PirateCrew: Seton Hall Pirates Football & Basketball Recruiting
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By JP Pelzman
Looking back at Seton Hall’s 71-56 victory over Butler and ahead to the No. 24 Pirates noon home game against Connecticut on Saturday:
Defense made the difference.
Seton Hall imposed its will on Butler, and having Ike Obiagu back from a COVID pause and an ankle injury was one major factor. As associate head coach Grant Billmeier noted, having Obiagu back meant that perimeter defenders could be more aggressive.
Also, Myles Cale locked down Chuck Harris, who came in averaging 11.7 points per game, tops on the Bulldogs. Beset with foul trouble, and hounded by Cale, Harris went 0-for-5 overall and 0-for-3 from long distance and was held scoreless.
Jackson in a lull.
Tray Jackson has been in a bit of a slump, averaging only 3.0 points in his last five games. Part of that may be due to the fact that he had to play out of position in Obiagu’s absence, although he did have 10 points at Providence last week.
Still, like a struggling wide receiver in football trying to run with the ball before he looks it into his hands, he seems to be pressing, needing the game to slow down for him to perform to expectations. Jackson has the talent and the basketball IQ to figure it out. If he does, The Hall will be that much more dangerous.
Aiken the distributor.
Bryce Aiken had seven assists, by far his most as a Pirate. Aiken always has functioned as less of a true point guard or 1 and more as a 1½, if you will, which is not a knock on him. He is terrific at creating for himself. But if he could play like this on a more regular basis, it might help the Pirates reach their full potential.
What about Weston?
Willard told Gary Cohen and Dave Popkin in the postgame on 970 AM that Brandon Weston is ready to play physically, having overcome his knee injury and a bout with COVID.
The question now becomes whether he wants to burn his redshirt.
“I’m going have to talk to him and his family about that,” Willard told the broadcast tandem. “I think Brandon is going to be a really good player. If I could get him some minutes in Big East play, I think it will help him going into next year, so you know what to expect. That experience is monstrous.”
Willard said that eventually, “I’ll let him do what he wants to do.”
Willard indicated that he had intended to play Weston for a few minutes against Iona at Madison Square Garden on Dec. 18, but COVID scuttled those plans.
Scouting Connecticut.
UConn (10-3, 1-1) hasn’t played since a 78-70 win at Marquette on Dec. 21 because of its COVID issues. Guard R.J. Cole (16.3 points, 4.7 assists) is the focal point of the Huskies’ backcourt.
Adama Sanogo (14.6 points, 5.8 rebounds), aka The One Who Got Away, missed four games with an abdominal injury before returning for Marquette.
Seton Hall split with the Huskies last season in their return to the league.
