Game Preview: Seton Hall attempts to ground soaring No.24 Golden Eagles(1/18/19)

Date: January 18, 2019

By Robert Ruszkowski

The Seton Hall Women’s Basketball team (11-5 Overall, 3-2 Conference) will aim to extend their two-game winning streak when they travel to Milwaukee to face the No.14 Marquette Golden Eagles (14-3 Overall, 5-0 Conference).

The Pirates are fresh off a weekend sweep of Creighton and Providence during their brief two-game homestand. In the latter game, they defeated the Friars 79-73. Shadeen Samuels and Nicole Jimenez led all scorers with 19 points each as Desiree Elmore, the sophomore transfer from Syracuse, also contributed 16 points. Samuels recorded her third straight double-double as she picked up 10 rebounds and was an active passer as well, contributing five assists.

In a game that featured 10 ties and 11 lead changes, Seton Hall was able to hold off a comeback from Providence as they entered the fourth quarter tied at 56. On the defensive end, the Pirates had nine steals with Jimenez leading the team with three. The win places them in a two-way tie for third place in the Big East standings as they are set to arguably play their two toughest games of the season during this upcoming weekend.

Marquette also went 2-0 last week as they defeated both Villanova and Georgetown on the road to extend their current winning streak to five games. In Sunday’s matchup against the Georgetown Hoyas, Marquette started the game slowly by scoring just seven points in the first quarter but was able to enter halftime tied at 32. However, they were able to pull away in the second half and defeat Georgetown 72-62. In the game, Natisha Hiedeman led Marquette with 20 points and 10 total rebounds as Erika Davenport also recorded a double-double with exactly 10 points and 10 rebounds.

The Golden Eagles are still undefeated through conference play and are currently tied for first place in the Big East alongside Butler. The preseason favorites to win the conference have not disappointed thus far in the season as their resume includes a 30-point victory over DePaul as well as an 11-point win over Michigan and a 19-point win at Northwestern. The 14^th ranked Golden Eagles only three losses of the year have all come from teams ranked in the top 25 in the nation.

The Pirates will have to consistently play at their top potential if they look to win on Friday in hostile territory and end Marquette’s undefeated Big East record. Follow along on 89.5 FM WSOU to see who will leave Milwaukee with the win as Frank Frasco and Dagen Hughes give you all the play-by-play action live from Wisconsin! The matchup is set to tip-off at 12:30 pm, with pregame coverage starting at 12:15 pm.

Robert Ruszkowski can be reached at ruszkoro@shu.edu.

Posted in: Game Previews, Sports, Women's Basketball, WSOU