Dec. 16, 2005
The Nova Notebook, by Villanova director of media relations Mike Sheridan, appears each week beginning in the fall and continues through the basketball regular season. This week we spend some time with freshman guard Bilal Benn.
As a young man who holds an appreciation for basketball history, Bilal Benn understands why some might assume that his contributions in the Dec. 13 win 62-55 win over Penn would hold special meaning to him. After all, he is a Philadelphia native and former Cardinal Dougherty student who gained a greater appreciation for his hometown during the year he spent at prep school in Virginia last winter.
Yet Benn isn't ready to get caught up in where he made an impact at this early stage of his college career.
"I try to play every game hard because every game is meaningful," he says. "So being able to contribute in my first Big Five game was nice but I can't get caught up in that. That's something I'll think about when I'm done playing down the road."
Against the Quakers, Benn logged 15 minutes, scored four points and collected four rebounds. He was thrust into the game quickly in the first half when his childhood friend and former high school teammate Kyle Lowry picked up two quick fouls. Benn provided solid minutes as Villanova built a 32-23 halftime advantage.
The Wildcats went on to pick up the win, their seventh straight. Although the spotlight has justifiably shone on veterans Randy Foye, Allan Ray, Mike Nardi and Lowry so far in 2005-06, Benn and his classmates have offered glimpses of their potential in their opportunities thus far. Dante Cunningham has been a rotation regular and Dwayne Anderson picked up six points in the Dec. 10 win over Longwood.
"The young guys," says head coach Jay Wright, "are coming along."
Although he was not unfamiliar with the concept of becoming a role player - he was on a star studded prep school squad last season at Hargrave Military Academy - the transition to the college game has taken time for Benn. That's not unusual for a newcomer at this level.
"Open gym isn't the same as college basketball," Benn notes of the contrast between off-season pickup outings and the real thing.
The first few weeks of official practice are generally a challenging period for all freshmen. Benn endured some of those travails in October and November, as did his pals in the freshmen class. In one sense his learning curve was steeper since he is often used at point guard.
"It is tougher at point guard," Benn concedes. "There is a lot you have to learn about your teammates and what the coaches are looking for. The one thing Coach Wright has stressed to me is to be myself. I have to play point guard the way I do - I can't try to be like Randy or Mike or Kyle. So I have tried to do that."
At 6-4 Benn can use his size to advantage. It allows him to see the floor and he is quick enough to defend perimeter players at the opposite end of the court.
Of course, Benn is in the predicament of playing behind a group of guards some are calling the best contingent in the nation. Three of the four - Foye, Nardi, and Lowry -have played the point regularly in college. Thus, it isn't always easy to carve out a role for a newcomer.
At the same time, each day Benn gains insight into his own game by competing against those athletes. He pays close attention and hopes these lessons will pay off in the near future.
"Things are going good," he says. "It's been good to get in there these last couple of games against Longwood and Penn. It definitely helps your confidence to be in those situations. When coach grabs me and tells me to go into the game, it's a great feeling."
Another element of a newcomer's transition to the college game is the academic side of the equation. The first semester is now over and Benn had one final exam remaining when we caught up with him. He is upbeat about that aspect of college life.
"Being away at Hargrave definitely helped me with that," he says. "It taught me about managing my time and handling all the work."
Like most of the other 6,200 students at Villanova, though, Benn is eager to begin the break from classes. He plans to visit friends over the holidays and is ready to spend some time with his teammates as they prepare for key contests that loom.
"I am looking forward to it," he says. "Over the holidays it's just you and your teammates. There is just basketball and you have some extra time that isn't always there during the semester."
Notes: The third "Talking Villanova Basketball with Jay Wright" radio program takes place on Tuesday, Dec. 20, at 6:00 p.m. at Kelly's Restaurant and Tap Room on Lancaster Avenue in Bryn Mawr, Pa. The one hour show can be heard locally on WNTP Radio (990 AM) and is available through villanova.com. Comcast Sports Net's Ron Burke and several Wildcat players will join Wright.
At 8:30 p.m. that night, CSN airs "Inside Villanova Basketball with Jay Wright" followed by a 50th anniversary celebration of the Philadelphia Big Five at 9:00 p.m.
