Aug. 14, 2011
The Nova Notebook, by director of media relations Mike Sheridan, features blog postings from the men's basketball team's August exhibition tour of France and the Netherlands. This is entry No. 4
FRIDAY, Aug. 12, 2011
2:00 p.m.
Amsterdam
According to the locals, this has not been the most pleasant of summer weather patterns in this part of Europe. While the month of May featured ample sunshine, it's been hard to find since.
One of the first items distributed to the Wildcat players were small umbrellas. They have been needed often in the early hours of the visit here.
"I didn't realize we booked a tour of Seattle," quipped associate head coach Billy Lange.
The rain, though, doesn't diminish the charm of a city that evokes images of both New Orleans and San Francisco. The downtown area near the hotel is full of pedestrian traffic with a wide variety of shops and restaurants. A series of canals rings the inner loop of the downtown area and helps create a sense of quiet that is refreshing for a city of this size.
After a morning tour of the Vincent Van Gogh museum, the Wildcats have gathered at a very American spot - the Hard Rock Café. They are served a hearty pre-game meal in a room off to the side of the main dining room. As they dine, curious onlookers stop to stare and whisper among themselves.
In fact, one of the recurring themes of the trip is the reaction of international travelers. Some recognize the team from its tradition or recent success or both. However, many others from outside the United States seem to understand little more than that this is an American basketball team and therefore a group worth photographing. At every stop on the trip, Wildcat players have been asked to pose for pictures by people approaching them. To a man, the `Cats smile and oblige.
4:30 p.m.
Almere, The Netherlands
As the coach bus pulls off the highway near Almere, it's quite apparent that we are no longer in Cergy. In contrast to the local French venue used for the first two games of the trip that was much more Butler Annex than Pavilion, this four-year old facility lacks no modern amenities. On approach, it conjures up visions of the Meadowlands since it is located in open space surrounded by plots of empty land (which is said to be in development).
The Topsportcentrum Almere features luxury boxes, comfortable locker rooms, a media room, and a large concession area. The lights are dimmed and spotlights used for player introductions.
This is the site for the first EuroJam and it's clear that the event has a chance to grow in a first-class, 4,000 seat venue.
6:00 p.m.
Villanova vs. Israel
The Wildcats and the senior national team of Israel play a back and forth game that would have been quite suitable for a Big Monday in January. It is a wide open affair and the story for Villanova is junior guard Dominic Cheek.
In short, the product of St. Anthony's High School gets into the scoring flow early and Israel never really finds a way to stop him. Cheek makes shots from all angles - deep 3's, spinning jumpers, and pull-up shots. By night's end, he will have 34 points, his best output as a collegian.
"I didn't come out here thinking about scoring a lot of points," he would say later. "I just wanted to play Villanova Basketball."
Perhaps the most impressive score of the night, though, is one that was less about artistry than it was grit. With Villanova down by one in a tight game, Cheek takes the ball near the top of the key, spies an opening, drives the lane and drops in a shot while absorbing a hard foul from two Israeli big men with 2:41 to play. The basket and subsequent free throw gives Villanova a lead it will not relinquish in what turns into a 94-92 triumph.
"What can you say about Dominic Cheek?" stated head coach Jay Wright. "He was awesome."
Saturday, Aug. 13
Amsterdam
9:30 a.m.
For those with an appreciation of history, this morning's bit of tourism offers an intriguing visit. The coaches, players, officials and family members from Villanova are taking the 20-minute walk to the Anne Frank House here.
From the exterior, there is little to distinguish the four story building facing a canal other than the long line of people waiting to get inside. But in that building lies a story that has gripped those who have read about it in the years after World War II. The Diary of Anne Frank became one of the world's most famous books after it was published in 1947. It tells the story of a Jewish family trying to avoid detection during the Nazi occupation of The Netherlands during the war through the eyes of a teenage girl.
After a 10-minute introduction from a staffer at the museum, the Villanova group slowly makes its way through the house. On the wall are photographs and short excerpts from the diary. There are several flat-screen monitors playing clips of interviews of family friends and Otto Frank, the family patriarch who hid his wife and children only to see them all arrested in August of 1944 after an anonymous tip led authorities to uncover what appeared to be a simple shop. Visitors quickly get a sense for what life was like for the eight people in hiding during what turned into a 2-year wait.
One of the most studious of the Wildcats, not just here but at every site the team has visited, is junior Mouphtaou Yarou. The native of Benin does not walk dutifully or takes things in casually. It is clear that he is very interested in learning all he can about this part of history.
Trying to detail all that Yarou and the guests from Villanova saw here would not begin to do it justice.
However, there were a couple of quick observations one made.
By walking through what is little more than a 4-story home above a shop, one can appreciate the need for absolute silence that would have been needed during the daylight hours. Any small noise in the tiny bathroom or a creak in the hardwood could have given the location away.
The other prevailing sense was darkness. It was a cloudy morning outside during this tour but the only way an occupant of these spaces could tell that was by looking up at a single skylight in the attic and the branches of a tree that can be spied from it. Anne Frank wrote that she did this often.
There is also a place on the wall where the pencil markings used by the family to mark the height gains in their daughters growth (Anne Frank had an older sister, Margot) can still be seen.
Finally, it is impossible in reading some of Anne Frank's works in this setting not to appreciate what a gifted writer and observer she was. At an age when most writers are still trying to find their voice, she created a poignant portrait of one family's efforts to survive a tragic circumstance. That they did not - save for Otto Frank - do so only adds to the power of it all.
Amsterdam isn't quite as well known for its landmarks as other European cities such as London, Paris and Rome are. But the Anne Frank House is one stop that shouldn't be missed.
8:05 p.m.
Villanova vs. The Netherlands
Game two of EuroJam 2011 finds the Wildcats matched up against the host team. The crowd tonight is much larger than it was a day earlier and it's apparent that most are here to watch the locals, especially Dan Gadzuric, a native son who has played in the National Basketball Association for nearly a decade.
The scouting report says the size of this opponent could present problems for the young Wildcats. But Yarou, Markus Kennedy and forwards JayVaughn Pinkston and Isaiah Armwood more than hold their own on the interior against the big bodies. The Netherlands holds a 41-35 edge at halftime.
In the third quarter, though, the Dutch squad takes control of the game by extending and applying its perimeter defense. It comes in the form of a 2-3 matchup zone that features traps. In other instances, it's a simple man-to-man defense. That pressure leads to 10 VU turnovers in the period and by the time the 10 minutes are over, The Netherlands holds a 62-43 lead.
"Their guards did a great job of pressuring our guards," stated Wright. "We weren't really able to run offense in the third quarter."
The Wildcats regain their bearings and play well in the fourth period. But the verdict has already been rendered in what becomes a 75-63 loss.
"That's the kind of physical play you see in the Big East," stated Wright. "This gave our young guys a look at it before we get to the Big East and that's going to be very valuable for us."
Coming Next: The Final Day of EuroJam 2011.
