Second Half Surge Pushes Seton Hall Past Monmouth to Remain Unbeaten

Published: Thursday, November 13, 2025

by Caitlin Barrar

NEWARK, N.J. – The Seton Hall Pirates (4-0) defeated the Monmouth Hawks (1-2) by a score of 70-58 in a back-and-forth battle on Thursday night at the Prudential Center, as they extended their winning streak to a 4-0 start.

The first half was deja vu for the Pirates as they got off to a slow start once again shooting wise. They shot just 22% from the floor and at one point went on a four minute scoring drought. The Pirates were not adjusting to Monmouth’s defense and were rushing their offense, throwing easy layups off the backboard with too much force.

Luckily for Seton Hall, the second half was a much different story as they were able to get their offense set up. They had a much better shot selection and stopped forcing their shots. The tides turned for the Pirates once they began to see the ball go consistently through the net. In that half they were able to make 50% of their shots and shoot 37.5% from beyond the arc.

This time the second half turnaround was led by Budd Clark who contributed nine points, four assists, and three steals in the final twenty minutes. Much like against Fairfield, the Pirates were able to make adjustments at halftime and came out firing on all cylinders. Elijah Fisher and Mike Williams III led the charge out of the locker room by immediately cutting the Pirates seven-point halftime deficit down to two in a minute.

Seton Hall eventually went on a 10-0 run with six minutes left in the game which would seal Monmouth’s fate.

The Pirates defense was the main reason why they were able to pull away in this one. In the first half, Seton Hall forced a Monmouth team, that loves to play in the paint, to run their offense around the perimeter. However, Monmouth adjusted and shot 57% from three in the first half, while having two players enter the break in double figures.

Come second half though, Coach Shaheen Holloway decided they were going to run a full-court press which stunted any run the Hawks might have had. After the game, Coach Holloway said that “they did a great job of not letting them shoot as many threes.”

They forced twenty turnovers in total to go along with 13 steals and 10 blocks. Najai Hines quietly had seven of those blocks alongside seven points and eight boards. The Pirates also held Monmouth’s best scorers to only six points en route to outscoring them 43-24 in that half.

The team was led in scoring by Tajuan Simpkins who had a stellar night off the bench with 14 points and eight rebounds. Overall, the Pirates bench shined tonight, with 29 of the team’s 70 points.

The Pirates once again found a few players in foul trouble, like A.J. Staton-McCray who contributed 13 points. However, they didn’t let that affect them as Simpkins and Clark stepped up. This team prides themselves on being able to have someone different step up every night and that has been the case in every game this season, with the performances tonight showing just how deep they are off the bench.

The Pirates will look to continue to push their momentum and extend their winning streak when they take on the New Haven Chargers Tuesday night at the Prudential Center. AJ Rayer and Caitlin Barrar will be on the call and you can hear all the action on 89.5 FM WSOU.

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

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