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Answers.com defines a Cinderella team as: "One that unexpectedly achieves recognition or success after a period of obscurity and neglect."

Don't let the 12 seed or the statements that the Wildcats were "the last team to get into the tournament" fool you. The small Pennsylvania-based school has been a consistent performer in one of college basketball's most powerful conferences, The Big East.

The Wildcats have hardly flown under the radar for the entire season as they spent the first 11 weeks of the season ranked in the top 25 of both major polls, getting as high as #16 in the country. They entered the tournament with a 20-12 record, and RPI ranking of 53 and recorded 5 wins over other tournament teams.

Adding history to the equation only makes Villanova a tougher fit for the glass slipper. This year marks the 29th time that the Wildcats have made it to the NCAA tournament, including a national championship in 1985. 2008 marks the fourth consecutive time they have been in college basketball's marquis tournament, advancing as far as the elite 8 in 2006.

In short, one would be hard pressed to tag Villanova as the Cinderella team of the 2008 NCAA tournament. Certainly not with the history and the recruiting clout this team carries with it. It becomes even more difficult when comparing them against some of the other the teams still in contention this year.

The true Cinderella story of the 2008 tournament has to be the Wildcats from Davidson, North Carolina. Davidson may boast a higher seed (10) than Villanova, but play in the inferior Southern Conference, lack the ability to recruit high profile players, and simply have that "where did they come from?" feel to them.

What makes Davidson even more compelling is Stephen Curry, the son of former NBA stand out Dell Curry, was not offered a scholarship from a major program and is now making the NCAA tournament his personal playground. This is the recipe for a great Cinderella story.

There can be no doubt that Villanova is a good story. They picked up their game when it mattered most, but they are nothing more than a talented team that appears to have hit it's stride at just the right time. Unless the famous fairy tale has been changed so that the head cheerleader now wins the heart of the starting quarterback, I can hardly view them as this year's Cinderella.

Learn more about this author, Joe Jenkins.
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