PIRATES TO HOST INDIANA IN GAVITT TIPOFF GAMES

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• SEASON TIX

NEW YORK - The Seton Hall men's basketball team will receive a visit from the Indiana Hoosiers in the third annual Gavitt Tipoff Games that pits members of the BIG EAST against members of the Big Ten. The Pirates-Hoosiers showdown takes place Wednesday, Nov. 15 at Prudential Center on FS1. The game time will be determined at a later date.

This will be Seton Hall's second appearance in the Gavitt Tipoff Games, a unique early-season series played between the two conferences and named in honor of Dave Gavitt, founder of the BIG EAST and basketball visionary. In their first appearance last November, the Pirates went to Iowa and toppled the Hawkeyes, 91-83.

Indiana will be the first non-Rutgers Big Ten team to come to Prudential Center to play the Pirates. The last time a non-Rutgers Big Ten team competed against The Hall on the Pirates' home floor was Penn State on Dec. 9, 2006 at the Meadowlands (69-59, Seton Hall). The Pirates are 1-2 all-time against the Hoosiers, and all three previous contests came on neutral floors:

• March 23, 1989 - NCAA Tournament West Regional Semifinal (Denver, Colo.) - Seton Hall, 78-65
• Nov. 27, 1992 - Preseason NIT Final (New York, N.Y.) - Indiana, 78-74
• Nov. 7, 1998 - NABC Classic (Indianapolis, Ind.) - Indiana, 83-69

The Pirates, led by eighth-year head coach Kevin Willard, will be loaded in 2017-18, returning four starters from a squad that won 21 games and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for a second straight year. The eight returning letterwinners combine to represent 90.8 percent of the team's scoring and 91.2 percent of the team's rebounding from last season.

The Hoosiers, with new head coach Archie Miller, are coming off an 18-16 campaign and an appearance in the NIT. Previously, they had earned NCAA Tournament berths in four of the last five years. They return 58.9 percent of their scoring and 65.5 percent of their rebounding from last season.

Scheduled through 2022, the Gavitt Tipoff Games are played on consecutive days in the first full week of the college basketball season. The series spans eight years, with games played at home sites. Each BIG EAST team is participating a minimum of six times, while Big Ten programs are taking part a minimum of four times. Teams from both conferences already meet in some traditional rivalry games, such as the Garden State Hardwood Classic between Seton Hall and Rutgers, and those matchups will continue in the upcoming seasons.

Through two years of the event, the BIG EAST and the Big Ten have split the 16 games, 8-8.

Fans can place their deposit on 2017-18 Seton Hall basketball season tickets, which will include this Indiana game by going online or by calling (973) 275-HALL during normal business hours.

2017 Gavitt Tipoff Games Matchups (All times TBD)

Monday, Nov. 13
Minnesota at Providence - FS1

Tuesday, Nov. 14
Purdue at Marquette - FS1

Wednesday, Nov. 15
Butler at Maryland - FS1 or Big Ten Network
Creighton at Northwestern - FS1 or Big Ten Network
Indiana at Seton Hall - FS1

Thursday, Nov. 16
Nebraska at St. John's - FS1
Xavier at Wisconsin - FS1

Friday, Nov. 17
DePaul at Illinois - Big Ten Network

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