Preview: Pirates start 3-game road trip at Xavier

Date: February 24, 2021

By: Connor Hester

Seton Hall Athletics

The Pirates (11-6) head to the Cintas Center in Cincinnati to take on the Xavier Musketeers (4-8) tonight at 7:00 p.m. The Pirates come into the game off of two magnanimous wins over Georgetown in overtime and Providence and will look to build on that momentum. With road matchups with Villanova and Saint John’s coming up the Pirates currently sit at fifth place in the Big East standings.

 

The Musketeers are suiting up for just their fourth game since Jan. 23 due to COVID protocols, losing their last three by an average of 22 points and haven’t won a game since their New Year’s Eve win over Providence going 0-5 in the new year.

 

The Pirates have three players averaging more than 16 points-per-game Andra Espinoza-Hunter (19.0), Lauren Park-Lane (17.6), and Desiree Elmore (16.6) which accounts for nearly 70% of the Pirates scoring. When the two teams met earlier in the year the Pirates trounced Xavier 85-59. Espinoza-Hunter went for an absurd 28 points with Mya Jackson and Desiree Elmore adding 13 points each.

Just how good has Desiree Elmore been this year?

She's the only player in the BIG EAST to rank among the Top-15 in all five major categories...

Points - 16.6 (7th)
Rebounds - 8.9 (2nd)
Assists - 3.1 (14th)
Steals - 2.0 (6th)
Blocks - 1.3 (3rd)#HALLin pic.twitter.com/io6CQjbJp1

— Seton Hall Women’s Basketball (@SHUWBB) February 22, 2021

Elmore comes off an impressive game Saturday against Providence, putting up 23 points, 12 rebounds, and four assists all while scoring her 1,000^th point in a Pirate uniform. The five-foot-10-inch senior from Hartford, Conn. has been a force for the Pirates all year adding 8.9 rebounds and just over one block per game to go along with her 16.6 points-per-game.

 

Park-Lane and Espinoza-Hunter will look to get back in form as they struggled to score in the win Saturday against the Friars, combing for just 23 points on seven of 26 shooting, including three of 14 from beyond the arch. While they didn’t have a strong of a showing vs. the Friars, AEH and LPL still helped the Pirates pace themselves as they had a decent lead throughout the game. Providence chipped away at the lead throughout, but the Pirates were still able to hold on.

 

You can listen to all the coverage you need on wsou.net or on the iHeartRadio app where Jorie Mickens and Ryan Henry will have the call on the flagship station for Seton Hall women’s basketball.

Connor Hester can be reached at connor.hester@student.shu.edu.

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