Player Preview: Darryl Simmons II

It’s been awhile since Villanova had a player like Darryl Simmons II on its team. The 5’11” guard projects as an old-school “microwave” off of the bench who can come in and flip a game. For me, it’s been nearly two decades since a player like this has been on the team. Let’s go back in time to the 2007-2008 season.

Does anyone remember December 6, 2007? The Wildcats hosted the LSU Tigers for the Big East/SEC Invitational. Ranked 25th and undefeated coming into the game, Villanova fell down by 21 points in the second half to the unranked Tigers with only 8:51 left on the clock. Insert freshman guard Malcolm Grant, who scored all 18 of his points in that final stretch to lead The Wildcats to a comeback victory. This specific player and moment are an example of what I would expect to see from “Buddy” at some point this year, and likely on more than one occasion.

Being a smaller player for most of his career, Simmons II exudes that level of confidence that is needed to make it to this level. Having worked his way from up Gardner-Webb of the Big South, to St. Bonaventure of the Atlantic-10, to now the Big East, Simmons II is ready to prove once more that he belongs. At Gardner-Webb, Simmons II was third in the Big South in scoring at 17.4 points per game in his sophomore season. That year, Simmons II faced off against two power-conference foes on the road: Pittsburgh and No. 12 Tennessee, which was the season opener. Simmons II showed out in both contests. At the Panthers, Simmons II scored 12 points on 5/11 shooting and 2/4 from three, while only turning it over twice. But the more impressive outing was against the Volunteers, where he scored 22 points on 8/16 shooting and 4/10 from three (with only one turnover). Being able to perform against a ranked team like that, one that eventually went to the Elite 8, shows that he has no fear.

At St. Bonaventure as a junior, the Detroit, MI native played against better overall competition throughout the year, which makes his improved efficiency from both the field (43.4% to 44.2%) and three-point range (38.9% to 42.5%) all-the-more impressive. Simmons II’s assists per game also went up from 1.9 to 2.8, while lowering his turnovers from 2.4-1.4 per outing. “Buddy” was third in the Atlantic-10 in scoring, first in three-pointers made and second in three-point percentage. While taking a look at his whole game log is impressive, some specific games stood out:

• November 25 vs North Carolina (Fort Myers Tip-Off) – 22 points on 9/16 shooting and 4/6 from three
• December 31 at VCU – 22 points on 9/16 shooting and 4/5 from three. He also tallied seven assists.
• March 13 vs Dayton (A-10 Quarterfinals) – 20 points on 6/10 shooting and 2/4 from three.

In those three contests, Simmons II only turned the ball over four times in 107 minutes played. Between those showings (and some decent ones against ranked St. Louis) and his games against better competition while at Gardner-Webb, there’s no doubt in my mind that he will have a game-changing impact in his new role for the Wildcats. While it’s true that Elijah Crawford is expected to be the starter, he likely won’t be playing 30-plus minutes per game. The rest of those available minutes will go to Simmons II, with the potential for them both to also play together (as was hinted at by Kevin Willard during the offseason). There will be games where, even at his smaller stature, Simmons II will be too dynamic to take off of the court. And in those instances, the Villanova fanbase will love watching “Buddy” this upcoming season.