Seton Hall Eyes Fresh Start in Road Battle Versus DePaul

Published: Friday, January 23, 2026

by Ross Vocaturo

CHICAGO, I.L. - The Seton Hall Pirates (14-5, 4-4) look to right the ship in Chicago when they take on the DePaul Blue Devils (11-8, 3-5). Since being ranked #25 by the Associated Press, for the first time since January 2022, the Pirates have lost three straight.  

Many fans and analysts alike gave some leniency to the quad-one loss they suffered versus UConn on January 13; however, heads began to turn after the loss to Butler on the 17th, with some critics questioning a lack of urgency in a home game versus a lesser opponent. And overall, through miracle wins and gut-wrenching losses, one constant remained: Shaheen Holloway molded this group as a 2nd half basketball team. 

This past Sunday, in a game where Seton Hall went into the half with a lead for the first time since December 30th (@ Marquette), as well as having said lead get as big as 15 well into the 2nd half, the Pirates got cold down the stretch and went on to lose to St John’s at Madison Square Garden, 65-60. A season that began as a Cinderella-caliber script has suddenly spiraled into a treading of water on a game-by-game basis.  

Offensive rhythm has been the hardest thing to come by for the Pirates. For starters, no Pirate has reached 20+ points in a game since Budd Clark’s 22-point performance at Georgetown. Moreover, while many have cited a “next man up” mentality for this team, it can also be said that the roster is in dire need of that bonafide “1A” option that some other programs have. 

AJ Staton-McCray holds that title in some people’s eyes, but the senior transfer from Miami is coming off a cold stretch of his own, including multiple games going “0-fer” from downtown as the team’s primary deep threat.  

It’s not just McCray struggling from behind the arc, if anything him and Taujan Simpkins have been viewed as the de facto “splash brothers” of the team. But to say this team’s 3-point shooting is “poor” would be an understatement; they’re ranked 321st out of 365 Division 1 basketball programs, surrounded primarily by low major programs in that regard. 

Their 5-13 (39%) performance against St. John’s happens to be one of their better showings of the year, but in a wider lens their 1-7 (14%) in the 2nd half had much to do with them blowing that game. 

The real eyebrow raiser came against UConn, nearly going 0-fer for a complete 40 minutes until Mike Williams (who was 1-8 himself on the night) hit a corner three inside the final two minutes of the nailbiter, which is a perfect example of what this team’s ceiling is even with the three point shot nearly nonexistent in Seton Hall’s game. 

As far as Saturday night’s matchup goes, they have a “get right” spot against a team that’s sub-.500 in the BIG EAST, though DePaul is playing significantly above their reputation in recent years. 

Blue Devils head coach Chris Holtmann has quickly made an impact on the program in his second year and is already only one win shy of his four conference wins last season in Chicago. CJ Gunn is their primary scoring option, while 6’8” NJ Benson has been their leading contributor off the glass. 

It’s not necessarily “must win” territory for the Pirates just yet, but it has gotten closer to that range earlier than many imagined with how this season began. While the defensive aspect of this team has remained steady for the majority of the season, the offensive woes need to get fixed quickly if the Pirates want their voyage to continue into March. 

Catch all coverage of the matchup on WSOU 89.5 FM, starting with pregame coverage at 4:30 p.m., followed by Lauren Reese and AJ Rayer on the call for a 5:00 p.m. tipoff. 

Ross Vocaturo can be reached at ross.vocaturo@student.shu.edu.

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