PirateCrew: Seton Hall Pirates Football & Basketball Recruiting
The definitive source for all PirateCrew news.
By JP Pelzman
The Seton Hall-St. John’s rivalry will heat up the frigid Metropolitan area the next few days. The two programs have never played one another twice in such close succession, although both last season, and in 1986, they played twice in six days because of the Big East tournament following a late regular-season game.
Here’s a look at five memorable wins for each team, in descending chronological order:
Dec. 29, 2018: Seton Hall, 76-74--Shavar Reynolds’ three-pointer with less than a second remaining lifts the host Pirates over the furious Red Storm, angered over a gift possession granted by Michael Stevens’ botched call on what should’ve been a side out for the Johnnies.
Reynolds, who took a pass from Sandro Mamukelashvili, actually was fouled and missed the free throw on purpose.
Feb. 21, 2016: Seton Hall, 62-61--Despite shooting a dismal 1-for-12 from the floor, sophomore star Isaiah Whitehead sank two foul shots with 5.6 seconds left to give the Pirates the victory after they had blown a 19-point lead at Madison Square Garden.
This is part of a late-season surge, sparked by Whitehead, resulting in the program’s first NCAA bid in 10 years.
Jan. 4, 2006: Seton Hall, 69-61--Paul Gause accidentally scores a basket for St. John’s after a steal to put the visitors up by 20 in the second half, but later hits a 12-foot floater to send the contest to OT.
Kelly Whitney scored 23 points and current assistant coach Donald Copeland had 20 for The Hall, and both hit key free throws in the extra session.
March 1, 2008: St. John’s, 65-62--Jeremy Hazell banks in an apparent game-tying 75-footer in the final seconds in Jamaica. But it doesn’t count, because Seton Hall coach Bobby Gonzalez already had called a timeout.
Instead, the three-pointer by Anthony Mason Jr. with two seconds left is the game-winner. Mason finishes with 24 points.
March 6, 1993: Seton Hall, 92-73--Terry Dehere pours in 36 points to become the Big East’s all-time leading scorer--at the time--and the Pirates clinched their first Big East regular-season title.
Dehere had 41 points in an overtime win over the Johnnies at The Garden the previous month.
Feb. 4, 1985: St. John’s, 87-76--Chris Mullin scored 26 points and Walter Berry added 21 as St. John’s overcame a 14-point second-half deficit for its 13th consecutive win in the most recent game played by the teams at Walsh Gym.
Andre McCloud had 18 points for the Pirates, who lost their 10th straight. The Hall was in the midst of a 15-game losing streak to St. John’s.
Jan. 24, 1984: St. John’s 63, 62--Mullin goes 8-for-9 from the floor and 13-for-13 from the foul line as the Johnnies overcome both a six-point second-half deficit and the absence of big man Bill Wennington (sprained ankle).
McCloud scored 17 for the hosts in South Orange.
Jan. 25, 1982: St. John’s, 91-85--Mullin--of course--scores 29 points to lead the visitors at Walsh.
Big East Player of the Year Dan Callandrillo’s 38 points are not enough for the Pirates.
March 5, 1977: St. John’s, 83-73--MVP George Johnson scores 28 points to lead St. John’s in the final of the soon-to-be-defunct ECAC Metro Tournament. At the time, that was the gateway to the NCAAs, and the winner got an automatic bid to the Tournament. Realistically, this is the closest coach Bill Raftery ever got to the NCAAs.
Except of course, as a broadcaster. His team settled for the NIT and lost to Massachusetts by a point.
March 14, 1953: Seton Hall, 58-46--The Big One. Back in the days when the NIT mattered more than the NCAAs, the legendary Walter Dukes was the MVP as the Pirates beat the Johnnies in the championship game at MSG.
