PirateCrew: Seton Hall Pirates Football & Basketball Recruiting
The definitive source for all PirateCrew news.
By Tyler Calvaruso
Seton Hall is no stranger to excruciating losses.
Between Rutgers’ comeback in the 2017 Garden State Hardwood Classic, Michigan State overcoming a two-possession deficit with two minutes left to play and an epic collapse against Oregon at the Battle 4 Atlantis last season, the Pirates have endured their fair share of gut-wrenching results.
Tuesday night’s defeat at No. 3 Villanova might go down as the worst of them all.
Seton Hall got whistled for an egregious loose ball foul under its own basket with 1.9 seconds remaining and the score knotted at 74. After Cole Swider went one-of-two at the free throw line to give Villanova one-point lead, Takal Molson heaved a perfect pass the length of the court to Sandro Mamukelashvili, but the ball went through Mamukelashvili’s hand and cost him a chance at what would have been a makeable game-winning layup. Villanova split free throws again after Mamukelashvili’s drop, but the senior’s last second three fell short, handing Seton Hall a 76-74 loss at The Pavilion.
“I feel like it’s unexplainable,” Mamukelashvili said of the missed opportunity. “I just can’t explain what went through my head...disappointment and anger at the same time. I just had to stay positive. As coach says, you have to have a short memory when you play this game. I was right there and it didn’t work out. It happens. I wish it went a different way.”
The late whistle that ultimately cost Seton Hall the game came following a Shavar Reynolds missed shot. Molson and Jared Rhoden were left fighting for the rebound among a swarm of Villanova players before the referees deemed Molson was a bit too aggressive going for the ball.
“They went underneath the pick and roll, and I thought [Reynolds] shot a pretty good shot,” Kevin Willard said. “He’s made big shots. I have confidence in him to make those shots. It’s a tough loose ball foul, but give credit to both teams for fighting for the rebound.”
Prior to the late-game madness, Seton Hall and Villanova combined to play one of the best games of Big East play to date. The Pirates performed as well offensively as they have all season, shooting 56% from the field and 40% from three. Villanova, meanwhile, did not look anything like a team that was coming off a nearly month-long layoff because of COVID-19, firing on all cylinders for most of the night.
“It’s what makes Jay Wright probably the best college basketball coach, by far,” Willard said. “You know exactly what he’s going to run, but you can’t stop him. He’s got great players. This is an older, veteran Villanova team. They had played nine games. You know what they’re going to do, you know what their rotations are going to be. We knew what they were going to do.”
Mamukelashvili and Rhoden were big in Seton Hall’s efforts to hang around with the No. 3 team in the country, as Mamukelashvili stuffed the stat sheet with 23 points, nine rebounds and five assists. Rhoden posted 17 points in the first half, but only scored once over the final 20 minutes. Myles Cale chipped in 11 points, as did Reynolds, who hit three crucial shots with Seton Hall trailing by nine and only seven and a half minutes left to play.
As excruciating as Tuesday night’s loss was, the show goes on for a Seton Hall team currently perched in the upper echelon of the Big East standings. Next up for the Pirates is a trip to Hinkle Fieldhouse to take on a Butler team that has won two in a row in a game that could show the true character of this year’s Seton Hall squad.
“It just sucks losing,” Mamukelashvili said. “But we’re going to bounce back against Butler.”
Quick Thoughts
-It is tough to justify the officials blowing the whistle on that loose ball foul. Two teams fighting for a loose ball with only seconds remaining and the game on the line is not the time for any referee to leave their stamp on a game. Could Seton Hall have executed better down the stretch? Absolutely, but it is unfortunate that such a great game was ultimately determined by an underwhelming officiating crew. Credit Kevin Willard and Sandro Mamukelashvili for taking the high road postgame when asked about the call.
-You cannot beat the Seton Hall vs. Villanova rivalry right now. It is undoubtedly one of the best, and most competitive, matchups in the Big East right now. It should be a doozy when they meet at the Prudential Center.
-Really tough break for Mamukelashvili at the end considering how well he played throughout the night. It looked like his eyes either got wide as the pass was coming in and a wide-open hoop awaited him, or he was anticipating a deflection that never happened. Either way, definitely not the way Seton Hall’s star would have liked the game to end.
-Watching Tyrese Samuel try to defend with four fouls was almost as excruciating as the loss itself. The sophomore has improved a bit on that end of the floor recently, but he found himself in a nearly impossible spot against a tandem of talented Villanova bigs. It’s safe to assume he’ll learn from the experience.
-Seton Hall wound up in a dogfight against Butler and the same could happen Friday considering how well the Bulldogs play at home. The Pirates are the superior team and they need to establish that with authority from the opening tip. How a team bounces back from an emotionally draining loss like the one Seton Hall suffered at Villanova is usually a good barometer of how tough a group is. We’ll see if the Pirates really do have a short memory – something Willard preaches with utmost importance.
