Seton Hall Once Again Taps Into Comeback Magic to Hold Off Marquette

Published: Saturday, January 31, 2026

by Ryan Nelke

NEWARK, N.J. - The Seton Hall Pirates (16-6, 6-5) once again utilized a second half comeback to take down the Marquette Golden Eagles (8-15, 3-9) 69-64 on Saturday afternoon.

Early on, Marquette came out of the gates blazing hot, shooting the three-ball at an elite clip.  Marquette connected on their first seven of nine from downtown, with Nigel James Jr. leading the charge with 10. 

However, despite the Golden Eagles shooting the ball well, the Pirates were still able to stay within reach, as AJ Staton-McCray’s early eight points kept them within five, as they trailed 30-25 with five and a half minutes to go in the first half.

Marquette did not slow down from three, as they closed out the half shooting at a 66.7% clip from the field.  Nigel James Jr. and Royce Parham were the two key scorers in the first frame for the Golden Eagles, as they had 12 and 10 respectively.

The scoring was spread out for the Hall, with six different players chipping in 4+ points, but to no surprise, they were still behind at the break, 41-33, requiring another second half comeback to pull out the BIG EAST victory.

The Pirates came out strong to start the second half, beginning the frame on a 12-3, capped off by a Budd Clark layup at the 14:43 mark to give Seton Hall their first lead of the game at 45-44.

Marquette would swiftly grab the lead back at 46-45, but following Chase Ross’s bucket, the Pirates would take control of the lead, as they held a 55-54 advantage at the U8 media timeout.

Every time it seemed like the Pirates had a chance to widen the lead in the second half, Marquette would have an immediate answer to keep the game tightly contested, and this was usually achieved by hitting a three-pointer.

By the final media timeout at the 3:59, both sides found themselves in a 60-60 stalemate, with the crowd getting louder and louder by each possession.

An alley-oop to Josh Rivera with just under three minutes gave Seton Hall the 62-60 lead, but Marquette would respond on the ensuing possession with a Parham dunk.  The same sequence would happen right after, with a Rivera layup followed up by a Parham two-pointer, leaving the game knotted up at 64.

Staton-McCray’s go-ahead three-pointer with just over a minute left would send the crowd into a frenzy, giving the Pirates a late three-point lead at 67-64.  

The Pirates would make a big time defensive stand with 7.7 seconds to play, and that would be the last chance the Golden Eagles would have the rest of the day, as Clark’s two free throws would solidify the 69-64 victory.

Following the win, the Pirates set sail for a crucial road contest against Villanova on Wednesday night, with Nick DiBlasi and Ryan Nelke on the call.  Tipoff is scheduled for 6:30 pm, with pregame coverage starting at 6 p.m. on 89.5 FM WSOU.

Ryan Nelke is an Assistant Sports Director and can be reached at nelkerya@shu.edu.

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