CONTROVERSY IN PIRATE LOCKER ROOM
What happened ? Seton Hall came into this season with so much promise. They had a nationally rated top 10 recruited class to join up with some talented veteran players. Granted there will always be some bumps in the road for young teams but all looked good especially after the Pirates got off to a 12-2 start including upset victories over St. Johns and Villanova in their first two conference games. Yes star freshman Isaiah Whitehead suffered a fractured foot in the South Florida game but the Pirates won their first two conference games without him.
After the two opening Big East wins the young Pirates went into a short slump but fired back with road wins against Creighton and Marquette. With Whitehead returning and starring in a win over Xavier everything looked rosy as it often does when a team is winning. But then bad losses to Depaul and Marquette followed with the team looking disorganized and not on the same page with each other.
Next up was Georgetown and this is where everything seemed to fall apart. First when the introductions of the starting team was announced with out starting guard Jaren Sina in the lineup, Jaren suddenly bolted from the team bench back toward the dressing room only to return after a team mate followed him and brought him back. Even though Jaren was not in the starting lineup he still received significant playtime. But still upset after the game Jaren left the locker room and later announced that he was quitting the team because of a poor locker room environment. Whether this announcement was solely due to the benching or other factors remains a mystery.
A player leaving a team to transfer in and of itself is not unusual but there is more controversy surrounding the team also. There had been rumors of a rift between the two star players Sterling Gibbs and Isaiah Whitehead and this boiled to a head during a late timeout when the two players were seen yelling at each other. Clearly there are problems with team chemistry. If you read the message boards various people are making accusations and pointing fingers at one participant or another. But all stories have at least two sides to it and no one seems to know the true facts behind all this intrigue.
One thing in question is whether or not the head coach has lost control over his team. We have seen controversy's like this before at Seton Hall during the Bobby Gonzalez era and also in 2001 when it appeared that the Freshmen brought in by Tommy Amaker and upper class players were at odds with each other. However at this point in time the consensus is that Seton Hall either through the coach or athletic director must speak out and clear the air as to what is going on. This is owed to the Pirate fans, ticket holders and alumni that have supported the program. We await the next step. Maybe a win on Saturday will start the healing process.
What happened ? Seton Hall came into this season with so much promise. They had a nationally rated top 10 recruited class to join up with some talented veteran players. Granted there will always be some bumps in the road for young teams but all looked good especially after the Pirates got off to a 12-2 start including upset victories over St. Johns and Villanova in their first two conference games. Yes star freshman Isaiah Whitehead suffered a fractured foot in the South Florida game but the Pirates won their first two conference games without him.
After the two opening Big East wins the young Pirates went into a short slump but fired back with road wins against Creighton and Marquette. With Whitehead returning and starring in a win over Xavier everything looked rosy as it often does when a team is winning. But then bad losses to Depaul and Marquette followed with the team looking disorganized and not on the same page with each other.
Next up was Georgetown and this is where everything seemed to fall apart. First when the introductions of the starting team was announced with out starting guard Jaren Sina in the lineup, Jaren suddenly bolted from the team bench back toward the dressing room only to return after a team mate followed him and brought him back. Even though Jaren was not in the starting lineup he still received significant playtime. But still upset after the game Jaren left the locker room and later announced that he was quitting the team because of a poor locker room environment. Whether this announcement was solely due to the benching or other factors remains a mystery.
A player leaving a team to transfer in and of itself is not unusual but there is more controversy surrounding the team also. There had been rumors of a rift between the two star players Sterling Gibbs and Isaiah Whitehead and this boiled to a head during a late timeout when the two players were seen yelling at each other. Clearly there are problems with team chemistry. If you read the message boards various people are making accusations and pointing fingers at one participant or another. But all stories have at least two sides to it and no one seems to know the true facts behind all this intrigue.
One thing in question is whether or not the head coach has lost control over his team. We have seen controversy's like this before at Seton Hall during the Bobby Gonzalez era and also in 2001 when it appeared that the Freshmen brought in by Tommy Amaker and upper class players were at odds with each other. However at this point in time the consensus is that Seton Hall either through the coach or athletic director must speak out and clear the air as to what is going on. This is owed to the Pirate fans, ticket holders and alumni that have supported the program. We await the next step. Maybe a win on Saturday will start the healing process.
