WSOU

Seton Hall lays egg at No. 18 Villanova, 80-52

Date: January 27, 2019

By Christopher Russo

The Seton Hall Pirates lost by the score of 80-52 against No. 18 Villanova on Sunday afternoon.

 

Looking to bounce back from a three-game losing streak, the Pirates kept the game within reach in the first half and trailed 30 to 20 at the break. However, they could not do what they were supposed to do: defend the perimeter. 51 of the Wildcats’ 80 points came from three-point shots. In particular, they could not defend Phil Booth, who totaled 25 points on the day and shot 7/13 from downtown.

 

Villanova shot 48% from the field, and 40% from three-point range. They shot a remarkable 54.8% from the field in the latter 20 minutes and shot 47.8% from the outside in the same frame of time.

 

Seton Hall was down ten points at the break because of constant turnovers. The Pirates turned over the ball 18 times on Sunday and 14 times in the first half. An unusually lackluster Myles Powell led the team with seven turnovers and only scored three points on the day.

 

The Pirates’ ten-point halftime deficit put them within range of Villanova, but the Wildcats put this game away quickly in the second half. The first half was a defensive struggle that favored Villanova, but the second half was a shootout the Wildcats won handily. Villanova scored 50 points in the last 20 minutes and won the rebounding battle, 21-17. They opened up the game by spreading the ball, as Booth led the second half scoring with only 11, and every Wildcat scored at least one point.

 

Despite a grim afternoon for the Pirates, there were a few bright spots. Though it was mainly because of the Wildcats’ poor job, Seton Hall outshot Villanova 64% to 56% from the free throw line, showing a potential weakness for the Wildcats-Pirates game at the Prudential Center later this winter. Also, Myles Cale continued his resurgence with a team-leading 14 points. Though he did not produce offensively, Sandro Mamukelashvili led the team with seven rebounds and two blocks. Lastly, although it took a back seat to Villanova’s dominance, Romaro Gill played his first game since January 2nd against Xavier. In 16 minutes off the bench, he had two points and three rebounds.

 

The Pirates’ next game is against Providence at the Prudential Center on Wednesday at 7 pm. Coverage will begin at 6:45 on 89.5 FM WSOU.

 

Christopher Russo can be reached at chrisrusso98@gmail.com.

Posted in: Sports, WSOU

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