3 THINGS ABOUT SETON HALL HOSTING XAVIER WEDNESDAY

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2018-19 BIG EAST Conference Game

Seton Hall Pirates (16-9, 7-6 BIG EAST) vs. Xavier Musketeers (13-13, 5-8 BIG EAST)
Date/Time/Location Wednesday, Feb. 20 | 7 p.m. | Prudential Center (Newark, N.J.)
Tickets Ticketmaster.com | 2 for $20 Offer | South Orange Day Residents Offer
Television Broadcast CBS Sports Network
Radio Broadcast WMCA 570 AM | Sirius 134 | XM 202 | Pirate Sports Network
Game Notes Seton Hall | Xavier
Links Live Stats | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram


The old adage is that defense wins championships. It seems like Seton Hall subscribes to that theory. Take the last three games:

Against Creighton on Feb. 9, the Pirates held the Bluejays to zero field goals made in the final four minutes of the game and held them to 20 points under their season scoring average.

Against Georgetown on Feb. 13, The Hall stopped the potent freshmen guard duo of James Akinjo and Mac McClung; the pair had only a combined nine points on 2-of-11 shooting while turning the ball over six times.

In this past Sunday's rematch at Creighton, Seton Hall got stops on defense in nine consecutive possessions between free throws at 4:33 of the second half and a jumper at 0:14 in the second half, allowing The Hall to come back and win on the strength of a game-closing 14-2 run.

If Seton Hall continues to play defense like that on Wednesday when it faces Xavier, the Pirates will be in good shape.

CBS Sports Network will carry Wednesday's national telecast with Tom McCarthy on play-by-play and Alaa Abdelnaby on color. Gary Cohen and Dave Popkin will be bringing da noise and da funk on the radio broadcast that includes the exclusive Kevin Willard pregame report on WMCA 570 AM, simulcast on Sirius 134, XM 202 and the Pirate Sports Network.




Three Things to Know About Wednesday's Home Matchup With Xavier

1. Keep the Foot on the Pedal
Seton Hall has gotten out to great starts in each of the last three games, even if both Creighton contests went down to the wire. It's okay if Wednesday's game against Xavier ends up being another nail-biter, but it's important for the Pirates to not start slow in front of the home crowd. Getting out in front will help keep the fans into the game rather than waiting for the last-minute surge.

2. Need to Win the Three-Point Line
In 13 conference games, Xavier ranks nine out of 10 BIG EAST teams both in three-point offense and three-point defense. The Musketeers are averaging only 6.5 made threes per game in conference and only making them at a 33.2 percent rate. On defense, they allow opponents to make 8.3 triples per game while shooting 36.9 percent. Seton Hall needs to take advantage of this and make Xavier work for looks out on the perimeter while stretching Xavier's defense to create space for their best shooters. Keep in mind that in conference play, Myles Cale has been the best Seton Hall shooter by percentage at 40.7 percent, although he's attempted less than half the amount of threes Myles Powell has.

3. Rim Protection Also Key
Seton Hall made great second-half adjustments in its win at Xavier. After Zach Hankins was 9-for-11 from the field with 18 points in the first half, he only had two shot attempts in the second half. Romaro Gill had a solid second half in protecting the rim with three of his four blocks coming then, and he helped change Xavier's game plan. The Pirates will need to prevent Hankins from getting going underneath to avoid a repeat performance.

https://shupirates.com/news/2019/2/...bout-seton-hall-hosting-xavier-wednesday.aspx

 

[Halldan1]

No link. Media report

The Hall Looks to Continue February Run Wednesday at Home vs. Xavier


Seton Hall (16-9, 7-6 BIG EAST, NET 60, KenPom 57) vs. Xavier (13-13, 5-8 BIG EAST, NET 95, KenPom 99)

Wednesday, Feb. 20 • Prudential Center (Newark, N.J.) • 7 p.m.

TV: CBS Sports Network with Tom McCarthy & Alaa Abdelnaby

Radio: WMCA 570 AM / Sirius 134 / XM 202 / SHUPirates.com / SHU Pirates Mobile App with Gary Cohen & Dave Popkin


WHAT’S HAPPENING TONIGHT?

Seton Hall hosts Xavier on Wednesday night in a crucial BIG EAST Conference matchup at Prudential Center. The Pirates will travel to St. John’s and Georgetown next, before closing out the regular season at home against Marquette and Villanova. The Pirates are looking for a regular season sweep of Xavier for the second time since the Musketeers joined the BIG EAST in 2013-14.


LAST TIME OUT

Eight days apart, it was the same story. Down six points with 4:33 remaining in the game and still down four with under three minutes left, Seton Hall finished the game on a 14-2 run with Myles Powell hitting the tie-breaking three-pointer with 48.5 seconds left to lift the Pirates past the Bluejays, 81-75, Sunday at CHI Health Center Omaha. Back on Feb. 9, it was nearly the same scenario as Seton Hall trailed Creighton by six, 54-48, with 3:43 left on the clock. Powell was one of four Pirates to score in double-figures, finishing with 19 points. Myles Cale led The Hall with 20 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the field, classmate Sandro Mamukelashvili posted 17 points and nine rebounds, and Quincy McKnight posted 16 points and tied a career high with six steals, including four in the final 2:42 of the game.


THE PREVIOUS MEETING

Seton Hall trailed by 10 with 12:16 remaining, but closed the game on a 34-14 run to complete its second double-digit comeback in as many games, taking down Xavier, 80-70, at Cintas Center. Myles Powell poured in 25 points on 9-of-15 shooting, pulled down a team- high six rebounds, and tallied a career-high eight assists. With 3:11 to go, Powell sank a jumper to take a 70-68 lead. Romaro Gill then recorded one of his four blocks, and Powell converted on the other end off a pass from Quincy McKnight. After another Xavier miss, McKnight made it 74-68 after an incredible driving layup with 1:27 remaining. An alley-oop from Powell to Sandro Mamukelashvili and four free throws then sealed the Seton Hall win.


ALL-TIME VS. XAVIER

The Pirates are 11-8 in the all-time series against Xavier, and are 6-1 at home. Last year, No. 11 Xavier broke Seton Hall’s 13-game home winning streak, edging the Pirates on Jan. 20, 73-64. Seton Hall led for the majority of the contest, but Xavier closed the game on a 15-5 run to seal the win.


LOOKING TO CLINCH A WINNING SEASON

If Seton Hall beats Xavier, no matter what happens the rest of the way, it will secure an overall winning season record for a fifth consecutive year. Only one other time in the program’s BIG EAST era (1979-present) have the Pirates had five straight winning seasons. That came from 1991-95. The overall program record is 14 consecutive winning seasons from 1908-23 (no team in 1918-19).


HIGH AMONG THE MIDDLE GROUP

Although it appears that its NET ranking is low for a squad with such a strong resume, Seton Hall is in a small group of teams that have racked up important wins. Among the top 75 teams in the NET, only 27 have at least nine wins in the Quad 1+2. Twenty of those 27 teams reside in the NET top 25 while Seton Hall and only six of the remaining 47 schools also have at least nine.

>> Iowa (NET 28), 10-5 vs. Q1+2

>> Kansas State (NET 29), 10-6 vs. Q1+2

>> Baylor (NET 36), 10-7 vs. Q1+2

>> Oklahoma (NET 38), 9-10 vs. Q1+2

>> St. John’s (NET 46), 9-4 vs. Q1+2

>> Seton Hall (NET 60), 9-7 vs. Q1+2

>> Arizona State (NET 68), 9-5 vs. Q1+2


FUELED BY FEBRUARY

Seton Hall seems to play very well in February. Since February 2016, the Pirates have compiled a BIG EAST record of 18-10 in the second month of the calendar year. While December and March have also been kind to the Pirates, they play far fewer games in those months than in January and February.

>> December: 4-1

>> January: 14-16

>> February: 18-10

>> March: 3-1


REMEMBER THOSE NON-CONFERENCE WINS

Among the 10 BIG EAST teams, Seton Hall and Marquette are the only two programs to havemultiple non-conference winsover teams currently in the NET top-25 this season. The Pirates knocked off Kentucky (5) and Maryland (23), and the Golden Eagles defeated Wisconsin (15), Louisville (17) and Buffalo (24).


SETON HALL STACKS UP

The Pirates have piled up 12 wins against teams currently in the KenPom top 100 (as of 2/19), which is tied for second-most among BIG EAST teams:

>> Villanova – 13

>> Marquette – 12

>> Seton Hall – 12

>> St. John’s – 10

>> Butler – 6

>> Georgetown – 7

>> Creighton – 6

>> DePaul – 6

>> Providence – 5

>> Xavier – 5

 

[shupat08]

That number of top 100 wins. 12 may certainly help us if we are on the bubble come selection Sunday. That's a huge number and we can certainly add to it! Let's start Wednesday!