Seton Hall's Desi Rodriguez
Seton Hall, Villanova and Xavier Notch Thursday Victories
MBB Minute – Seton Hall, Villanova, Xavier Notch Thursday Victories
Seton Hall, Villanova and Xavier all moved to 3-0 with wins on a busy Thursday of BIG EAST action.
The Pirates won at Iowa 91-83 in the Gavitt Tipoff Games, handing the Hawkeyes only their second non-conference home loss in 41 games. Freshman guard Myles Powell was 5-of-7 from 3-point range en route to 26 points. Desi Rodriguez scored 25 points, grabbed nine rebounds and made three steals. Villanova defeated Western Michigan 76-65 in the first round of the Charleston Classic. Eric Paschall led a balanced scoring attack with 17 points. Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart each added 14 points. A free throw by Edmond Sumner with less than a second left pushed Xavier past Missouri 83-82 in overtime in the first round of the Tire Pros Invitational in Orlando, Fla. J.P. Macura led the Musketeers with 19 points and Sumner finished with 18. In two other Gavitt Tipoff Games battles, Ohio State held off visiting Providence 72-67 despite 27 points and eight rebounds from Rodney Bullock, and DePaul lost at home to Rutgers 66-59. Eli Cain had 24 points for the Blue Demons. Georgetown returned to campus at McDonough Arena, but lost to Arkansas State 78-72. Jesse Govan had 20 points and eight rebounds for the Hoyas.
All five BIG EAST teams in action on Friday are playing in in-season tournaments. Villanova and Xavier play at 1:30 p.m. ET. Villanova plays Wake Forest on ESPN2 and Xavier battles Clemson on ESPNU. Marquette meets Pittsburgh at 4:30 on ESPN2. Creighton plays Washington State in the first round of the Paradise Jam at 8:30 p.m. In the final contest of the Gavitt Tipoff Games, St. John’s plays at Minnesota at 9 p.m. (BTN).