“We missed, by our count, 17 lay-ups in the first half”. It was its first win over the Top 5 team since beating No. 3 Villanova in the Big East Tournament on March 13, 2014, and its first at home over a Top 5 team since beating No. 4 Pittsburgh on February 9, 2004.
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Seton Hall can book its trip to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2006, and after dominating No. 5 Xavier at the Prudential Center on Sunday afternoon, the Pirates look capable of doing some damage when they get there.
That Seton Hall could win easily despite a below-average game from Whitehead shows the growth of the program this season.
EAST LANSING, Mich. – Denzel Valentine started slow and finished strong with 19 points, eight rebounds and six assists to help No. 6 Michigan State beat Penn State 88-57 on Sunday.
A letdown after such an emotional win was exacerbated by the Pirates’ stunning first-half defensive performance.
The Pirates’ fourth straight win and eighth in nine games was by far their most important of this rousing season, a signature victory that put a stamp on their already impressive resume and clinched no worse than third place in the Big East. A win at home over the Musketeers would be nice, but likely not going to happen.
The Xavier loss comes just five days after beating the No. 1 ranked Villanova Wildcats by a score of 90-83.
The Musketeers (25-4, 13-4) probably need to win the Big East tournament to have a realistic shot at a No. 1 seed now.
But keep in mind the Pirates now have four wins inside the RPI top 50 this season – albeit two came against Providence, which is reeling.
Rodriguez drove the lane for the opening basket and Delgado sandwiched a layup and a three-point play around a basket by Whitehead for a 9-0 lead. “They have a lot of really good athletic players”. No. 3 seed Seton Hall will face No. 6 seed Marquette in the second game of the session, slated for a 3:30 p.m. tip.
“We didn’t quit fighting, but we didn’t play well enough”. Like I said, it was very visible that we didn’t do our part on defense.
The Spartans connected on 52 percent of their shots in the first half after combining for a 3-of-15 shooting start and led 52-27 at halftime.
“Disappointed in our response from the 8 minute mark to the end of the first”, said Chris Mack on his post-game radio interview. They easily maintained the cushion in the second half.
Xavier outscored the Pirates 8-3 early in the second half but never bridged the gap despite forcing 18 turnovers throughout. It had been outrebounded only twice in 28 games.
Desi Rodriguez and Angel Delgado were Seton Hall’s stars on Sunday, scoring 44 points, ripping down 20 rebounds and creating numerous second-chance opportunities. Derrick Gordon, starting on senior day, had eight points, six rebounds and two assists, while Ismael Sanogo had five points, nine rebounds and two assists.
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NOTES: Seton Hall sank a season-high 27 free throws….
