Seton Hall Takes Final Road Trip of the Regular Season Visiting Xavier

Published: Monday, March 2, 2026

by Jake Marcial

CINCINNATI, O.H. - The Seton Hall Pirates (19-10, 9-9) are in Cincinnati on Tuesday night as they take on the Xavier Musketeers (14-15, 6-12) in their second-to-last game of the 2025-26 regular season.

The Pirates are coming off a tough 71-67 loss to #6 UConn on Saturday, a game that they led 65-64 with 1:22 left before the Huskies pulled away in the final minute. A.J. Staton-McCray led the way with 20 points, keeping the Pirates in the game down the stretch with clutch shots and free throws. Once again, foul trouble hurt the Pirates, as the Huskies outshot the Pirates 20-8 from the line.

Xavier is coming off a 91-84 win at home against Georgetown on Saturday. The win snapped a three-game losing streak, and the Musketeers have not won consecutive games since January 10th and 14th. It was a back-and-forth offensive affair in Cincinnati, before Xavier began to pull away in the last few minutes of the second half. 

As he has all season, Tre Carroll led the way for the Musketeers with 22 points, six  rebounds, going a perfect 10/10 from the free throw line. Roddie Anderson III also notched 21 points, 2 steals, and a block. Five Musketeers logged multiple steals for a team total of 11.

Last time these two teams faced off, it was a tale of two completely different halves. On the back-end of a four-game losing streak, the Pirates fell behind by 11 in the first half. Just as it was looking like their skid would continue, they burst out of the gate and started the second half on a 14-0 run in the first four minutes. 

They took the lead for good with 15 minutes left, leading the whole rest of the way, ending the game on a 12-0 run to finish off the 86-68 victory. Tajuan Simpkins had perhaps his best game of the season, scoring 27 points on 5/8 from beyond the arc, mostly in the second half. Budd Clark also had 24 points, seven rebounds, and four steals in the win.

What seemed like a turning point in the Pirates’ season has since turned out to be a flash in the pan of conference play. They have gone 4-4 since that game against Xavier, and their NCAA tournament hopes have all but crumbled around them. 

They did hold their own again against UConn, but still see themselves on the outside looking in. Nonetheless, their final two games against Xavier and #15 St. John’s give them the chance to boost their résumé and build some momentum going into the BIG EAST tournament next week.

The key to the Pirates’ furious comeback was forcing turnovers, especially early in the second half. Over the course of that 14-0 run to start the half, they forced four turnovers. They swiped 14 steals and forced 19 turnovers in total, turning them into 24 points. 

They also blanked Tre Carroll in the second half, as he went 0-3 from the field, fouled three times and turned the ball over three times as well. Carroll has scored double-digit points in all but three conference games, two of those being against UConn. It will be key to limit his production again if the Pirates want to pull off the win.

Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. on Tuesday evening from the Cintas Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. Nick DiBlasi and Jacob Glick will have the call on 89.5 FM WSOU.

Jake Marcial can be reached at jacob.marcial@student.shu.edu.

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