PirateCrew: Seton Hall Pirates Football & Basketball Recruiting
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Seton Hall has not won at Villanova’s Finneran Pavilion since February 1994, well before any of the team’s players were born, and the streak will persist for at least one more year as the Pirates dropped its Big East conference opener 79-67 Tuesday evening at the “ski lodge.”
The Pirates put up their third highest point total of the season in the twelve-point defeat, but the Wildcats savvy veterans proved to be too much, especially late, as Eric Dixon and Jordan Longino combined for more than half of Villanova’s points, including 26 of its 42 in the second half.
Dixon led all scorers with 25 points, 14 in the second half, to go along with six rebounds; Longino recorded 15 points, 12 in the second half, five assists and two steals; and Tyler Perkins came off the bench to score a season high 17 points, on 5/6 shooting from three, tying a career high in makes.
Pacing Seton Hall was Isaiah Coleman with 22 points, nine rebounds, one assist and one steal, followed by Chaunce Jenkins with 14 points and Dylan Addae-Wusu with 12 points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Villanova entered the game winning five of their last six and recorded the first bucket, but the Hall landed the first punch in the contest as it jumped out to an 8-2 advantage in the first three minutes after Addae-Wusu connected on a triple from the wing off the assist from Garwey Dual, who finished with eight points.
Villanova regained the lead, 12-10, after a friendly bounce off the back iron on a Jhamir Brickus three before the Wildcats took the lead for good just a couple of minutes later when Enock Boakye dunked a pass from Longino for the 17-15 edge. Five minutes later Dixon committed an offensive foul, his second of the game, prompting Kyle Neptune to sit him, but Seton Hall failed to capitalize allowing Villanova to score on four straight possessions. The Wildcats finished the half assisting on 11 of their 14 field goals, shooting 58.3% from the field and 45.5% from distance.
The home team took its largest lead of the half after Boakye made one of two free throws for the 37-26 lead, that would end up being 37-29 at the half.
Starting four sophomores in the second half, Dual, Coleman, Scotty Middleton and Emmanuel Okorafor, Seton Hall closed the matchup to a two possession game, 40-36, less than three minutes into the half behind a three from Middleton and a fadeaway jumper from Dual.
A three from Longino followed by and easy and-one layup for Wooga Poplar out of a baseline inbounds extended Villanova’s lead back up to 46-38 and the Wildcats would keep the Pirates at arm’s length for much of the second half before taking its largest lead of the game, 76-59, when Dixon made one of two free throws.
