Seton Hall got pretty much everything it needed in a comfortable 90-76 victory over Sacred Heart at the Prudential Center on Wednesday night. The Pirates didn’t stumble in between the Rutgers and Maryland games, and there were some teachable moments that Kevin Willard can show to his players in the film room.
Here are the takeaways, mostly with an eye toward Saturday’s game against the talented Terrapins:
1--The defense was shaky. The usual welcomed assortment of Christmas-themed songs was played during timeouts, but perhaps Linda Ronstadt’s rendition of “Blue Bayou” might have been more appropriate. There was a surprising amount of blow-bys on offense by the low-major Pioneers, who shot 45.2 percent from the floor in both halves, and the defensive intensity waned after former Sacred Heart player Quincy McKnight went to the bench with two fouls 5:09 into the game. This kind of defense obviously won’t cut it against Maryland.
2--Sandro Mamukelashvili is coming into his own. The 6-10 sophomore from the country of Georgia shot 4-for-5 from three-point range after going 3-for-4 from long distance in the rivalry win over Rutgers four days prior. “The biggest thing about Sandro is he’s starting to take good shots,” Kevin Willard said. “All his shots the last couple of games have not been rushed shots, they’ve been within the flow of the offense.” Mamukelashvili again credited Willard for helping him work on the release point and the arc of his outside jumper.
If Mamukelashvili can score from both inside and outside consistently, he will be the second option The Hall needs behind Myles Powell.
3--McKnight still popular at Sacred Heart. McKnight didn’t leave the “other” SHU with hard feelings, apparently. He spent several minutes immediately after the game sharing some warm exchanges with Sacred Heart players, coaches and parents of players. He embraced former teammate Sean Hoehn, a Morristown native who reached 1,000 points during the game. “Being around love is always good,” McKnight said of his exchanges with his former colleagues.
4--Good game for Nelson. Freshman point guard Anthony Nelson had eight assists in 21-plus minutes. He had six of those assists in the first half, playing extended minutes while McKnight sat with foul trouble. “I’ve been saying this from the first game,” McKnight said. “Ant is going to be good. He’s going to be great. I’ve learned a lot from him.”
McKnight is making the transition from being a combo guard at his previous school. Interestingly, he said that Willard had him running with the second-stringers during practice leading up to the game. That happened despite two excellent defensive games by McKnight against Kentucky and Rutgers. He took it as motivation, although Willard said he merely wanted to get Nelson more practice time with Powell and the other starters.
5---Taurean Thompson update. Thompson shot 1-for-6 overall and 0-for-4 from three in what could’ve been a confident-building game for him, but turned out not to be. Thompson’s six points pretty much matched his season average of 6.1 entering the game. The Pirates certainly could use some production from him against Maryland’s imposing frontcourt.
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Here are the takeaways, mostly with an eye toward Saturday’s game against the talented Terrapins:
1--The defense was shaky. The usual welcomed assortment of Christmas-themed songs was played during timeouts, but perhaps Linda Ronstadt’s rendition of “Blue Bayou” might have been more appropriate. There was a surprising amount of blow-bys on offense by the low-major Pioneers, who shot 45.2 percent from the floor in both halves, and the defensive intensity waned after former Sacred Heart player Quincy McKnight went to the bench with two fouls 5:09 into the game. This kind of defense obviously won’t cut it against Maryland.
2--Sandro Mamukelashvili is coming into his own. The 6-10 sophomore from the country of Georgia shot 4-for-5 from three-point range after going 3-for-4 from long distance in the rivalry win over Rutgers four days prior. “The biggest thing about Sandro is he’s starting to take good shots,” Kevin Willard said. “All his shots the last couple of games have not been rushed shots, they’ve been within the flow of the offense.” Mamukelashvili again credited Willard for helping him work on the release point and the arc of his outside jumper.
If Mamukelashvili can score from both inside and outside consistently, he will be the second option The Hall needs behind Myles Powell.
3--McKnight still popular at Sacred Heart. McKnight didn’t leave the “other” SHU with hard feelings, apparently. He spent several minutes immediately after the game sharing some warm exchanges with Sacred Heart players, coaches and parents of players. He embraced former teammate Sean Hoehn, a Morristown native who reached 1,000 points during the game. “Being around love is always good,” McKnight said of his exchanges with his former colleagues.
4--Good game for Nelson. Freshman point guard Anthony Nelson had eight assists in 21-plus minutes. He had six of those assists in the first half, playing extended minutes while McKnight sat with foul trouble. “I’ve been saying this from the first game,” McKnight said. “Ant is going to be good. He’s going to be great. I’ve learned a lot from him.”
McKnight is making the transition from being a combo guard at his previous school. Interestingly, he said that Willard had him running with the second-stringers during practice leading up to the game. That happened despite two excellent defensive games by McKnight against Kentucky and Rutgers. He took it as motivation, although Willard said he merely wanted to get Nelson more practice time with Powell and the other starters.
5---Taurean Thompson update. Thompson shot 1-for-6 overall and 0-for-4 from three in what could’ve been a confident-building game for him, but turned out not to be. Thompson’s six points pretty much matched his season average of 6.1 entering the game. The Pirates certainly could use some production from him against Maryland’s imposing frontcourt.
COMMENTS
https://setonhall.rivals.com/
