Pirates Battle Back, Take Control Late in Crucial Win at Butler

Published: Sunday, February 15, 2026

by Caitlin Barrar

INDIANAPOLIS, I.N. – The Seton Hall Pirates (18-8, 8-7) left the Hoosier State with a big win as they took down the Butler Bulldogs (13-13, 4-11) on Sunday evening, 63-56.

In a hard-fought back and forth game, the Pirates saw heroics from a few different players. AJ Staton-McCray was the standout, leading the scoring with 19 points on 7-11 shooting while also posting in five rebounds and two blocks.

The first three minutes of the game started off cold for both teams, but an early 8-0 scoring burst gave the Bulldogs a quick lead.

Staton-McCray answered back with a nice move in the paint to start an 8-0 Pirates run of their own that was capitalized by a lob from Trey Parker to Josh Rivera. With Budd Clark sitting for an extended time in the half due to foul trouble, the Pirates needed scoring and energy off the bench. Parker, Rivera, Najai Hines, and Mike Williams delivered – providing 24 of the team’s 63 points.

In a half of runs, the Pirates once again struggled beyond the arc and at the foul line, which led to another 13-4 answer by the Bulldogs. Seton Hall shot just 10% from three and was 2-7 from the charity stripe in the first twenty minutes. They finished the game making only 10 of their 22 attempts.

However, unlike their last few games, the Pirates went into the break down only one following a shot clock violation on the defensive end and a Clark fadeaway. Clark ended with eight points and seven assists.

The second half picked up right where they left off as Butler quickly went on a 6-0 stretch to open, which forced Seton Hall into an early timeout. The Pirates’ defense couldn’t find an answer to Michael Ajayi who headed Butler’s scoring with a 21-point, 12 rebound double-double.

Tajuan Simpkins, in his first start this season, answered back. Following a three-point play, he gave the Pirates their first lead since early on in the first half, capping a 10-2 surge.

After back-to-back threes by Williams and Staton-McCray, the Pirates forced turnovers that saw them up by four with two minutes to go. Staton-McCray had 15 of his 19 points in the second half. Williams finished with 10 points and three steals off the bench.

Stephon Payne sealed it on the defensive end with not one, but two blocks to give the Pirates their second win in a row. Seton Hall finished the game with 13 blocks, including five by Hines.

Defense led the way for the Pirates, holding one of the top offensive teams in the BIG EAST to shooting just 30% from the floor, while outrebounding them and shooting 50% themselves.

It showed growth that Seton Hall never got down by double figures and did not have to rely solely on Clark to carry them down the stretch. It was also helpful to beat a team that could very likely be their first round matchup in the BIG EAST Tournament.

The Pirates tournament hopes are still alive, as they head down to the final five games of the season. They return to the Rock on Wednesday to take on DePaul at 8 p.m., where Nick DiBlasi and Jake Marcial will have the call on 89.5 FM WSOU.

Caitlin Barrar can be reached at caitlin.barrar@student.shu.edu.

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