SAN DIEGO – With 4 minutes left in play, Villanova led Utah State by just one point after junior guard Tyler Perkins dropped in a three-pointer in front of the team’s bench.

Four minutes later, Villanova’s season was over. No. 9 Utah State was celebrating on the court after defeating No. 8 Villanova, 86-76, at Viejas Arena in San Diego, CA.

It was a bittersweet ending for Villanova after leading by as many as 10 points at the beginning of the second half. Sophomore Malachi Palmer “ felt like it was just tied up, and [he] blinked, and [Utah State] was up 10.”

While the season ended prematurely, Villanova head coach Kevin Willard’s first season with the program ended with an NCAA Tournament appearance after missing it the last three consecutive years under Kyle Neptune. It was Willard and the team’s goal when they came together in early June.

However, the talk about Villanova being in the NCAA Tournament and contending at the top of the Big East this season was quiet in the lead-up to its season opener against BYU in Las Vegas. The Big East preseason coaches’ poll has Villanova slotted to finish seventh in the conference, below teams that did not even finish with double-digit conference wins.

“There weren’t a lot of expectations early in the year,” Willard said. “A lot of people were talking down about them. I think they were way beyond what everyone thought they were going to be, and they did it with a great attitude and a great bunch to coach. Like, this group was one of the best I’ve ever had coaching.”

Villanova ended its 2025-26 campaign with a 24-9 overall and 15-5 conference record. It tied a program record for the most conference road wins in a single season with eight. Willard also won the most games as a first-year head coach on the Main Line.

The season also ended with Villanova suffering its first pair of back-to-back losses this season, which started with an ugly 78-64 loss to Georgetown in the quarterfinals of the Big East Tournament.

The pair of losses, as well as only winning one game against a team with an at-large NCAA Tournament bid displayed what Willard and the program need to do for the future success of the program.

Villanova’s locker room was silent as it was still digesting the loss to Utah State on Friday. The loss marked Duke Brennan and Devin Askew’s final games as collegiate athletes. Askew was visibly upset, with his eyes watering as he slumped back in his locker.

Askew did not have much to say other than a few-word responses for each question.

Brennan’s departure will be a large whole too fill for Villanova, which already lacked size this season. The 6-foot-10 forward averaged a double-double of 12.4 points and 10.3 rebounds after transferring from Grand Canyon.

Without Brennan, as it stands, Villanova is left with a pair of seven-footers in Braden Pierce and Nico Onyekwere. Pierce only averaged 6.5 minutes and less than one rebound per game, and Onyekwere redshirted.

Perkins, who was the only returning player with meaningful minutes from last season, sounded like he was planning to return next season, noting that this season and the NCAA Tournament appearance were “just the first step” in returning the program to its winning ways.

Willard built this year’s team with a lot of young talent, with a majority of the team having one or two years of experience. That specific group is headlined by guard Acaden Lewis, who put together an impressive freshman season.

Lewis, who has three years of collegiate eligibility remaining, would be a key retainer for Willard if he decided to stay. After averaging 12.2 points and 5.3 assists, Lewis could have shown enough to be drafted in the late first or early second round of the NBA Draft.

“These guys did a hell of a job just mentoring me and helping me move on to my next level of basketball,” Lewis said when asked about the team’s season. “So, I mean, I’m grateful.”

It prompted a follow-up question about his plans on where he will be next season.

“No, we’ll see how that goes,” Lewis said when asked if he is going to the next level. “I haven’t made any decisions like that, but even if I do, I mean, I’m super grateful for everyone here, but no plans like that. I haven’t even talked about it. I mean, the season’s fresh, that’s not something to worry about.”

While Lewis is a talented basketball player, some could say he is not the complete package that an NBA team would be looking for in the early picks of the draft. That being said, there could be more money, minutes and a starting opportunity for Lewis if he were to remain in college next season.

It would also be worthwhile for the program to attempt to bring back as many players as possible, such as Bryce Lindsay, Matt Hodge, Palmer and Chris Jeffrey.

“I just think we did a great job of developing a really good culture, setting the tone of how we want to play, getting back to that,” Willard said when asked about the next step. “I just think, again, it’s getting some of these young guys back, developing them some more and just adding in the right guys. I think we need to become a little bit more physical. I think that’s the biggest thing. We were a little — especially when Matt went down. We just became really small. So just making sure we add the right pieces to a really good, young core that’s fun to coach.”

With the season coming to a close, there is not much time until the cycle starts all over again. While fans await a tipoff in early November, Villanova’s season begins in the upcoming weeks. That starts with the transfer portal, which opens on April 7.

While the season ended, it also marked the beginning of Willard’s coaching career at Villanova. When he took the stage for his introductory press conference in April 2025, he made it clear he wanted to return the program to its winning ways without changing the culture.

With Year One coming to a close, there is still work to be done to get back to the national success Villanova once had just a few years ago.

“I’m very blessed to be the head coach of Villanova,” Willard said. “It’s a very special place. I’ve enjoyed — I’ve been at three great programs, and this is my fourth. I can honestly say that I’m just blessed to be here. It’s a great place, with great people. I’ve never had more fun coaching in a year than I did this year with this group and at this place.