Feb. 25, 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.
It was February 2004. The Villanova Wildcats were just days removed from a crushing 75-74 overtime loss to the eventual NCAA champion Connecticut Huskies. They were coping with what was another in a series of painful last-minute defeats.
Senior Night would take place in a few days at the Pavilion prior to a game against the University of Miami. As one of a trio of seniors (with Andreas Bloch and Derrick Snowden), Tom Grace was scheduled to be introduced to the sellout crowd for a final time. A framed jersey with his number had been prepared and the Big East would present him a plaque, as it does all seniors, the following week on the eve of the conference tournament in New York City.
But as Villanova prepared to bid him farewell, Grace was pondering something else.
Since he had not been a member of the men's basketball team in his freshman year of 2000-01, the native of Catonsville, Md., retained another year of eligibility. Although this former Rhodes Scholar candidate had been accepted into the law school of his choice, the University of Maryland, he wasn't quite ready to say so long to his coaches and teammates. So he approached former coordinator of basketball operations Billy Lange and asked whether he could return in 2004-05. Lange liked the idea and suggested Grace speak to head coach Jay Wright.
While eager to have Grace around, Wright pointed out all of the potential downsides to this for Grace. Despite his impressive academic resume as a member of the Honors program, there was no guarantee Grace would be able to get into the law school of his choice one year later. He would be forced to go through the application process all over again.
On the basketball side of things, Grace's future figured to look very much like his past. As a non-recruited athlete, he would make his most meaningful contributions far away from the spotlight, in practices and quiet moments with his teammates.
Grace knew all that.
And he was firm in his resolve that he wanted to stay.
"As a staff we really appreciate the faith Tommy had in his teammates and all of us," says Wright. "At the time he made the decision to return it would have been very easy to walk away. We were at a point where we were still learning and going through some tough losses. But Tommy believed in everything we were doing as a basketball family and we were happy to see him return."
One year later, Grace's faith has been rewarded. In the last week Villanova picked up victories over No. 17 Pittsburgh and No. 3 Boston College. It has been ranked nationally in each of the past four weeks and won 18 of its first 24 games in 2004-05.
If Grace has not always been one of the more visible elements in the program's success - he has played 19 minutes in nine games this season - he is nonetheless an essential part of the Wildcats' fabric.
"We just love Tom's attitude," Wright says. "He comes from a great family. We all know how bright a guy he is but people should also understand how dedicated he is."
Each day Grace is among the first Wildcats to step on to the Pavilion court for practice. He often pairs up with sophomore guard Mike Nardi to shoot both before and after practice. One rebounds while the other shoots. Then they reverse roles.
"Tommy is a good shooting partner," says Nardi. "He's not out there messing around. He zips you the passes and wants to get better."
As a graduate student, Grace continues to carry a heavy academic workload. He is part of an independent study project with University Vice-President Dr. Helen Lafferty.
In looking ahead to Senior Night, Grace is ambivalent.
"I will miss being a part of this program," he states. "These are a great bunch of guys and I just like spending time with them."
At the same time, he understands that the time has come to move forward. The good news is that the acceptance letters for law school have arrived. He will be able to live near his family home near Baltimore and pursue a law degree at the school he chooses.
When the Wildcats host Seton Hall on March 2, Grace will be saluted one year later than originally planned. And those who have been around him on a daily basis are grateful for his contributions.
"He always has a positive attitude," states Nardi. "No matter what's going on in his life, whether he's sick or having a bad day, you'd never know it. Tommy is upbeat and it's great to be around someone like that."
... Nardi, meanwhile, remains day-to-day with the right ankle he sprained during practice on Monday. The native of Linden, N.J., got tangled with teammate Ross Condon as they ran a play and came down the wrong way. It's not the first time he has sprained an ankle.
Once the injury occurred, Nardi was fitted with a pair of crutches. When he was spotted on his way to class the next morning, more than a few people noticed.
"People were real nice, asking me what happened and encouraging me," he states.
While he didn't particularly enjoy the view from the bench, Nardi wasn't nervous heading into Wednesday's meeting with Boston College.
"I would love to have been out there," he says, "but I was confident in my teammates."
It wasn't the first time in 2004-05 that the Wildcats have been able to overcome the absence of a key cog in their system. Nardi believes the positive attitude from the top is one large reason they have been able to do so.
"It starts with Coach Wright," Nardi states. "When something happens in practice, he doesn't panic. Jeff (Pierce) helps the person who is hurt but the rest of the team keeps going. We know that we are more than any one individual and that an injury just means that the other guys have to pick up the slack."
It is expected Nardi's availability will again be a game-time decision on Sunday at Georgetown...
The final "Talking Villanova Basketball With Jay Wright" radio show takes place on March 1 at 6:00 p.m. The show airs on WNTP (990 AM) in Philadelphia and is located at the Great American Pub in Conshohocken, Pa. The public is welcome to attend.
