PirateCrew: Seton Hall Pirates Football & Basketball Recruiting
The definitive source for all PirateCrew news.
By JP Pelzman
Seton Hall’s too-close-for-comfort 57-53 victory over Georgetown in the first round of the Big East tournament Wednesday night was good news.
Even better news? The Pirates won’t have to see the Hoyas again until next season.
As woeful as Georgetown was in 2021-22, and the Hoyas became the first team since DePaul in 2008-09 to run the table in reverse in conference play, the Hoyas were annoying to The Hall. In three meetings, the Pirates never could quite shake them, and the last two games both came down to the final minute.
But, twice in a span of eight days, the team that will be packing its bags for March Madness made the plays when it counted. The team that has a long off-season of soul-searching ahead did not.
“It shows what type of character these kids have,” coach Kevin Willard said of the victory. “What's really impressive is the leadership in the huddle. They don't get excited. They stay focused. They talk to each other in a really positive way.”
Harris’ perfectly executed catch-and-shoot three off an assist from Jared Rhoden (17 points) put the Pirates (21-9) ahead 55-53 with 40.3 seconds left.
The Hoyas (6-25) had two more chances. First, Donald Carey had his shot blocked by Ike Obiagu. Myles Cale (14 points) grabbed the rebound, but it took three fouls for the Hoyas to put the Pirates into the bonus. Once they did, Alexis Yetna missed the front end of a one-and-one. This time, Carey drove toward Obiagu but kicked it out instead, perhaps intimidated by the 7-footer. However, his pass sailed out of bounds.
“We tried to get the ball to Kaiden” Rice, Patrick Ewing said, “one of our best shooters, and then we turned it over.”
Rhoden sank two clinching foul shots with 2.9 seconds left and the Pirates finally could think about facing third-seeded UConn (22-8) in the quarterfinals tonight at 9:30 or thereabouts.
“It feels amazing,” said Harris, who had nine points and two assists, “just to be able to knock down that shot for my teammates and my brothers, there's no better feeling than that. Hearing the crowd go crazy for us, and be so excited for me to hit that shot, it means the world for me.”
Harris once again had to pull a lot of double duty. Kadary Richmond (thumb) started but left the game for good with 17:26 left after aggravating it. He has nine points and three assists in 17 minutes.
“Kadary is doing OK,” Willard said. “He gutted it out. I didn't put him back in. He got hit back on the hand, on his thumb. And it's a sprain.
“It's like when you sprain your ankle. It's kind of like when you redo it, it hurts. And so I took him out and I just--he had given us a lot for what he's been going through. I didn't want him to not be able to play” going forward.
Harris said, “I just wanted to be prepared for whatever role Coach needs me to play for us to win. And I just want, whatever position I'm put in, I want to do it to the best of my ability for my teammates to help us win games. I just feel like I need to stay prepared regardless of the situation I'm in, and I was able to do that.”
Lucky 7? Seton Hall (20-9 in the NCAA’s eyes) actually went down from 32 to 34 in the NET rankings, and Georgetown improved from 198 to 193. Style points matter to the NET, but not the committee.
Is it enough to get the Pirates off the 7 line in the upcoming NCAA tournament? That is hard to say. A win over the Huskies likely would do it, but that will be hard without Richmond, who might not be available. But getting him healthy for next week is way more important.
Good and bad from Yetna. Alexis Yetna had 11 rebounds on a night when the Pirates lost, 48-34 on the glass, so that was important. But he also went 0-for-3 from beyond the arc and is shooting 17-for-74 (22.3%) from long distance this season.
The Pirates need Yetna’s physicality, but he also needs to focus on what he is best at. Yes, he had a go-ahead three at Creighton with a hand in his face, but teams usually are giving him that shot. And there’s a reason why.
Welcome back, Husky Nation. The UConn fan base has waited nine long years for tonight, and there may be times when Madison Square Garden feels like Gampel South. The Pirates have played solidly on the road, and must draw on that.
On the court, they will have to slow down you-know-who, Adama Sanogo. Kevin Willard told FS1’s Kristina Pink after the game that they would have to rebound better against the Huskies. He didn’t mention names, but again, Yetna figures to be a key.
Rested Huskies. UConn hasn’t played since beating DePaul at home Saturday, while, of course, The Hall had to go past midnight to finally subdue the Hoyas.
“I think rest is really important,” Jared Rhoden said, “just getting back to the hotel and getting some recovery in, and just mentally settling down a little bit. And basically during this time the body is going to break down a little bit. But just staying through it. Just watching some film and more of a mental day (today) and going into” tonight.
Georgetown’s futility. The Hoyas, who finished 0-19 in conference during the regular season, were trying not to duplicate the feat of the 2008-09 DePaul squad, the last team to go winless for the Big East. Those Blue Demons went 0-18 but knocked off Cincinnati in the first round.
Carey, normally the 2 guard, was handling the ball at the end because starting point guard Dante Harris left 8:21 into the game with a foot injury. He was helped off the court and couldn’t put weight on his foot, perhaps adding another question mark to an interesting off-season.
