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Less than three years removed from Jay Wright’s final game at Villanova, the program is searching for its second coach to replace the Hall of Famer. Villanova fired Kyle Neptune on Saturday, sources told CBS Sports. Wright’s successor lasted three seasons but was dismissed after Thursday night’s 73-56 quarterfinal loss to UConn in the Big East Tournament. 

Neptune’s Wildcats went 19-14 this season and finished well off the bubble cutline for March Madness. Villanova hasn’t had an NCAA Tournament-quality team under Neptune, who was a former longtime Wright assistant before getting the Fordham job in 2020. A push for a change on the Main Line was looming ever since Nova’s 3-4 start in November.

It’s been a swift fall from the top of the sport for Villanova. The program qualified for every NCAA Tournament except one under Wright from 2005 until his surprising retirement in 2022. VU was as successful as any school in the 2010s, with nine combined Big East regular-season and tournament titles and national championships in 2016 and 2018. Under Neptune, Villanova was 34-32 against conference opponents, including postseason results.

Neptune, 40, holds a career record of 70-63, which includes his one season at Fordham in 2021-22. One of the biggest issues that plagued his tenure was a high volume of losses against inferior/mid-major programs. Neptune’s teams were defeated 13 times by sub-75 teams KenPom teams. 

Now, school leadership will look to bring in someone who, in a change of pace, is expected to come from outside the “Villanova family.” The job is still considered one of the best in the Big East and will draw serious attention from some sitting head coaches at the Power Five level, a source told CBS Sports.