The rewards of Villanova’s excellent regular season started to emerge Sunday with the announcement of the All-Big East teams.

Two Wildcats earned first-team All-Big East honors, Jalen Brunson and Mikal Bridges. Brunson was a unanimous selection, finishing the regular season averaging 19 points and 4.8 assists. He shot 52.8% from the floor, good for fifth-best in the conference. He also led the conference with a +2.9 assist/turnover ratio. Brunson has been the steadiest point guard in the country, and he runs the Villanova offense with precision. His understanding and control of the game is outstanding.

Meanwhile Bridges continued his incredible progression at Villanova, as his offensive game fully blossomed. Bridges averaged 17.6. points and 5.5 rebounds. His growth at Villanova has been remarkable and has been a pleasure to watch. The Wildcats needed players to step up to replace production lost from the departure of Josh Hart and Kris Jenkins, and Bridges answered the call. In addition to his increased offensive production, his effort and production at the defensive end never waned.

Omari Spellman earned a spot on the All-Freshman team and was also selected unanimously. Spellman averaged 10.9 points, leading all Big East freshmen. His 7.8 rebounds were good for fourth in the conference. Spellman’s impact was certainly felt throughout the season.

In addition, both Brunson and Bridges were named among the 15 nominees for the Wooden Award, recognizing the nation’s best college basketball player. Villanova was the only school to have two players on the list. The pair was joined by Xavier senior Trevon Bluiett to give the Big East three representatives.

The Wooden Award winner will be announced April 6.

Individual conference awards will be announced throughout the upcoming week. Conference Defensive Player of the Year, Sixth Man of the Year, Most Improved Player, and Sportsmanship Award will be announced Monday. Meanwhile, Player of the Year, Coach of the Year, Freshman of the Year, and Scholar-Athlete of the Year will be announced during the first day of Big East tournament play on Wednesday.

These are well-deserved accolades for Brunson, Bridges, and Spellman, and hopefully there will be more to come in addition to nine more wins. The ‘Cats open Big East tournament play on Thursday night.