By Colin Rajala
Saturday evenings' matchup between Seton Hall (6-10, 1-4) and Providence (9-8, 3-3) at the Amica Mutual Pavilion was poised to be a grind it out defensive matchup given the blue collar, defense-first cultures instilled by both programs’ head coaches, but the game was anything but as the two teams combined for 176 points.
The Big East rivals traded blows back and forth as the matchup featured nine ties and 10 lead changes, but the Friars scored 31 points in the final 10 minutes of the second half to outlast the visiting Pirates for the hard fought 91-85 conference victory.
Bensley Joseph scored a career high 28 points on 7/9 shooting from three off the bench to lead Providence, who also saw three other players score in double figures – Corey Floyd Jr. with 14 points, Oswin Erhunmwunse with 12 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks and Jayden Pierre with 10 points.
Isaiah Coleman led Seton Hall again, this time with a career-high 26 points to go along with four rebounds, two assists and a steal. In support, Prince Aligbe recorded 19 points and seven rebounds, Chaunce Jenkins tallied 17 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals, while Dylan Addae-Wusu finished with 11 points five rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Coleman got The Hall on the board first with a mid range jumper and extended the visitors’ early lead to 5-2 on a three from the wing off the feed from Jenkins. Providence proceeded to reel off a 7-0 run capped by a steal and dunk from Ryan Mela for the 11-7 advantage just five minutes into the contest. Coleman answered with another three from the wing and then hit a runner in the lane for his tenth point in the first six minutes to knot the score at 12-12.
Neither team was able to create much separation in the first half, staying within two baskets of each other, and they entered the half tied 41-41 behind a mini 5-0 run by Jenkins to end the half. Coleman and Jenkins combined for 27 of the Pirates’ 41 first half points, but Providence shot 7-17 from distance to withstand the offensive onslaught.
Providence created some separation less than eight minutes into the second half as they went on an 8-1 run capped by a three-pointer to take a 58-50 lead and force Seton Hall Head Coach Shaheen Holloway to take a timeout to quiet the crowd.
Seton Hall’s full court press has caused fits for recent opponents and that was no different against Providence as the Pirates came out of the timeout and ratcheted up the pressure, forcing four turnovers and holding the Friars scoreless for more than four minutes to get back into the game.
Coleman connected on a floater in the lane off the dish from Addae-Wusu to cap a 10-0 run for the visitors, giving them a 62-60 lead, their first since it was 22-21 with 11 minutes to go in the first half.
Holding a narrow 63-62 lead, Seton Hall’s Coleman and Jenkins were each whistled for their fourth fouls, prompting Holloway to pull both of his leading scorers. That proved to shift the momentum back in favor of Providence just enough to answer the Hall’s comeback effort as the Friars proceeded to go an 8-0 run, including back-to-back three-pointers from Joseph, to take the 70-63 edge, a lead Seton Hall would not be able to break despite their best efforts over the final six minutes.
Seton Hall narrowly outrebounded Providence 34-33, but held a 16-9 advantage on the offensive glass, which led to a 19-10 edge in second chance points. On top of that, the Pirates outscored their opponents in the paint 46-32 and recorded a 17-7 advantage in points off turnovers. All of that was negated as the Pirates allowed Providence to shoot 28-52 (53.8%) from the field, 12-25 (48%) from three and lead in bench points 40-12.
Saturday evenings' matchup between Seton Hall (6-10, 1-4) and Providence (9-8, 3-3) at the Amica Mutual Pavilion was poised to be a grind it out defensive matchup given the blue collar, defense-first cultures instilled by both programs’ head coaches, but the game was anything but as the two teams combined for 176 points.
The Big East rivals traded blows back and forth as the matchup featured nine ties and 10 lead changes, but the Friars scored 31 points in the final 10 minutes of the second half to outlast the visiting Pirates for the hard fought 91-85 conference victory.
Bensley Joseph scored a career high 28 points on 7/9 shooting from three off the bench to lead Providence, who also saw three other players score in double figures – Corey Floyd Jr. with 14 points, Oswin Erhunmwunse with 12 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks and Jayden Pierre with 10 points.
Isaiah Coleman led Seton Hall again, this time with a career-high 26 points to go along with four rebounds, two assists and a steal. In support, Prince Aligbe recorded 19 points and seven rebounds, Chaunce Jenkins tallied 17 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals, while Dylan Addae-Wusu finished with 11 points five rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Coleman got The Hall on the board first with a mid range jumper and extended the visitors’ early lead to 5-2 on a three from the wing off the feed from Jenkins. Providence proceeded to reel off a 7-0 run capped by a steal and dunk from Ryan Mela for the 11-7 advantage just five minutes into the contest. Coleman answered with another three from the wing and then hit a runner in the lane for his tenth point in the first six minutes to knot the score at 12-12.
Neither team was able to create much separation in the first half, staying within two baskets of each other, and they entered the half tied 41-41 behind a mini 5-0 run by Jenkins to end the half. Coleman and Jenkins combined for 27 of the Pirates’ 41 first half points, but Providence shot 7-17 from distance to withstand the offensive onslaught.
Providence created some separation less than eight minutes into the second half as they went on an 8-1 run capped by a three-pointer to take a 58-50 lead and force Seton Hall Head Coach Shaheen Holloway to take a timeout to quiet the crowd.
Seton Hall’s full court press has caused fits for recent opponents and that was no different against Providence as the Pirates came out of the timeout and ratcheted up the pressure, forcing four turnovers and holding the Friars scoreless for more than four minutes to get back into the game.
Coleman connected on a floater in the lane off the dish from Addae-Wusu to cap a 10-0 run for the visitors, giving them a 62-60 lead, their first since it was 22-21 with 11 minutes to go in the first half.
Holding a narrow 63-62 lead, Seton Hall’s Coleman and Jenkins were each whistled for their fourth fouls, prompting Holloway to pull both of his leading scorers. That proved to shift the momentum back in favor of Providence just enough to answer the Hall’s comeback effort as the Friars proceeded to go an 8-0 run, including back-to-back three-pointers from Joseph, to take the 70-63 edge, a lead Seton Hall would not be able to break despite their best efforts over the final six minutes.
Seton Hall narrowly outrebounded Providence 34-33, but held a 16-9 advantage on the offensive glass, which led to a 19-10 edge in second chance points. On top of that, the Pirates outscored their opponents in the paint 46-32 and recorded a 17-7 advantage in points off turnovers. All of that was negated as the Pirates allowed Providence to shoot 28-52 (53.8%) from the field, 12-25 (48%) from three and lead in bench points 40-12.
