Third-Seeded Seton Hall Advances To First Title Game Since 1993
By SEAN BRENNAN
Special to BIGEAST.com
It took until the eighth game of the nine-game BIG EAST Tournament before we finally had an upset of sorts. But was it really an upset when No. 3 Seton Hall surprised some by toppling No. 2 Xavier, the fifth-ranked team in the nation and one looking to make a second straight trip to the tournament title game?
Maybe not?
When you consider the Pirates came into the game winners of 10 of its previous 12 games, a streak that included a victory over the Musketeers at the end of February, and is a team that boast some of the most electric young talent in the league, calling Seton Hall’s 87-83 victory over Xavier in the semifinals of the BIG EAST Tournament Presented by Jeep brand an upset might be doing the Pirates a disservice.
Seton Hall head coach Kevin Willard said as much himself in the postgame press conference when he said, “We were puppies last year and now we’re starting to turn into dogs.” Hungry dogs, that is, ones that can now smell a BIG EAST title, and with a victory Saturday night against top-seeded Villanova, it would also be a chance for this pack of hungry dogs to knock off the No. 5 and No. 3 teams in the country and make the rest of the college basketball world take notice of what is happening with this Seton Hall team.
The game was similar in some ways to a heavyweight bout as Seton Hall and its’ young core of Isaiah Whitehead (20 points), Khadeen Carrington (23 points), Angel Delgado (15 points) and Desi Rodriguez (8 points, 7 rebounds) surprised the favored Musketeers early in the game by taking a 23-15 lead in the first half, a spurt that surely got Xavier’s attention. The Pirates kicked the lead up to 41-30 at the half and the Pirates’ faithful in the Garden were starting to believe that a little March magic just might be coming the Pirates way.
“They came out real quick,” Willard said of the Musketeers. “And I felt once we got to the first TV timeout, we got our second wind and then we really picked it up defensively. We made them take tough shots. I thought Angel did a good job making them work in the post.”
It wasn’t going to be easy for the Pirates to get to the finish line in this one however. There’s a reason Xavier (28-5) was ranked fifth in the country and as expected the Musketeers did make a major move to dig themselves out of what grew into a 13-point (50-37) hole with 17:07 to play in the game. The Musketeers, who were led by Edmond Sumner’s 21 point and 18 points and 10 rebounds from James Farr, began to systematically climb back into the game and when J.P. Macura hit a pair of free throws with 10:43 to go, the Seton Hall lead was just 60-56 and the expectation was one of the nation’s premier programs was about to blow by The Hall and secure its’ rematch in the title game with Villanova.
But the Pirates didn’t get that memo. Instead over the next six minutes The Hall (24-8) used a 14-3 run capped by a jumper by Carrington and Seton Hall had not only taken the Musketeers’ best punch, they answered it in emphatic fashion. They also answered Xavier when a number of brief skirmishes broke out that led to technical fouls to Xavier’s Macura, Jalen Reynolds and Myles Davis as well as The Hall’s Derrick Gordon (10 points). Yes, there would not be any pushing these Pirates around. Not with Whitehead, Carrington, Delgado and Rodriguez playing in their hometown in front of family and friends.
“These guys are tough,” Willard said. “I wouldn’t want to play the five guys that are out there on the court. They stick together. Someone gets knocked down the other four guys are right there. It’s very close-knit, probably too close-knit at times. But you know what? It’s a great group to be around.”
It was a bitter loss for a Xavier team that was looking at a possible one seed in the NCAA Tournament if it were to win Saturday night’s championship game. Now the Musketeers will head home to watch the Sunday Selection Show and see who they can take their frustrations out on beginning next week.
“It’s very disappointing because it’s my last year at Xavier,” Farr said. “I wanted to go out with the BIG EAST championship but that’s life. Life goes on. It didn’t happen. You know, just wait for Sunday to see where we’re headed.”
As for the Pirates, they know where they are headed Saturday – back to the Garden with a shot to really make a national splash. A victory over Villanova would not only give Seton Hall its first BIG EAST Tournament title since 1993, but also give it quite the weekend daily double if they could knock off the nation’s No. 3 and No. 1 programs in less than 24 hours.
Now that would be quite the Pirates booty.
“They’re a great team,” Whitehead said. “They’re No. 3 in the country. They’re tough, they have a lot of weapons that can beat you. They shoot the three really well. It’s going to be a great game. I’m looking forward to it. I just can’t wait for it.”