Seton Hall MBB

Pirates Squeak Out A Win Over DePaul

Photo Provided Courtesy Of Madeline Wilson

The Seton Hall Pirates opened their home Big East slate today with a contest against the DePaul Blue Demons. We talked to Ben Gartland before the game. Gartland writes for the DePaulia and is a great journalist and a worthwhile follow on twitter @BenG_Sports. Ben gave us some great insight on the Blue Demons and his recap of the game can be seen here DePaul Recap vs Seton Hall.

The Pirates came out hot to start the game. The Pirates held a lead as large as 10 points in the first half. Desi Rodriguez was a spark plug early on. In addition to a big three pointer, he stole a pass and threw down a one handed slam. DePaul battled back and tied the game on two occasions. Turnovers and chippy play were two standouts of the first half. The refs swallowed their whistles and let the players bang around inside. Billy Garrett Jr. struggled early on in the half but was the go to guy down the stretch for DePaul. Ultimately the Pirates took a one point lead into the locker room. The Pirates led 35-34 after the first half.

The Pirates were led by Desi Rodriguez and Khadeen Carrington who each had 7 points. Angel Delgado had 6 rebounds and Isaiah Whitehead had 4 assists for the Hall. The Blue Demons of DePaul were led by Billy Garrett Jr. who posted 10 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists. Tommy Hamilton IV led the Blue Demons on the boards with 6 rebounds.

The second half was a very tightly contested affair. The Blue Demons came out strong and took the lead right off the tip with a three from Aaron Simpson. After a layup from Angel Delgado tied the game, the Blue Demons immediately retook the lead with two free throws from Billy Garrett Jr.. From there the Pirates hold the lead to the end of the game. The game was not without drama though. With less than 1 second remaining in the game, Derrick Gordon fouled Billy Garrett Jr. taking a three pointer. This sent Garrett Jr. to the line with a chance to tie the game. He would make 1 of 3 and the Pirates would escape with a 78-74 victory.

The Blue Demons were led by Billy Garrett Jr. who had 20 points and 8 assists. Myke Henry added 15 points and 9 rebounds. Rashaun Stimage chipped in 15 points and 5 rebounds, and Tommy Hamilton IV added 8 rebounds. The Pirates were led by Isaiah Whitehead with 18 points and 9 assists. Khadeen Carrington and Ismael Sanogo each had good games with 14 and 10 points, respectively. Angel Delgado posted his 7th straight double double. He had 12 points and 12 rebounds. Desi Rodriguez was benched for a good part of the game, that will be something to keep track of going forward.

With the loss the Blue Demons drop to 6-8 on the season and 0-2 in Big East play. The Pirates remain undefeated at home with the win. The Hall improves to 12-2 on the season and 2-0 in Big East play. The Blue Demons will head home to take on Butler on Tuesday. The Pirates will head to Philadelphia to take on Villanova on Wednesday.

Again a big thank you goes out to Ben Gartland for his wealth of information on DePaul basketball. Give him a follow on twitter and check out his article! Check out the PPI below to see which Pirates performed the best today. We will have full coverage of the Villanova game on Wednesday. Until then, Hazard Zet Forward.

PPI vs DePaul

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Inside the Enemy Ship: DePaul Blue Demons

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Welcome to the first “Inside the Enemy Ship” of 2016! In just a few hours, the Seton Hall Pirates, coming off a spectacular win at Marquette take on the DePaul Blue Demons at the Prudential Center. For this edition, we had the pleasure of interviewing Ben Gartland, a Junior at DePaul about the upcoming game. Since the formation of the 10 team Big East, Seton Hall has lost a game to DePaul every single year, so it may not be the slam dunk that Pirate fans seem to think it will be. Read below for Ben’s fantastic insight!

BBA: When the season started, where did you see the Blue Demons season going?
GARTLAND: I saw them improving slightly, playing with more energy and adjusting to a new culture under coach Leitao. I expected them to struggle with the move to the pack-line defense instead of a pressing, steal heavy defense but to improve as the season went on. I saw them getting to about .500 on the season and giving some hope for Blue Demon fans in the next couple of seasons to come.

BBA: What do you think of the Blue Demons (as of time of writing) 6-7 record?
GARTLAND: I think the defense is starting to work. They’re better about stuffing the lane and forcing shots outside, which works very well when a team goes cold like George Washington did. Their shooting can still leave a lot to be desired. They work best when the ball is moving fast around the perimeter and it allows the shooters to be isolated and open for big shots. They still struggle against the zone, which neutralizes the perimeter offense and forces them to go inside, where they don’t necessarily have the best offensive players. Tommy Hamilton can put in points but Rashaun Stimage and Peter Ryckbosch are better at defending and being big than putting in buckets.

BBA: How big was the last week’s win over #20 George Washington for this program?
GARTLAND: It was big. It stopped a three-game losing streak that would have sent them into conference play in a free fall and, most importantly, it shows this defense can be really, really good when it’s working. GW had no answer for the Blue Demons, which allowed them to run up points on the other end when they stopped GW on defense. I think it gave them confidence, which is on top of what the confidence they got from the Northwestern game, which they almost won. This wasn’t just a win for DePaul, it was the largest margin of victory for an unranked team over a ranked team ever. It showed the potential of DePaul and what they can do if everything is clicking.

BBA: How do you feel about the return of former/current HC Dave Leitao?
GARTLAND: I was very disappointed initially. It felt like they were settling for a choice no sane AD would go with. That opinion has really changed. His opening press conference set the tone for what he described as a culture change and I’m really starting to see it. The players are playing with more energy, he is much more charismatic than Purnell and it seems like the players really believe in him and the coaching staff. There are still some adjustments that need to be made and some growing pains but I’m not displeased with his first few months.

BBA: Is the Big East Conference still a good fit for DePaul?
GARTLAND: I think so. DePaul has been a bottom feeder ever since they came in but I do feel that playing in a premier conference raises the pressure on the athletic department. It’s used as a recruiting tool that players can play in the Garden for the Big East tournament and raises the profile of the school. I think it’s good for the entire department in general, considering women’s basketball is projected to win their third straight Big East title. Men’s basketball is really the only sport that hasn’t had a lot of success in the conference, but I don’t believe they’re completely outmatched.

BBA: How well do you think DePaul does keeping star High School players in Chicago?
GARTLAND: Well it’s difficult. No school is ever going to beat the Blue Bloods in Kansas, Duke, Kentucky etc… so I never expect DePaul to win the five-star recruits that come out of Chicago. That being said I think they’ve gotten a bit better in the past couple of years of bringing in some three-star recruits and trying to build with them. Billy Garrett Jr. was a four-star but having his dad as an assistant coach surely helped. I think as the new arena debuts in a couple of seasons it will help recruiting in Chicago a lot but right now they’re still letting some recruits slip through.

BBA: Which player should the Seton Hall Pirates be the most worried about meeting on the court? Why?
GARTLAND: Billy Garrett Jr. For one, he always seems to do really well against Seton Hall (16.3 ppg average in 3 meetings), possibly because they fired his dad a few years back. He’s also DePaul’s best scorer and since he put on some muscle in the offseason, he is able to drive the lane more and draw fouls, where he shoots 84.2 percent from the free throw line. The offense starts with him and if he plays well, it allows Myke Henry, Eli Cain, and Aaron Simpson to get free around the perimeter.

BBA: Final Score Prediction?
GARTLAND: 65-60 DePaul

Once again, a big thank you to Ben for taking the time to talk with us. He can be found on Twitter @BenG_Sports. Additionally, for all you soccer fans out there, he also cover the MLS Team, Sporting Kansas City at their SB Nation Page http://www.thebluetestament.com/.

Tip off is at 11! As always, Hazard Zet Forward, and look forward to the recap after the game!

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Pirates Open Up Conference Play, Dispatch Golden Eagles

Photo Provided Courtesy Of Madeline Wilson

The Seton Hall Pirates opened Big East play against the Marquette Golden Eagles. Prior to this game we had the privilege of talking to Jack Goods. Jack provided us with some great info. You can see his answers to our questions in our previous post. Jack told us some things to watch for and really helped us with our research on the Marquette Golden Eagles. Jack told us to watch for Luke Fischer and Henry Ellenson, the two big men for Marquette. He anticipated that Marquette would try and get the ball in their hands as much as possible and he was definitely right. After a tight start to the game, the Pirates came out with an 83-63 victory.

The first half was a very closely contested affair. The Pirates led for most of the half but never built a solid lead. After a pair of free throws by Desi Rodriguez, the Pirates led by 11, which was their largest lead of the first half with 14:42 to go. Haanif Cheatham and Jajuan Johnson helped Marquette cut into the lead and eventually they would take a 1 point lead into halftime. At the break the Golden Eagles led the Hall 40-39.

The Golden Eagles got a huge first half from freshman Haanif Cheatham. He led Marquette with 15 points and 2 steals. He helped cut into the lead and eventually give Marquette the lead. Henry Ellenson had a monster half on the boards as he grabbed 10 rebounds. The freshman has really been a huge player for Marquette this year. Jack Goods told us that Ellenson has generated the most noise at Marquette since Dwyane Wade. He told us that Ellenson has done it all and he is still finding his way. He will continue to get better and the rest of the Big East should be on watch. Jack proved to be quite accurate when saying Marquette should work the ball through Fischer and Ellenson. Marquette was 0-6 from 3 in the 1st half.

The Pirates were led in the first half by Desi Rodriguez with 14 points. Isaiah Whitehead added 11 points, and Khadeen Carrington chipped in 6 rebounds. Ismael Sanogo added 5 rebounds for the Hall and played stellar defense on Henry Ellenson.

The second half was all Pirates. Seton Hall wasted little time in reclaiming the lead, and then took over in the second half to dominate the Golden Eagles. With 7:39 remaining in the game, Duane Wilson hit two free throws to cut the lead to 9. From there the Pirates went on a 14-3 run to pull away for good. The Pirates played a great game despite committing 20 turnovers on the night. Ismael Sanogo and Khadeen Carrington had big dunks in the 2nd half. Isaiah Whitehead distributed the ball well, and the Pirates cruised to an 83-63 win.

The Pirates were led overall by Desi Rodriguez. The sophomore tallied 19 points and 5 rebounds. Khadeen Carrington added 17 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists, and 4 steals. Isaiah Whitehead chipped in 16 points and 7 assists, and Angel Delgado added 11 points and 11 rebounds. As previously mentioned, Ismael Sanogo did a great job defending Henry Ellenson down low.

Marquette was led by Haanif Cheatham with 17 points. Freshman Henry Ellenson posted 13 points and 14 rebounds. He is a force to be reckoned with in the Big East. Luke Fischer added 12 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 blocks. Marquette was ice cold in the second half as they only put up 23 points.

With the loss the Golden Eagles drop to 10-3 on the year and 0-1 in Big East play. The loss snaps the 9 game winning streak for Marquette. With the win the Pirates improve to 11-2 on the season and 1-0 in the Big East. Marquette will head to Washington D.C. to take on Georgetown on Saturday. The Pirates will head home to take on DePaul on Saturday.

Big thanks again to Jack Goods for all his help. He is a tremendous journalist and a great person to follow on twitter. He can be found at @GoodsOnSports. He also writes for the Marquette Tribune. Thank you again Jack!

Check out the PPI below to see which Pirates players shined in the Big East opener. We will have full coverage of the DePaul game on Saturday. Until then, Hazard Zet Forward.

PPI vs Marquette

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Inside the Enemy Ship: Marquette Golden Eagles

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Welcome to our last “Inside the Enemy Ship” of the 2015, where we will be talking about the Pirate’s last game of 2015, against the Marquette Golden Eagles on December 30th in Milwaukee.

We had the pleasure of speaking to a Mr. Jack Goods, a Marquette student who not only covers Marquette athletics, but the Milwaukee Bucks, and every team in the wintry tundra of Buffalo as well. He was king enough to spend some time talking to us about the upcoming game.

BBA: When the season started, where did you see the Golden Eagles season going?
GOODS: The expectations were a bit mixed coming into the season. Head coach Steve Wojciechowski landed a top-ten recruiting class, but we knew those players would be thrown into a tough position immediately. I felt they would finish somewhere around the middle of the conference, would squeak into the tournament but would fall in the first round. I was one of the most pessimistic on our staff.

BBA: What do you think of the Golden Eagles (as of time of writing) 8-2 record?
GOODS: Marquette scheduled some of the worst teams in college basketball, so you have to take the 8-2 record with a grain of salt. The Golden Eagles have played four teams in the 300s in KenPom, and will play one more when they face Stetson in the middle of the conference season. They are a difficult team to figure out, likely due to that youth. They’ve been blowing out a lot of these lower ranked teams, yet still show signs of struggle when it comes to shooting and turnovers. I’d say this team has issues playing down to their competition, which should change once conference play starts.

BBA: Which player should the Seton Hall Pirates be the most worried about meeting on the court? Why?
GOODS: “This one is pretty obvious, as freshman power forward Henry Ellenson was ESPN’s fifth overall recruit for a reason. He’s got six double-doubles in Marquette’s 11 games, and has the overall talent to really dominate. He’s strong in the paint, can run the floor like a guard, can shoot the midrange and has some outside ability (although he hasn’t been very consistent from three-point range). Ellenson is the type of player that is just efficient, even during his worst games. You’ll look down at the stats, and realize he already has 15 points without doing anything too flashy. Henry is the best recruit Marquette has landed since Doc Rivers, and he’s expected to be a top 10 pick in next year’s NBA draft if he decides to leave. With a young guard unit, the offense runs through him and redshirt junior center Luke Fischer. If Seton Hall wins the battle in the paint, it will be tough for Marquette to win.

BBA: Do you think the Golden Eagles should be ranked as of now?
GOODS: I don’t think Marquette should be near the Top 25 right now, because they haven’t really proved anything. The Golden Eagles best wins aren’t exactly groundbreaking. Wisconsin isn’t the team they were last year, and had lost a couple nights before to UW-Milwaukee. LSU looked like a good win at the time, but the Ben Simmons led Tigers have sputtered since then. Arizona State is No. 51 in the KenPom as of Monday night. Big losses to Belmont and Iowa to open the season will keep Marquette out of the Top 25 until BIG EAST play, despite the Golden Eagles getting one vote in last week’s media poll.

BBA: How do you view the Wisconsin Badgers?
GOODS: Wisconsin has gotten a lot of attention the past two years since they’ve been more successful than Marquette. The state as a whole likely has a closer connection to the Badgers because Wisconsin is a public school. Anyone who went to a Wisconsin state school feels they have a personal connection to the mothership of the system. That being said, there are a lot of people who are Marquette and Wisconsin fans too. When the Golden Eagles are successful, you see at least Milwaukee as a whole get behind them.

BBA: Where do you see the Golden Eagles in the overall Big East hierarchy?
GOODS: Marquette isn’t on the same level as Villanova and Georgetown, but it is certainly one of the more historic basketball programs in the BIG EAST. National title in 1977, three final four appearances, 31 tournament appearances and the school has arguably three of the top ten shooting guards in the NBA in Dwyane Wade, Jimmy Butler and Wesley Matthews. That’s a pretty good resume. They are probably in the second tier of the conference in history, and minus the last two years have been a shoe-in to make the tournament.

BBA: Final Score Prediction?
GOODS: 78-68 MU

Once again, big thank you again goes to Jack Goods, who can be found on Twitter @GoodsOnSports and on his website http://jackgoods.weebly.com/. Jack is a truly gifted journalist, and we encourage all our readers to check out some of the amazing stuff he has written.

The Pirates take on the Golden Eagles in Milwaukee at 7 PM on Fox Sports 1. As always, Hazard Zet Forward.

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