability that can elevate a player to dominate the tournament. Combine that with the range and shot-making ability of Brunson, and the Wildcats become a very dangerous offensive group.

Path of least resistance

Aside from the sharp-shooting combination of Brunson and Bridges, Villanova's greatest asset is its ease of schedule, as the Wildcats' path to the Sweet 16 looks to be the most favorable of any of the No. 1 seeds.

Potential Sweet 16 showdowns against No. 4 Wichita State or No. 5 West Virginia stack up well for Nova, as both teams rely heavily on creating turnovers and scoring off those mistakes. However, the Wildcats exceed at protecting the ball, especially when Brunson is pushing the rock, as the talented guard averaged a sparkling 1.7 turnovers per night.

There's no denying Villanova's ease of schedule. So, when you couple it with the fact that the other top-four seeded teams in the East Region showed obvious flaws at multiple points during the season, and the Wildcats are primed to go deep in the tournament for the fourth time in 12 years.

Well-balanced attack

A major reason behind Villanova's participation in the eighth-most NCAA tournaments (37) has been the school's ability to consistently field a well-balanced team - and a lot of that credit goes to coach Wright.

(Photos courtesy: Getty Images)

The Wildcats, the top scoring team in the nation at an impressive 87.1 points per contest, boast the obvious advantage of having two NBA-caliber shooters in their starting five. However, it's the way Wright has augmented his two stars that has Villanova set for a deep tournament run.

Case in point: freshman big man Omari Spellman.

Spellman is another Villanova player to watch, especially on the defensive end. The five-star recruit, who was touted as one of the best to ever wear a Wildcats jersey, can contribute at both ends of the floor, throwing another wrinkle into the game plan for Wright.

The 6-foot-9, 245-pounder can bring it on D, finishing the season fourth in the Big East in rebounds per game (7.9) and second in blocks (1.5), while also being able to knock down a big three.

If Wright can continue to utilize his bench and talented, well-balanced starting five, Villanova is the team you want to be banking on come March 31.

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