January 27, 2010 –
by Brendon
A 2-6 stretch from mid-December to mid-January took Seton Hall off many NCAA Tournament radars, but the Pirates are proving that they are good enough to compete for a berth. With two straight wins, SHU is back to 3-4 in conference, and the schedule lightens up — a little — from here on out. In my preseason projections, I picked Seton Hall to make the NCAA Tournament, and there’s no reason to back off that now, even if it might be as the eighth or ninth Big East team in the field.
Right now, the Pirates are just on the outside looking in — fifth out based on my at-large prediction model, but here are some reasons why Seton Hall is good enough to hear its name called on March 14.
Depth: Coach Bobby Gonzalez always had kids who could play and play hard, he just never had enough of them. This season, he has 10 guys whom he’s comfortable playing at various times, and a solid eight-man rotation that could change depending on the opponent. The addition of three transfers — Herb Pope, Jeff Robinson and Keon Lawrence — and two freshmen — Jamel Jackson and Ferrakohn Hall — has allowed Gonzalez to keep his best players healthy and rested. That has helped Seton Hall down the stretch of games and should help down the stretch of this season. Read More »
Posted in Big East
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Tagged Bobby Gonzalez, Brandon Walters, Dominique Jones, Evan Turner, Ferrakohn Hall, Georgetown, Herb Pope, Jamel Jackson, Jeff Robinson, Jeremy Hazell, John Garcia, Jon Leuer, Keon Lawrence, Louisville, Mike Davis, Pittsburgh, Providence, Quincy Pondexter, Scottie Reynolds, Seth Davis, Seton Hall, South Florida, Villanova, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin
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December 29, 2009 –
by Brendon
The schedule-makers did Seton Hall no favors with Big East openers against West Virginia and Syracuse. On Saturday at the Prudential Center in Newark, Bobby Gonzalez’s Pirates pushed undefeated West Virginia to overtime with a last-minute surge before succumbing, 90-84. It will take an equally strong effort to defeat also-undefeated Syracuse on Tuesday night.
Despite the loss to the Mountaineers, there was plenty of good news for Seton Hall fans based on the performance, news that should boost hopes at a big upset on Tuesday. The biggest bit of optimism stems from Seton Hall’s ability to hold its own — and thensome — on the glass against WVU.
The Pirates have been exploited on the defensive backboard during Gonzalez’s entire tenure thanks to a lack of size and frontcourt depth. But with Herb Pope, Jeff Robinson and John Garcia as a starting frontline, the Pirates can actually play three real frontcourt players at once. While it’s true that guards Jordan Theodore and Jamel Jackson both played more than Robinson and Garcia on Saturday, the 89 minutes that Seton Hall got out of the starting frontcourt plus Ferrakohn Hall meant that the Pirates actually matched up with the long, athletic Mountaineers. Holding West Virginia, an exceptional offensive-rebounding team to just a 28.6 percent rate on that glass is borderline phenomenol. WVU is fourth in the nation in offensive-rebounding rate at 43.3 percent. Read More »
Posted in Big East, Reviews/Previews
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Tagged Arinze Onuaku, Big East, Bobby Gonzalez, California, Ferrakohn Hall, Herb Pope, Jamel Jackson, Jeff Robinson, Jeremy Hazell, Jerome Randle, John Garcia, Jordan Theodore, New Mexico State, Rick Jackson, Seton Hall, St. Bonaventure, Syracuse, Wesley Johnson, West Virginia
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March 12, 2009 –
by Brendon
NEW YORK — In three of the last four Big East Tournaments, Syracuse has sent Connecticut home. In 2005, 2006 and 2007, the Huskies were left wanting in the face of one of their arch rivals. And, in what should be one of the hottest Big East quarterfinals tickets ever, Syracuse and Connecticut go at it again on Thursday night at 9:30 p.m. at Madison Square Garden.
UConn gets to the quarterfinals without having to play a game by virtue of that 15-3 Big East record, which secured the No. 3 seed and the coveted double-bye for Jim Calhoun’s team. Syracuse, on the other hand, had to literally fight its way to Thursday night, pulling away from a tough Seton Hall team after a couple of second-half fracases. Read More »
Posted in Big East, Reviews/Previews
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Tagged A.J. Price, Big East, Big East Tournament, Bobby Gonzalez, Brandon Walters, Connecticut, Jim Boeheim, John Garcia, Jonny Flynn, Kemba Walker, Kris Ongenaet, Paul Gause, Seton Hall, Syracuse
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January 23, 2009 –
by Brendon
There’s nothing quite like heading to New Jersey on a January Thursday night. The good news is that there have been far frostier nights recent weeks than greeted me after stepping off the PATH in Newark to watch Seton Hall host Providence at the nearly new Prudential Center. The matchup was featured in BaselineStats.com’s Games to Watch, so I heeded my own advice and watched, in person. It was a good choice — Providence’s 98-93 overtime win was worth the trip. Read More »
Posted in Big East, Game of the Night
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Tagged Big East, Bobby Gonzalez, Eugene Harvey, Geoff McDermott, Jeff Xavier, Jeremy Hazell, John Garcia, Jonathan Kale, Jordan Theodore, Keno Davis, Marshon Brooks, Matt Cajuste, Paul Gause, Providence, Randall Hanke, Robert Mitchell, Seton Hall, Sharaud Curry, Weyinmi Efejuku
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