Pirates Open BIG EAST Play Against VIllanova

Published: Tuesday, December 17, 2024

by AJ Rayer

The Seton Hall Pirates (5-6) will travel to the Main Line to take on the Villanova Wildcats (7-4) on Tuesday night to open their BIG EAST season. Seton Hall aims to rebound after a heartbreaking buzzer-beater loss to Rutgers Saturday afternoon in the Garden State Hardwood Classic.

Despite playing their most complete game of the season against Rutgers, Seton Hall finished its non-conference slate at 5-6, ending under .500 for the first time since the 1982-83 season, P.J. Carlesimo’s first year as head coach.

Sophomore guard Isaiah Coleman has continued to grow into his expanded role on this year’s Pirates squad. He scored 15 points against Rutgers, leading the offense down the stretch. Coleman hit two clutch free throws to tie the game at 63 with six seconds remaining in front of a packed Scarlet Knights student section before Rutgers standout Dylan Harper hit the game-winner.

Coleman has now surpassed graduate student Chaunce Jenkins as the Pirates' leading scorer of the year, averaging 12 points per game to Jenkins’ 11.5.

In the frontcourt, both Emmanuel Okorafor and Yacini Toumi are starting to find their roles on the Seton Hall roster. Okorafor posted a career-high 10 rebounds against Rutgers, along with eight points on 4-of-7 shooting. Toumi contributed 10 points.

Coach Holloway said after the game against Rutgers that this Pirates team is beginning to play the way he envisioned before the start of the season.

Now turning to Villanova, the Wildcats have had an up-and-down start to the season. Like the Pirates, Villanova has several blemishes on its resume, including losses to Columbia and Saint Joseph’s.

However, Villanova has the star power to compete with some of the best teams in the nation. Graduate forward Eric Dixon currently leads the nation in scoring with 25.2 points per game on 54% shooting. Dixon scored 31 points to lead Villanova to its best win of the season, a victory over No. 14 Cincinnati at home earlier this month.

Senior guard Wooga Poplar has also started to heat up for the Wildcats. The former Miami Hurricane is averaging 16.3 points per game, shooting an impressive 7-of-13 from behind the arc over his last three games. As a team, Villanova leads the BIG EAST in 3-point percentage at 40.6%, which ranks 12th in the country.

Villanova leads the all-time series 84-44 against Seton Hall. The two teams split the season series last year, each winning at home.

The Pirates’ defense will need to be at its best to secure a win. Lockdown perimeter defense and forcing the ball out of Dixon’s hands will be key. In a hostile road environment, it’s important for Seton Hall to start aggressively on offense to take the crowd out of the game, similar to their approach against Rutgers.

Miguel Friere and Lauren Reese will have the call for 89.5 FM WSOU live from Finneran Pavilion. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m. with pregame coverage beginning at 7:15 p.m., hosted by CJ Weipz and Patrick Corsello.

AJ Rayer can be reached at alexander.rayer@student.shu.edu. 

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