Red hot Seton Hall hosts DePaul Saturday morning to open BIG EAST New Year’s Marathon
BIG EAST NEW YEAR’S MARATHON (#BEMARATHON)
DePaul (6-7, 0-1 BIG EAST) at Seton Hall (11-2, 1-0 BIG EAST)
Jan. 2 · Prudential Center (Newark, N.J.) · 11 a.m.
TV: FS1 with Dave Sims & Vin Parise
Radio: AM970 The Answer with Gary Cohen & Dave Popkin
What to Know About The Hall:
BIG EAST NEW YEAR’S MARATHON (#BEMARATHON)
DePaul (6-7, 0-1 BIG EAST) at Seton Hall (11-2, 1-0 BIG EAST)
Jan. 2 · Prudential Center (Newark, N.J.) · 11 a.m.
TV: FS1 with Dave Sims & Vin Parise
Radio: AM970 The Answer with Gary Cohen & Dave Popkin
What to Know About The Hall:
- Seton Hall stormed back with a commanding performance in the second half at Marquette Wednesday, out-scoring the Golden Eagles by 21 in the final period to score an 83-63 victory to extend its winning streak to six while stopping MU’s at nine. Desi Rodriguez led all scorers with a career-high 19 points as The Hall won its BIG EAST opener for the fourth consecutive year, something the program had only done one time previously (1987-90)
- The 20-point margin of victory was the largest for SHU against a BIG EAST opponent since 2011-12 when the Pirates posted three victories by at least 20 points during conference play; the last of which was a 94-64 victory over St. John’s (2/14) at Prudential Center. The Hall has totaled five such victories under Kevin Willard, three of which have come at home including a 94-73 win over DePaul on January 10, 2012
- The win at Marquette also marked the 10th time this season that SHU has held its opponent under 70 points. The Pirates boast a perfect 10-0 record when allowing 69 points or less this season and are 23-6 (.793) when keeping its opponent under 70 points over the last two years. Seton Hall enters Saturday’s contest ranked second in the BIG EAST and 28th in the nation with 63.1 points allowed per game.
- Now sitting at 11-2 overall, The Hall shot up to 33rd in the latest RPI rankings after downing Marquette, just one spot behind ninth-ranked Butler. The Hall stands in front of six current AP Top-25 teams in the RPI ratings, trending ahead of no. 8 Arizona (40), no. 19 West Virginia (39) and the four teams that were voted 22-25 respectively in Cincinnati (100), Baylor (109), South Carolina (41) and UCLA (63). Both KenPom.com (39) and the ESPN Basketball Power Index (BPI, 40) have The Hall among the top-40 strongest teams in the nation to this point in the season as well.
- All five starters scored in double figures to fuel the victory over the Golden Eagles, continuing a run that has seen balance power The Hall to six-straight wins. During the winning streak, Isaiah Whitehead (14.0 ppg), Desi Rodriguez (13.0 ppg), Khadeen Carrington (13.0 ppg) and Angel Delgado (12.5 ppg) have all scored between 75 and 84 total points and have all led the team in scoring at least one time. Michael Nzei (6.7 ppg) and Derrick Gordon (6.3 ppg) have made key contributions to an offense that is averaging 77.2 points per game over the last six outings and posting an average margin of victory of 17.5 ppg.
- The offensive uptick and balanced attack has seen a surge in The Hall’s assist numbers,fueled primarily by standout play from Whitehead who has thrived in the role of primary ball handler this season. Whitehead doled out seven of the squad’s 17 helpers at Marquette and has totaled 33 assists against 16 turnovers during the winning streak. Carrington also recorded five assists in the win at MU, marking the first time in their careers that the pair of Brooklyn natives has registered 5+ assists in the same game
- The winning streak has also coincided with a run of six consecutive double-doubles from reigning BIG EAST Rookie of the Year Angel Delgado. Delgado had not scored in double figures prior to the current stretch and following an 11-point, 11-rebound performance against Marquette, he has now registered eight double-doubles in 19 career regular season games against BIG EAST opponents. Last season, Delgado became the first freshman to win the BIG EAST rebounding title by pulling down an average of 10.7 boards against league foes and has reached double-digits on the glass 11 times in conference play. When DePaul visited Prudential Center last season, Delgado turned in perhaps his finest effort as a Pirate, finishing with career-highs of 19 points and 19 rebounds
- While Whitehead (BIG EAST All-Rookie) and Delgado are displaying the award-winning form flashed during their debut campaigns, the progression of their fellow sophomore starters has transformed The Hall’s first unit into one of the most dynamic groups in the conference. Carrington has scored in double-figures a team-high 11 times and ranks 13th in the league at 13.8 ppg while Rodriguez stands 17th at 12.8 ppg - up from 5.6 ppg a year ago. After totaling 18 appearances (1 GS) and 96 minutes played as a freshman, Sanogo has emerged as one of the premier all-around defenders in the BIG EAST, and is the only player in the conference to rank among the top-15 in rebounding (7.4 rpg, 11th), blocks (1.3 bpg, t-10th) and steals (1.4 spg, 8th). Rodriguez (1.6 spg) and Carrington (1.5 spg) have also excelled on the defensive end, ranking third and fifth in the conference in steals
- As a team, SHU ranks second in the league with 7.7 steals per game and has totaled double-digit points off turnovers in every game this season; including 22 points off 18 Marquette giveaways on Wednesday
- The Hall is 3-2 in BIG EAST home openers under Kevin Willard, most recently stopping then- no. 15 St. John’s, 78-67, on New Year’s Eve last season before going on to outlast then-no. 6 Villanova, 66-61, in overtime in the following game to start the BIG EAST slate at 2-0. The last time Seton Hall opened BIG EAST play 2-0 in consecutive years came during the 1998-99 and 1999-00 seasons when current associate head coach Shaheen Holloway was starring at point guard; helping lead the Pirates to the Sweet 16 of the 2000 NCAA Tournament to cap a decorated career that saw him enter the SHU Athletics Hall of Fame in 2012
- The BIG EAST Conference will ring in the New Year with a full day of BIG EAST Basketball for the New Year’s Marathon on FS1. From morning until midnight, fans can watch all 10 teams battle it out for BIG EAST glory to see who will be on top come March at Madison Square Garden. Follow the action on social with #BEmarathon
- .@SetonHallMBB is up to 33 in the lastest @NCAA RPI rankings and also rates among the top-40 according to @espn BPI (40), @kenpomeroy (39)
- With a win vs. @DePaulHoops Sat., @SetonHallMBB would open @BIGEAST play at 2-0 in consecutive yrs for the first time since ‘98-’99/‘99-’00
- .@SetonHallMBB’s emergent Ismael Sanogo (@_17ish) is the only @BIGEAST player ranked among the top-15 in rebounds, blocks and steals #HALLin
