PirateCrew: Seton Hall Pirates Football & Basketball Recruiting
The definitive source for all PirateCrew news.
By JP Pelzman
Mike Anderson made the truth very plain.
“We had no answer for Sandro,” the St. John’s coach said early Friday night.
That could be a recurring nightmare for Big East coaches this season. After all, how many teams have defensive answers for a 6-11 player who can shoot three-pointers and handle the ball like a guard? And oh yeah, he’s still 6-foot-11.
Seton Hall senior stretch four Sandro Mamukelashvili scored a career-high 32 points and also contributed nine rebounds and three assists as the Pirates (4-3) pulled away late in the second half to defeat St. John’s, 77-68, in the Big East opener for both teams Friday at the Prudential Center.
Mamukelashvili wasn’t the only key player for the Pirates, who also got important contributions from point guard Shavar Reynolds (five assists) and sixth man Takal Molson (14 points), who made nine of 12 foul shots, all in the last 5:10 of the game, to help hold off the Red Storm (5-2).
“I’m ecstatic with the way he played,” Seton Hall coach Kevin Willard said of Mamukelashvili. “We knew we were going to need him to be more of a point guard today just because of the way they play. They take you out of your offense. The great thing about having Sandro is he can bring it up and he can create and when he gets a head of steam up going downhill he’s really tough (to stop.) I love the leadership (role) he took. … I think he’s just growing into that player I knew he would be.”
Seton Hall went ahead to stay, 29-26 on a Myles Cale three with 2:18 left in the first half. St. John’s challenged numerous times in the second half, and cut the deficit to 65-62 on two free throws by Julian Champagnie with 3:07 left. Molson’s drive to the basket for a layup on the next possession gave the Pirates some breathing room. Their defense was on point, limiting the Red Storm to 19% shooting from long distance for the game.
Meanwhile, the visitors simply couldn’t stop Mamukelashvili. He was dominant inside (9-for-13 from two-point range), from outside (3-for-5 from beyond the arc, plus he played a game-high 39 minutes and helped anchor the press break. He had three assists and only one turnover.
“When I see everybody trusting me so much,” Mamukelashvili said of his ball-handling, “my confidence goes sky-high.”
As for his overall performance, he said, “I could never do this without my teammates. … I love how they trust me. We just play unselfish basketball. I couldn’t do this without my teammates or the coaching staff.”
Molson said, “With Sandro having the kind of game he was having, they were going to try to kind of force the ball out of his hands and make other people make plays. And I'm very comfortable with doing that.”
Unbeaten Xavier, which was scheduled to host Seton Hall on Tuesday, has had to pause its basketball activities because of a positive COVID test, thus is has postponed that game and its Big East opener at Providence on Saturday. Thus, at this point, Seton Hall won’t play again until at least Thursday at Marquette.
Willard made it clear afterward that his team needs a rest after its long road trip last week, and that no opponent will be substituted for Xavier. The Pirates would’ve had a lot of time to reflect on this one had they lost.
Mamukelashvili said, “We’re all in a crazy situation right now. We all understand that every game, we should take it as our last game. … This is what we can do for the people who are at home and can’t go to work. I know they’re tuned in and they’re watching--the Seton Hall Pirate fans--and we just want to give them the best game possible. We're just trying to cheer our fans up. I know they’re not here, but I know they’re supporting from home.
“We know it’s Big East time,” he added, “so you’ve got to bring it every night.”
