John Marinatto, Commissioner of the Big East since July 2009, has stepped down from his post. Joseph Bailey will take over with an interim tag. Bailey has previously worked with the Miami Dolphins (CEO) and Dallas Cowboys (Administrative VP).

Here's Johnny Boy on his decision:

"Our recent expansion efforts have stabilized the conference for the long term, and we are likewise well positioned for our very important upcoming television negotiations," Marinatto said in the news release. "As a result, I felt this was the right time to step aside and to let someone else lead us through the next chapter of our evolution."

Here's our reaction:

Thoughts everyone?

Right after news came out that it looks likely that Villanova will gain one transfer in Tony Chennault, news just broke that former Rice point guard Dylan Ennis has committed totransfer to Villanova as well. Ennis was also considering the Cincinnati Bearcats.

Dylan Ennis has committed to Nova over Cincinnati, his father told @SNYtv

— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) April 24, 2012

Ennis was played a pretty solid role as a freshman for the Rice Owls last season, averaging 26.5 minutes per game while posting a line of 8.0 ppg, 4.2 rpg and 4.1 apg against 2.6 turnovers per game.

No word yet on how this may affect Tony Chennault's impending decision, but for now it looks like Villanova will be getting some help in the backcourt after the early departures of Maalik Wayns and Dominic Cheek.

Former Wake Forest Demon Deacons point guard Tony Chennault is close to announcing his decision to transfer to Villanova and playing for Jay Wright and the hometown Wildcats, according to a source at the Philadelphia News.

The 6-2 guard recently decided to leave Wake Forest after two seasons to be closer to home because his mother, Crystal Mortan, has been experiencing health problems. He is petitioning the NCAA for a hardship waiver, which would allow him to become eligible immediately. But sources have indicated that Chennault will likely end up with the Wildcats, which was his second choice coming out of high school, even if he has to sit out a season.

Chennault, a product of Neumann-Goretti in Philadelphia, PA, averaged 30 minutes a game for Wake this past season, finishing with a line of 9.0 pgg, 2.8 apg, 3.2 rpg against 2.2 turnovers per game.

Chennault would be a welcomed roster addition with the recent announcements of Maalik Wayns' and Dominic Cheek's decision to turn pro, and Chennault would be immediately thrown into the point guard mix with Ty Johnson and Ryan Arcidiacono if he were to come to Nova.

Stay tuned. A decision could come this week.

Villanova sent out a press release announcing the winners of their annual awards, which are going to be awarded at the team's postseason banquet. Juniors Maalik Wayns, Maurice Sutton and Mouphtaou Yarou along with sophomore James Bell and Dallas Ouano all will receive an award at the banquet.

Yarou will receive the Villanova Basketball Award, presented annually to the player who best embodies Villanova basketball.

Wayns will receive the 2012 Most Outstanding Player Award.

Bell will receive the Jake Nevin Award, presented annually to the player whose selflessness provided an outstanding example to his teammates.

Ouano will receive the Alexander Severance Award, presented annually to the player whose hard work and dedication in the classroom demonstrated a commitment to reach his full potential.

Sutton will receive the Paul Arizin Award, given annually to the player who shows the most improvement over the course of the season.

More alumni-based awards after The Jump.

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In one of the stranger moves in recent memory, Villanova Wildcats junior guard Dominic Cheek will forgo his final season of eligibility and enter the 2012 NBA Draft. Cheek joins fellow junior Maalik Wayns who made his decision to leave a couple of weeks ago.

I appreciate all the help I have gotten from my teammates, coaches and friends during my time at Villanova," stated Cheek. "At this point in my life, I feel this is the best decision for me and my family. I am excited to get started with the process of pursuing my dream of playing in the NBA.

Jay Wright also gave his typical cookie-cutter response, though there is probably more to the story that he is not commenting on.

We support Dominic in his decision," stated Villanova head coach Jay Wright. "We will assist him as he goes through the process of preparing for the draft and his professional career.

Cheek averaged a career-high 12.5 ppg and 3.9 rpg as he started 30 games this season for Villanova. While the decision to leave may be an odd one for 'Nova Nation to digest, we wish Dom the best of luck moving forward.

So, community, how big of a loss is this and who will replace Cheek next season?

The Villanova Wildcats men's lacrosse team got back to winning ways on Wednesday night with a 15-7 win over the Georgetown Hoyas at Villanova Stadium. The win improved 'Nova to 6-4 on the season and 2-0 in the Big East Conference.

Career games from C.J. Small (6 points on 3 goals and 3 assists) and Thomas Croonquist (8 ground balls) helped 'Nova to a relatively easy victory. Jack Rice also added 4 goals in the blowout victory.

Head coach Mike Corrado, who secured his 50th career win, was impressed with his team's effort.

"Today might have been our best game from a standpoint of we got off to a good start, we came out in the third quarter and got out to 4-0 lead at the start of the third. I was real happy with how the game went. Tom Croonquist dominated at the face-off X, he won 16-of-19 tonight. He's doing a great job for us and our offense is getting great shots."

Villanova will be back in action this Saturday at 1 pm ET when they travel to New Jersey to face the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at Yurcak Field.

The NCAA lacrosse rankings are out and the Villanova Wildcats have predictably moved up after their Sunday afternoon win against the Syracuse Orange. The historic win for Villanova, in which they defeated 'Cuse for the first time ever while simultaneously dealing the Orange their first ever Big East conference loss was rewarded with a move up 1o 13th in the Nike Poll and a bump to 12th in the USILA Coaches Poll.

Quint Kessinich also gave a bump to 'Nova, moving them up to 13th in his Top 20 poll.

The 'Cats hold wins over Syracuse, Lehigh, Bucknell, Penn and Drexel.

Thanks for the hard-hitting analysis, Quint.

'Nova is back at it this Saturday when they travel to State College to take on yet another Top-20 opponent in Penn State. First drop is at 1:00 pm ET.

The Villanova Wildcats men's lacrosse team scored a historic win today at the Carrier Dome as they won their first ever game against the Syracuse Orange 11-10. It was also the first ever Big East loss for Syracuse. Player of the game has to go to Dan Gutierrez, who was absoultey fantastic in goal, continually denying the Orange who had many open looks on net.

Villanova was down 7-5 at the half (I arrived back in time to catch the 2nd, so not much commetary to offer on the opening 2 periods). Immediately after the start of the 2nd half however, Villanova came out firing, scoring a couple of quick goals to tie the game at 7. They then traded a possession and goals with Syracuse before taking their first lead of the day 9-8.

'Nova would eventually push that lead to 11-9 before a frantic end to the game. 'Cuse would pull within 1 with about 5:30 left in the 4th quarter before both teams turned the ball over constantly in the closing minutes. Villanova, usually not one to slow the game down, began to employ the burn offense.

Maybe it was was a combination of nerves for some and inexperience for some others, but 'Nova continued to pass up shots on goal as 'Cuse frantically tried to double-team in an effort to win the ball back. The results every time down were unforced turnovers, and luckily, Syracuse could not make 'Nova pay.

In the closing seconds Syracuse had one last chance, but Gutierrez rose to the occasion as he had done all afternoon to make a vital stop and preserve the victory. After the final whistle, Syracuse redshirt senior Tim Desko was visibly upset at the loss and a bit hit by the 'Nova defense as the buzzer sounded and tried to pick a fight with 2 different 'Nova players. The 'Cats did well to not engage, especially in the wake of the ugly fight that marred the North Carolina-Maryland game yesterday.

A great day for 'Nova Nation - congrats to the team for a historic win!

Well, it appears as if this is going to be one of those bad news kind of weeks. Jeff Goodman is reporting that Maalik Wayns is through at Villanova, and will sign with an agent (reportedly Andy Miller) and forgo his final year at school.

Villanova fans probably already know this, but Maalik Wayns is done at 'Nova. Has - or will sign - w/ Andy Miller, source told CBSSports.

— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanCBS) March 21, 2012

Thinking back a week ago when it was originally announced that Maalik Wayns had entered his name into the 2012 NBA Draft, I noticed the following tweet from Leek. I chose to ignore it. I should not have done that and gotten my hopes up.

I know what I want I know what I'm doing ppl telling me different I'm know where I'm going!!

— Maalik Wayns (@MaalikWayns2) March 14, 2012

Or you know, this one.

Where I'm from I've been going against the odds all my life why stop now it's time to prove em wrong once again the journey begins

— Maalik Wayns (@MaalikWayns2) March 14, 2012

Anyways, I still hope Wayns changes his mind and doesn't sign with an agent. We are in major trouble and right back in the same spot we were this season without him. Unfortunately, it looks like he is gone.

Best of luck Leek, it's been real, and thanks for the memories.

The latest NCAA lacrosse rankings were released today, and after two straight losses (albeit against solid competition) to Princeton and Maryland, Villanov has fallen to 14th in the USILA Coaches Poll and to 15th in the Nike Poll.

Quint Kessinich dropped Villanova the farthest, all the way to 16th in his Top 20 poll. Here's what he had to say.

The 'Nova defense was shredded on Tuesday by Princeton's Tom Schreiber and again on Saturday in a lopsided loss to Maryland. CJ Small, Kevin Cunningham and Will Casertano are unselfish playmakers, but the Wildcats' defense is looking less and less like a unit that can play deep into May.

Hard to argue with that right now. Thoughts after a rough week everyone?

Villanova has sent out a press release that Villanova Wildcats junior guard Maalik Wayns will enter his name into the 2012 NBA Draft. Wayns will not hire an agent however, and could return for his senior year.

As we saw with Scottie Reynolds following his junior season, this does not guarantee that Wayns actually enter the draft, and he could still pull his name out and return to Villanova. He has until April 10th to either withdraw his name and return to school or remain in the draft.

As of right now, it appears that Wayns is looking to find out how he stacks up.

"I want to test the waters at this point to see where I stand."

Jay Wright feels this is a good move for Wayns at this stage in his career.

"I think this is a smart decision for Maalik at this stage of his career. I look forward to working with him as we go through this process."

Right now, Wayns is not projected as a 1st round pick on any NBA mock draft sites. What does everyone think of this move by Wayns and what will he do?

Villanova jumped out to an early lead in a Top-20 matchup at Villanova Stadium, but then got steamrolled by an impressive Princeton Tigers offense as they ended up getting routed 14-8 at home. A poor defensive effort was the main culprit, as Princeton was able to turn several turnovers directly into goals.

Despite the lack of offense, 'Nova found themselves down just 5-4 at halftime - and the second half is where things really got out of hand. Princeton's offense surged forward behind Jeff Fraccaro, who netted 6 goals on the night, and Villanova could never get closer than 3 goals the rest of the way.

Princeton midfielder Thomas Schreiber also scored 5 goals on the night, so it was pretty much a 2-man show for the Tigers, and 'Nova had no answer.

Villanova is back in action on Saint Patrick's Day this Saturday when they travel to College Park to take on #7 Maryland. Things don't get any easier, time to regroup.

We've finally got video of Max Hart's incredible last-second goal that gave Villanova an 8-7 victory over Penn this past weekend. Check out the fantastic point-blank save by Dan Gutierrez who then finds Max Hart streaking upfield.

Hart then uncorks a 35-yard bomb that skids underneath the Penn goalie with 1 second left. And cue the celebration!

The NCAA lacrosse rankings have been released and Villanova has moved back into the top 10 in both the Nike Poll and the USILA Coaches Poll this week. The move up comes following Villanova's win over cross-city rival Penn on Saturday afternoon at Franklin Field.

'Nova is now ranked #10 in the country in both polls.

Quint Kessenich also has the Wildcats back in the top 10 in his Top 20 Poll. Here's what he had to say about 'Nova.

'Nova is 4-1 with wins over Lehigh, Bucknell, Drexel and Penn. The Wildcats' defense ranks No. 34 in the country. 'Nova hosts Princeton on Tuesday followed by Maryland, Syracuse and Penn State.

Definitely a tough stretch of games coming up and really the season-defining stretch for the 'Cats. If you're in the area, make sure and get out to Villanova Stadium on Tuesday night when they take on Princeton at 7 pm ET!

An absolute thriller occurred at Franklin Field Saturday afternoon as the Villanova men's lacrosse team fell behind Penn in the middle of the game, but rallied in the second half to win 8-7 on perhaps the most incredible goal you will see all season as Max Hart scored from 40 yards out with just 1 second left on the clock.

Penn jumped out to a 2-0 lead before goals from Jack Rice and Michael Vigilante knotted the score at 2-2 early in the second period. From there though, it was all Penn as 4 straight goals gave Penn a 6-2 lead midway through the third period.

Villanova rallied a couple before the end of the period though as Jack Rice first pulled one back with 22 seconds left in the period. Thomas Croonquist then won the ensuing faceoff and Max Hart was able to put another one in with 12 seconds left in the third to bring Villanova within two goals heading to the final period.

More after The Jump.

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The Villanova Wildcats have declined the opportunity to be considered for Sunday's CBI draw, according to Joe Juliano. Villanova will miss the NCAA Tournament this season for the first time since 2004 and will not participate in any postseason action, thus bringing a close to their season.

(Editor's Note: No 20-loss season!)

Jay Wright, who endured perhaps his worst season as Villanova coach, gave some insight into the rough season.

"They learned that all the guys before them were a lot more committed to detail and not just playing off their talent," Wright said. "When they were recruited, they watched great players win. It looked like those great players were just out there playing. But they were out there playing because they were very disciplined, and they were given freedom because they were disciplined.

"They came in here, and we won and the older guys were disciplined. Now they're starting to realize, 'You know what, there's a lot more to it than just being talented.' I think they definitely learned that this year. It's not like they fought it. I just think this group had to learn it the hard way. I'm sorry to say that."

Pretty strong message to his players, and I also think it is absolutely dead-on.Then again, I think he should shoulder a lot of the responsibility as well.

Thoughts on this guys?

I don't have much to say about this game. The Villanova Wildcats were absolutely awful in a 2nd round Big East Tournament loss to the South Florida Bulls. And you know what? They were completely in it until the final minute. It was obscene. Just a bizarre, bizarre game.

Maalik Wayns, JayVaughn Pinkston and Dominic Cheek were complete no-shows, and if it wasn't for Mouphtaou Yarou, Villanova might have not scored more than 30 points.

What a pitiful end to a pitiful season (I'm almost hopeful we don't have to watch this team again in the CBI). Jay Wright, Stan Heath has your number, and frankly, it's embarrassing.

More after this season-long hangover wears off.

Villanova Wildcats		South Florida Bulls
	vs.
(13-18, 5-13 | NR		(19-12, 12-6) | NR

Special treat tonight. Brian Ewart from VUhoops and I are going to co-host a live chat which you can find below The Jump. GameThread comments here can still be used, but I won't be around there as much, except to post .GIFs of Villanova awesomeness.

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