The Seton Hall Pirates were back in action today at the Prudential Center as they took on the Providence College Friars. The Pirates were looking to get to the 20 win mark and solidify their place in the NCAA tournament field. The Pirates were coming off of a tight win over St. John’s and the Pirates were coming off of a loss to Xavier. The Pirates ultimately blew out the Friars in a 72-50 victory.

The Friars got on the board first on a Kris Dunn layup. The 2-0 lead was the only lead Providence would have in this game. A layup from Angel Delgado gave the Hall a 4-2 lead and they would never relinquish it. The Pirates never stretched the lead to double digits in the first half. A Ben Bentil layup cut the Seton Hall lead to 3 with 3:14 remaining in the first half. The Pirates increased the lead to 6, but the Friars would again cut the lead down to 4. However, with the clock winding down in the half, Isaiah Whitehead hit a three pointer to give the Pirates a 30-23 lead heading into halftime.

The Friars were led in the first half by Ben Bentil who had 10 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 assists. Kyron Cartwright added 5 points and 2 rebounds. Jalen Lindsey chipped in 2 points and led Providence with 6 rebounds. Kris Dunn was held to 4 points on 2-7 shooting while committing 3 turnovers. The Friars shot 27.% from the floor and did not make a 3 pointer.

The Pirates were led in the first half by Isaiah Whitehead with 16 points and 3 assists. Khadeen Carrington had 5 points and 2 rebounds. Angel Delgado and Michael Nzei each had 4 rebounds in the first half. Desi Rodriguez led the Pirates with 6 rebounds in the first half. The Pirates shot 37.9% from the field and 36.4% from beyond the arc.

The Pirates came out red hot to start the second half. Khadeen Carrington scored the first 5 points of the half to increase the lead to 12. Isaiah Whitehead would hit a three pointer a few minutes later to give the Pirates a 19 point lead. The Friars would go on a 6-0 run to cut the Pirates lead to 13. The Pirates would respond with a run of their own. With 11:16 to go in the half an Isaiah Whitehead free throw would give the Pirates a 53-32 lead. The Friars would storm back to cut the deficit to 7 with 4:56 remaining in the game. However, Ben Bentil would pick up a flagrant 2 and get ejected from the game. The Pirates would ultimately increase the lead and win 70-52.

The Friars were led in this one by Ben Bentil. He scored a game high 31 points and grabbed 6 rebounds. Kris Dunn added 8 points and 4 rebounds. Kyron Cartwright had a solid game with 7 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists. Ryan Fazekas chipped in 4 rebounds for the Friars while Jalen Lindsey grabbed  7 boards. Providence shot 28.4% from the field and 16.7% from beyond the arc.

The Pirates were led by Isaiah Whitehead who scored 25 points, grabbed 6 rebounds, and dished out 9 assists. He also added 4 blocks and a steal. Angel Delgado added a double double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Khadeen Carrington chipped in 12 points and 7 rebounds. Desi Rodriguez also scored in double figures with 11 points and 8 rebounds. Seton Hall shot 45.6% from the field and 38.9% from beyond the arc.

With the loss the Friars fall to 19-9 overall and 7-8 in the Big East. With the victory the Pirates improve to 20-7 and 10-5 in Big East play. The Friars will now head home to take on the DePaul Blue Demons on Saturday. The Pirates will take on the Xavier Musketeers at the Prudential Center on Sunday.

We will talk to our friend Shannon Russell before the game on Sunday. The Musketeers are coming off of a huge win over #1 ranked Villanova. Check out the PPI below to see which players stood out in the big win. We will have full coverage of the Xavier game on Sunday. Until then, Hazard Zet Forward.