Pirates Shock the Shockers

Photo Provided Courtesy Of Madeline Wilson

The Seton Hall Pirates took on the Wichita State Shockers in a huge non-conference game at the Prudential Center today. This was the biggest non-conference home game of the Kevin Willard era. The Hall was looking to avenge a loss to Wichita State last season. The Hall came into Wichita and lost 77-68. Seton Hall battled back and won a tough game in overtime today 80-76.

Before today’s game we connected with Evan Pflugradt of Wichita State’s student newspaper, The Sunflower. He gave us some great insight, which you can read about in our previous article. He told us to watch out for Markis McDuffie, who Evan said was due for a breakout game. We told Evan that Seton Hall would try and establish Angel Delgado early and often. Both of our predictions came true in a sense.

The first half was dominated by Wichita State. Surprisingly, the biggest player early on was Shaq Morris. Morris scored 6 of Wichita State’s first 8 points. Those 6 points would be the only points Morris would score all game. The Pirates never led in the first half of this game. The Shockers led by as much as 13 points after a Ron Baker layup gave them a 33-20 lead with 6:34 to go in the first half.

The Pirates did not lead in the first half but did cut the lead to single digits by the end of the half. At the end of the first half the Pirates trailed Wichita State 40-32. The Pirates were led in the first half by Isaiah Whitehead with 12 points. Khadeen Carrington added 10 points and Angel Delgado chipped in 6 rebounds. The Shockers were led by Ron Baker and Fred VanVleet who each posted 11 points.

Markis McDuffie had a very solid first half for the Shockers. He had 3 points, a pair of rebounds, and also a beautiful assist. It was a homecoming for McDuffie who is a Jersey City native. When we spoke to Evan Pflugradt at halftime, he spoke about the turnovers that were a problem for Wichita State. The Shockers committed some sloppy turnovers, a trend that would continue in the second half. The turnovers were overshadowed by the great shooting of Wichita State. The Shockers shot 51.7% from the floor and 55.6% from beyond the arc.

The second half was a very chippy affair. There were many fouls and turnovers on both sides. The Pirates chipped away at the Wichita State until they finally took the lead with 7:51 left in the game on a Derrick Gordon layup. Conner Frankamp scored the next 8 points and Wichita State took a 7 point lead. The Pirates would again battle back and held a 67-65 lead with 34 seconds left. Fred VanVleet would tie the game with a pair of free throws and send the game to overtime.

In overtime the Pirates quickly fell behind after a VanVleet three pointer. However, the Pirates would take the lead with 3:10 remaining in overtime and would never surrender the lead. Ultimately, the Pirates would come out with an 80-76 victory over Wichita State.

The Pirates were led by Desi Rodriguez with 18 points. Isaiah Whitehead added 17 points and 5 rebounds. Angel Delgado posted another double double with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Wichita State was led by Fred VanVleet with 19 points. Ron Baker added 16 points and 7 assists. Conner Frankamp chipped in 13 points. Wichita State was killed by turnovers. They committed 21 turnovers on the day.

The Pirates got a huge win and improved to 9-2 on the season as well as 6-0 at home. The Shockers fall to 5-5 with the loss and drop to 1-2 on the road this season. Wichita State will head home to take on Nevada on Tuesday night. The Pirates will take on South Florida on Tuesday night at the Prudential Center.

Check out the PPI to see which Pirates stood out against Wichita State. A big thank you again to Evan Pflugradt, a great journalist who has a wealth of college basketball knowledge. You can follow him on twitter @EvPflu.

We will have full coverage of the South Florida game on Tuesday. Until then, Hazard Zet Forward.

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Pirates Down Peacocks

Photo Provided Courtesy Of Madeline Wilson

The Seton Hall Pirates continued to roll on Sunday at the Prudential Center. The Pirates rode a balanced attack to a 72-46 win over St. Peter’s. The Pirates extended their winning streak to 3 and improved to 8-2 on the season.

The Pirates came out red hot to start the game. Isaiah Whitehead, Khadeen Carrinton, and Desi Rodriguez all hit three pointers early in the game to give Seton Hall a 14-2 lead. With 15:13 to go in the first half the Pirates held a 19-4 lead over the Peacocks. However, in the next five minutes St. Peter’s would go on a 10-0 run and cut the lead to 19-14. Five points was the closest St. Peter’s would come to the Pirates, who began to pull away near the close of the half.

In the first half the Pirates were led by Desi Rodriguez who had 9 points. Angel Delgado and Ismael Sanogo each had 4 rebounds in the half, and Khadeen Carrington added 8 points. The Peacocks were led by Rodney Hawkins and Quadir Welton who each had 5 points. Chazz Patterson had 6 rebounds for the Peacocks.

The second half was all Pirates. Seton Hall padded and protected their lead throughout the second half. The lead swelled to as much as 29. Angel Delgado had a big second half with 8 points and 6 rebounds. Isaiah Whitehead had a huge block, and Khadeen Carrington connected on a pair of three pointers. The game was never in doubt in the second half and coach Kevin Willard could rest his starters towards the end of the contest. A bright spot was a three pointer towards the end of the game by Michael Dowdy Jr.

The Pirates were led today by Khadeen Carrington with 14 points and 4 rebounds. Angel Delgado posted another double double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Isaiah Whitehead added 12 points and Ismael Sanogo chipped in 5 rebounds.

St. Peter’s was paced by Elias Desport with 9 points. Rodney Hawkins added 7 points and 8 rebounds. Chazz Patterson chipped in 5 points and 7 rebounds. For the game, the Pirates were out rebounded 37-34.

With the win the Pirates improve to 8-2 on the season. They are also undefeated at home this season. The Peacocks drop to 3-5 on the season with the loss. They also fall to 1-4 on the road this year.

St. Peter’s will head to Washington D.C. to take on George Washington on Saturday. The Pirates will have a tough test this Saturday when Wichita State comes to the Prudential Center.

Make sure to check out the PPI below to see who led the Pirates overall today. We will have full coverage of the game on Saturday against Wichita State. Until then, Hazard Zet Forward.

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Pirates Overcome Slow Start, Take Down Troy

The Seton Hall Pirates were back in action today against the Troy Trojans. The Pirates ended up coming out with a 78-69 victory. The Pirates improved to 7-2 on the season. With the loss the Trojans fell to 4-5 on the season. The Pirates also improved to 4-o on the year at the home.

The Pirates came out hot to start the game. Seton Hall jumped out to an early 11-2 lead on the strength of a Khadeen Carrington three pointer and the play making ability of Isaiah Whitehead. However, Troy would respond with a run of their own. With the Pirates offense slowing to a crawl, the Trojans built a lead that grew to as much as 8 points with 7:13 to go in the 1st half. From there the Pirates started to reassert themselves. By the end of the first half, the Pirates would hold a 36-30 lead.

In the 1st half the Pirates were led by Isaiah Whitehead who had 10 points. Desi Rodriguez has 9 points and 5 rebounds, and Michael Nzei chipped in 8 points and 4 boards. The Trojans were led by Jordon Varnado who had 12 points and 6 rebounds. Wesley Person chipped in 9 points, and John Walton III had 5 rebounds.

In the second half the Pirates started to find their groove offensively. Khadeen Carrington kicked off the scoring in the half with a three pointer and the Pirates would never look back. The Pirates never trailed in the second half and built a lead that was as large as 15 at one point. The biggest highlight of the second half came from Desi Rodriguez. With 7:56 to go in the game, Rodriguez flew threw the air to throw down a one handed alley oop from Khadeen Carrington. This fired up the crowd and was the highlight of the night. In the end the Pirates would come away with a 78-69 win.

Isaiah Whitehead put up 20 points for Seton Hall and added 7 assists. Angel Delgado posted his second straight double double. He had 12 points and 11 rebounds. The night belonged to Desi Rodriguez though. The sophomore put up 18 points and 11 rebounds. Khadeen Carrington was 3-4 from beyond the arc, and Ismael Sanogo added 6 rebounds. Michael Nzei also had another strong game with 1o points and 5 rebounds.

The Trojans were led by Jordon Varnado who put up 25 points and 11 rebounds. John Walton III had 8 rebounds, and Wesley Person added 14 points. B.J Miller reeled in 7 rebounds, and Jeremy Hollimon chipped in 12 points.

With the loss the Trojans fall to 4-5 on the season and 2-1 away from home. The Pirates improved to 7-2 with the victory and 4-0 at home on the season. The Trojans will now return home to face Paine College on December 17. Meanwhile, the Pirates will be back in action on Sunday at 2:30 against St. Peter’s University.

Check out the PPI chart below to see how each Pirate performed during the game against Troy. We will have full coverage of the game on Sunday. Until then, Hazard Zet Forward.

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Pirates Blow Past Scarlet Knights

The Seton Hall Pirates took on the Rutgers Scarlet Knights in the annual Garden State Hardwood Classic. The Pirates won the annual game last year by a score of 81-54. This incarnation of the rivalry proved to be similar to the previous with the Pirates coming away with an 84-55 win in Piscataway.

The Pirates started out slow and that enabled Rutgers to take an early 20-11 lead. Sloppy play from the Pirates and sharp shooting from Rutgers players Mike Williams and Omari Grier helped the Scarlet Knights get on top early. The Pirates climbed back into the game with help from Michael Nzei and Angel Delgado who had a strong first half. By the end of the first half, Seton Hall had built a commanding 47-34 lead.

In the first half the Pirates were led by Khadeen Carrington who had 11 points. Michael Nzei posted 8 points and 7 rebounds, and Angel Delgado added 8 points and 6 rebounds. The Scarlet Knights were led by Mike Williams with 11 points, while D.J. Foreman added 6 rebounds.

The second half was all Seton Hall. The Pirates never let up and wound up walking out of the RAC with a 29 point win over their in state rival. Some highlights from the 2nd half included huge dunks from Michael Nzei and Desi Rodriguez. Also, freshman Dalton Soffer knocked down a pair of three pointers at the end of the game. The Pirates used their size and strength in the paint to pull away from the Scarlet Knights. It was a big win for the Hall as they bring the Garden State Hardwood Classic trophy back to South Orange.

Some notables for the Pirates were Khadeen Carrington who scored a game high 18 points. Isaiah Whitehead added 13 points as well. However, this game belonged to Michael Nzei and Angel Delgado. Michael Nzei had his best game as a Pirate with 13 points and 12 rebounds, his first career double double. Not to be outdone, Angel Delgado posted 14 points and 13 rebounds. Delgado was named the Joe Calabrese MVP of the game.

The Scarlet Knights were led by Mike Williams with 16 points and Corey Sanders with 14 points. D.J. Foreman led Rutgers with 9 rebounds. Jonathan Laurent chipped in 7 points and 3 boards. With the loss the Scarlet Knights fall to 3-5 on the season. The Pirates improve to 6-2 with the victory.

Up next for Rutgers will be a home tilt against Central Connecticut State on December 8th. The Pirates will be back in action at the Prudential Center on December 10th when they take on Troy. Check out the PPI below to see which Pirates players shined brightest in the blowout win. We will have full coverage of the game against Troy on December 10th. Until then, Hazard Zet Forward.

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