SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. – Seton Hall women's basketball head coach Anthony Bozzella announced today the addition of West Virginia transfer Messiah Hunter (Hopewell, Va.) to the program.

Hunter joins the Pirates after spending the last three years as a member of the West Virgina University basketball program. After redshirting her freshman year, she played in 35 games and averaged 5.7 minutes per contest over the last two seasons in Morgantown. She will have two seasons of eligibility remaining.

Last season, she saw action in 21 games, averaging 1.6 points and 1.3 rebounds per contest. She had a season-high seven points against Youngstown State on Nov. 19.

In high school, Hunter was a four-star prospect according to Prospects Nation and had a top-100 national ranking by Collegiate Girls Basketball Report (58), All-Star Girls Report (78) and ESPN Hoopgurlz (81). ESPN Hoopgurlz tabbed her the No. 33-ranked guard in the class of 2021. Hunter led Hopewell to a pair of Virginia 3A State Runner-up finishes and during her one season at TPLS Christian Academy, she averaged 17.7 points, 4.2 assists, 8.4 rebounds, 2.6 steals and 2.4 blocks per game.

The 6-foot-2 forward was named to the Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll.

UConn unanimous #1. Marquette and Creighton drop to 12 and 13. SHU received 39 votes. No other BE team received votes. But Rutgers (2) did??

I’m sure he’ll get a payday somewhere but maybe we can dream him and Bradshaw wanna play near home.. have to imagine Pitino will be licking his chops at that one though

We have debated this question multiple times. So now that the season is over we'll do it one last time.

Given the final results are completed which Pirate team was better, 2022/23 or 2023/24?

I understand the injury situation the 2022/23 went through, but all year I just thought this year's addition was the better of the two. What say you?

Ryan Conwell
Kadary Richmond
Cliff Omoruyi
Isaiah Coleman
Dre Davis

AND THEN I WOKE UP!

And Wemby sitting out...Sandro looking at big minutes

Kaiser to Butler......was a top 75-100 signee

Hill Homers Twice as Pirates Drop Doubleheader to Syracuse - Seton Hall University Athletics

South Orange, N.J. – The Pirates clubbed four home runs as a team, including a pair from Taylor Hill (Little Falls, N.J.) , but came up short in both en...

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Hill Homers Twice as Pirates Drop Doubleheader to Syracuse​

South Orange, N.J. – The Pirates clubbed four home runs as a team, including a pair from Taylor Hill (Little Falls, N.J.), but came up short in both ends of their doubleheader against Syracuse on Saturday. A late rally gave the Orange the game one win, 12-9, while early offense ruled in the game two win for Syracuse, 5-3.

Game 1: Syracuse 12, Seton Hall 9
How it Happened

• The Pirates got out ahead early, scoring twice in the second and third to take a 4-0 lead. Erin Howard (Skillman, N.J.) started the scoring with a home run, followed later by an RBI double from Hill. In the third, two more runs would score on a fielder's choice and a passed ball.
• Syracuse got two runs back in the fourth on an RBI double, but Seton Hall answered right back with a sacrifice fly from Lela Allen (Phoenix, Ariz.) to make it 5-2.
• The Orange collected two more runs in the fifth on a double and a sacrifice fly, drawing with a run at 5-4 entering the sixth.
• The Pirates widened their lead in the sixth, as an Andrea Perez (Corona, Calif.) single allowed two runs to score. Caroline Hobbes (Bay Shore, N.Y.) would later beat out an infield single which allowed Perez to score and make it an 8-4 lead.
• Syracuse would not go quietly, as they rallied for an eight-run seventh inning to take a 12-8 lead.
• Hill would hit an opposite field home run in the bottom of the seventh, but it was all the offense the Pirates could muster in their final trip to the plate.

News & Notes

• Howard's home run was her second of her career and her first at Mike Sheppard Sr. Field.
• The loss snapped the Pirates' 44-game winning streak when scoring six or more runs in a game.
• Four different Pirates recorded multi-hit games: Hill, Katey Brennan (Yardley, Pa.), Howard and Perez.
• Olivia Gilbert (Johnston, R.I.) reached base four times in the game, including drawing three walks.

Game 2: Syracuse 5, Seton Hall 3
How it Happened

• The bats got going right away for both teams in game two, with the Orange plating a pair of runs in the top of the first to take an early lead.
• Seton Hall answered with back-to-back home runs by Hill and Kelsey Carr (Ridgewood, N.Y.) to even the score at 2-2.
• Syracuse regained the lead in the second on a two-run double.
• In the third, Brennan laced a ball off the wall in left field to score Gilbert from first and make it a 4-3 game.
• Syracuse got an insurance run in the fourth on an RBI triple from Angel Jasso.
• In the seventh, the Pirates threatened by loading the bases with just one out. However, Syracuse was able to escape the inning unscathed as a flyout and a lineout ended the game.

News & Notes

• Hill has now homered in three consecutive games.
• Hill has also scored runs in four straight contests and six of her last seven.
• Brennan picked up another multi-hit game to extend her team-lead to 12 such games this season.
• Brennan has had two hits in each of her last five games, going 8-for-19 (.421) over that span.
• Carr's home run was her first since March 22 against Creighton.

What's Next
Seton Hall and Syracuse will meet in the series finale on Sunday with first pitch set for 12 p.m.

Well I could see him as a bumbling paper boy. But America’s best sports journalist? He’s not in the top 10 in NJ.

👀👀👀

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I just noticed this. Wow, that's not a good look on Miller.

UConn 7-foot-2 sophomore Donovan Clingan -- one of the cornerstones of the Huskies' back-to-back NCAA championship teams -- will enter the 2024 NBA draft.

The No. 3 prospect in ESPN's Top 100 list, Clingan is expected to be in the running to become the No. 1 pick in the June draft after a dominant late-season and NCAA tournament run.

Clingan leaves UConn for the NBA after a historic high school and college career. Before joining coach Dan Hurley at UConn, Clingan became one of Connecticut's all-time scholastic legends for Bristol Central High School under coach Tim Barrette.

Clingan said in a post on social media that his two years at UConn "exceeded all my dreams and expectations."

After overcoming some early-season struggles, Clingan, 20, played his best basketball in March and April. He used his 7-foot-7 wingspan and tremendous timing to become a prolific shot-blocker, averaging 2.5 to rank eighth in the nation.

Clingan also played an immense role for the nation's No. 1-ranked offense. The Huskies ran many of their half-court sets through Clingan in the low, mid and high posts. He set screens, facilitated out of dribble handoffs, finished well with both hands and displayed polished footwork at the rim.

Clingan averaged 15.3 points, 8.3 rebounds and 3.2 blocks in the Huskies' 2024 tournament run, all up from his season averages. He had a career-high eight blocks in a second-round victory over Northwestern. His 19 total blocks in the NCAA tournament were the most since the 2016 tournament.

Clingan was one of two players with 400 points, 80 blocks and 50 assists in Division I this season -- along with back-to-back John R. Wooden Award winner Zach Edey of Purdue, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

The NBA draft will be June 26-27 in New York City.

Interesting post on the Spurs subreddit

Basically it seems that the Spurs were trying to figure out rotations and Sandro kinda fell by the wayside, but it’s become apparent that he works really well with Wembanyama (whose rim protection helps cancel out Sandro’s weaknesses).

Obviously the Spurs are way out of the playoff picture and recent games mean nothing. But the impression seems to be of Sandro can become a below-average defender of 2-4, he is a fit.

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I'm just thinking that the NBA now has a minor league that they won't have to pay for. I can't see any of the players in their G league making the $ playing in high school gyms in front of nobody, that the NIL is pushing to the NCAA. I bet the G league folds if this continues.

I saw when Davis was on the mic and the crowd chanted 1 more year, our own K Richmond chanted it with them...... dont know if it means anything but just my observation

Based on what we know / is likely so far, this is my initial thought on who Sha will want back plus the 2 freshmen:

1) Jahseem Felton
2) JaQuan Sanders
3) Malachi Brown
4) Dylan Addae-Wusu
5) Isaiah Coleman (please no portal)
6) Elijah Hutchins-Everett
7) Godswill Erheriene
8) David Tubek

Assuming NgaNga (not a fit), Ozdogan (not the right level for him), and Harris (injury) go elsewhere. My guess would be the 8 players above would cost ~$400k in NIL, with the majority of that going to Coleman and Addae-Wusu.

If we're reaching our rumored target of $1.5M, can Sha find 4 solid guys at ~$250k each? Figure last guy on bench is just someone we can take a flyer on, like Brown / Ozdogan this year.

Guards: Felton, Sanders, Brown, (Transfer starting caliber PG), (Transfer, ideally a shooter)

Wings: DAW, Coleman, (Transfer)

Bigs: EHE, Godswill, Tubek, (Transfer starting caliber big), (Transfer flyer)

Thoughts?

HARTFORD, Conn. -- Thousands of fans lined the streets of downtown Hartford on Saturday to fete the UConn men's basketball team following its second straight NCAA championship, its sixth in 25 years.

The players and coaches paraded on a double-decker bus with an open-air top and lifted the national title trophy from the state Capitol to the XL Center, the arena in which the team plays about half its home games. The procession included marching bands, cheerleaders, first responders, state politicians and other groups as fans shouted and waved UConn signs.

The celebration followed Monday's 75-60 win over Purdue, which capped one of the most dominant two-year runs in NCAA tournament history, one in which the Huskies won all 12 games they played by double digits.

Coach Dan Hurley, who has spent the week denying that he was considering leaving the program for another school, told the crowd his focus is on a third consecutive championship, as he and the players gave short speeches outside the arena.

"The champs are here today in Hartford with the best fans in the world," Hurley said. "Basketball capital of the world -- Storrs, Connecticut. Back-to-back champs. Back-to-back champs. ... Some of the greatest players to ever wear the UConn uniform are up here, and next year we go for the three-peat! Let's go!"

Donovan Clingan, the 7-foot-2 sophomore center who announced Friday that he was leaving UConn and entering the NBA draft, thanked the fans and said their support helped fuel the title run.

"I appreciate you guys," the Bristol, Connecticut, native said. "You guys have been the best fans to me for the past two years. I'll cherish those moments for the rest of my life. I'll be a Husky for life. Love you guys."

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The team also will be losing Tristen Newton, the Final Four's most outstanding player, and Cam Spencer, who both ran out of eligibility when the season ended. Along with Clingan, freshman Stephon Castle could be a lottery pick in the NBA draft this summer if he decides to leave.

"Thank you for all the support that you guys have given me the past two years and supporting the team," Newton told the crowd. "Without you guys, back-to-back wouldn't have been possible."

This was the 15th victory parade for UConn, which in addition to its six men's basketball national championships has won 11 women's basketball titles over the past 30 years.

There were joint parades in 2004 and 2014 when UConn won both the men's and women's titles in the same season -- the only Division I school to accomplish that feat.

The UConn men and women are 17-1 in NCAA basketball title games.

Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont, who this week hinted that Hurley would get a pay raise, joined the team on the double-decker bus and the podium.

"Hey America, this is what the basketball capital of America looks like. Right here," Lamont said. "Let's hear it for the Huskies. ... We are the champions, my friends."

Last month, SMU shocked the college basketball world when it fired Rob Lanier following a 20-win season. The move opened the door for Andy Enfield to leave USC and fill that opening. Then, Eric Musselman left Arkansas to replace Enfield, and John Calipari signed a gigantic deal with the Razorbacks, which got us here, to the opening at Kentucky.

The initial rumblings suggested Kentucky athletic director Mitch Barnhart would swing for the fences. And he did.

But UConn head coach Dan Hurley, fresh off his back-to-back NCAA title runs, said no after reportedly being offered a huge salary. Then, Scott Drew decided to stay in Waco at Baylor. It was unclear if other candidates, such as Billy Donovan, were seriously approached.

Either way, it appeared Barnhart wanted to land an experienced coach with a winning pedigree.

Mark Pope was never mentioned until it appeared Kentucky had failed to attract its top candidates. Pope, who won a national title as a player at Kentucky in 1996, has a solid coaching record after stints at Utah Valley and BYU. But let's be honest here: This is a major difference from Calipari.

The expectation was Kentucky would make a splash with its next coach. Right now, there are more questions than answers about the expected hiring of Pope to be the next Wildcats head coach.

Jeff Borzello and Myron Medcalf attempt to answer a few of them, including what the move would mean for Pope, Kentucky and BYU.

Well, since our last NIL whatever it was called, I am now a 1st mate, I hope it helps us all..

Sanders, NgaNga, Tubek, Brown.

I’ll leave EHE out since as of now he’d be our starting 5 until a Portal option or 2 comes to fruition.

The question is who we think our keepers? Tubek seems like a definitive keep. NgaNga seems like he is lost most of the time when he is on the court; not sure if he can be developed to become a consistent contributor. Sanders showed something in the NIT that gives me hope; his confidence is the key, but doesn’t seem to be a guy who can create his own shot. Brown looked promising early in the season then never saw much time. If he’s patient, maybe can be a contributor by time he’s a junior.