Men's Basketball To Host FDU Saturday
11/17/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
SETON HALL (1-0) vs. FAIRLEIGH DICKINSON (0-1)
Saturday, November 18, 2006 - 1:00 p.m.
Continental Airlines Arena - East Rutherford, NJ
Listen Live - Free Audio!
THE MATCHUP: Seton Hall hosts intra-state rival Fairleigh Dickinson in the second game of the season for both teams on Saturday, November 18, 2006 at Continental Airlines Arena. The Pirates defeated FDU, 65-57, last season and have won the last 10 games against the Knights.
TV: None
RADIO: The game will be broadcast by WQEW, Radio Disney 1560 AM, with Gary Cohen on play-by-play and Dave Popkin as the analyst. The game will also be broadcast by WSOU 89.5 FM, Seton Hall’s student radio station.
SHU ON THE WEB: Tune in to hear a live audio stream of all games on www.shupirates.com
BIG EAST CONFERENCE: www.bigeast.org
SETON HALL CONTACTS
Assistant Athletic Director / Communications:
E-Mail: sweenemc@shu.edu
Assistant Director of Athletic Communications
Dayna Johnson
E-Mail: johnsodd@shu.edu
Office Phone: (973) 761-9493
Office Fax: (973) 761-9061
www.shupirates.com
SCOUTING FAIRLEIGH DICKINSON
Fairleigh Dickinson is coming off a 96-71 loss at Providence in their season-opener. The defending Northeast Conference champions lost three starters from last year’s squad including NEC Player of the Year Chad Timberlake, but return senior forward Michael Peeples and junior guard Bernell Murray. Senior Andre Harris led the Knights in the season-opening loss with 17 points. Four Knights finished in double-figures in scoring. Head coach Tom Green is in his 24th year on the bench and has guided FDU to the post-season each of the last three years.
SETON HALL-FDU SERIES
Seton Hall and Fairleigh Dickinson will meet for the 19th time, with Seton Hall owning a commanding 16-2 lead in the series. The Pirates have won 10 straight against the Knights, including last season’s 65-57 victory in East Rutherford. Seton Hall has never lost to FDU at Continental Airlines Arena.
GONZALEZ SIGNS THREE
Seton Hall head coach Bobby Gonzalez announced that three marquee recruits, Michael Glover, Jeremy Hazell and Augustine Okosun, have signed National Letters of Intent to attend Seton Hall University beginning in the 2007-08 academic year. The 6-foot-6, 200-pound Glover is the gifted brother of former St. John’s standout Anthony Glover and will provide the Pirates with a strong rebounding presence and good finisher around the basket. Last season, he guided his prep school, Boys to Men Academy (Ill.), to a national championship. The 6-foot-5, 185-pound Hazell was ranked in the nation’s Top 20 by Scout.com among post graduate players. A standout for coach Chris Chaney at Patterson School (N.C.), he is widely regarded as an excellent shooter and will provide the Pirates with great depth at the guard position and the top scoring punch in this class. Augustine Okosun is a 6-foot-10, 240-pound junior college transfer who will have junior eligibility when he joins the Pirates next season. The Nigeria native comes from well-respected Harcum College (Pa.) and coach Drew Kelly and will add some much-needed size and experience to the Pirates’ frontcourt.
FLY’IN BRIAN
In the season’s first game, junior forward Brian Laing tied a career-high with 19 points on 8-for-13 shooting from the floor and 3-for-3 from the free throw line. A candidate for a major breakout season, Laing will play a key factor in the Pirates’ success this season.
OPPONENTS GETTING MESSY
After missing the vast majority of the 2005-06 campaign, senior Mani Messy finally showed a glimpse of his capabilities in the season-opener. The backup forward scored 10 points and grabbed four rebounds in only 18 minutes vs. Caldwell. The Pirates will lean heavily on Messy this season due to their lack of depth in the frontcourt.
SWISHING AND DISHING
Continuing in a long Seton Hall tradition of uber-talented point guards, Eugene Harvey didn’t disappoint in his collegiate debut. The freshman scored 11 points and dished out a game-high nine assists in an easy victory over Caldwell. A highly regarded prospect and one of Coach Gonzalez’ first recruits, Harvey cracked the starting lineup in his first game.
CRUSHING CALDWELL
In the season-opening victory, Seton Hall scored 91 points, the most the team has scored in a season-opener since a 104-76 victory over Rider to begin the 2000-01 campaign. The Pirates shot .531 from the field and connected on 10-of-24 three point attempts with senior Jamar Nutter connecting on four himself.
NO PAUSE IN GAUSE
Sophomore Paul Gause made his first career start in the season-opener vs. Caldwell. The athletic sparkplug played an impressive game on both ends of the floor, scoring 14 points and picking up four rebounds and four steals. Gause will play a key role in the Pirates’ trapping defense this season.
A CLOSER LOOK AT THE 2006-07 SCHEDULE
Seton Hall will play at least nine games against teams that participated in the NCAA Tournament last year, but only three of the games will be on the road (Monmouth, Pennsylvania, Georgetown, at Marquette, West Virginia, Villanova, at Connecticut, at West Virginia and Pittsburgh... The Pirates will play 18 night games and 12 day games this season... SHU will face Rutgers, West Virginia and Providence twice, but will not see Syracuse or DePaul as part of the BIG EAST’s unbalanced schedule... Pittsburgh (#4), Georgetown (#8), Marquette (#16) and Connecticut (#18) are Seton Hall opponents ranked in the preseason AP Top 25 Poll.
FAB FRESHMAN
All three players in coach Bobby Gonzalez’ first recruiting class impressed in their collegiate debuts. Eugene Harvey started and scored 11 points while dishing out nine assists in 30 minutes of action. Larry Davis chipped in 11 points, four rebounds and three steals in 19 minutes off the bench. Kashif Pratt scored five points, pulled down two boards and made a steal in 13 minutes of action.
PILLAGING PIRATES
Caldwell had no response for the Pirates’ suffocating defense in the season-opener. Seton Hall forced a staggering 31 turnovers and recorded 19 steals, led by senior Jamar Nutter and sophomore Paul Gause who had four each. A direct result of coach Bobby Gonzalez’ intense conditioning regiment, the Pirates appeared rested throughout, were quick to trap on defense and pounced on loose balls.
SETON HALL AGAINST THE NEC
Seton Hall has had a long history of success against the current teams of the Northeast Conference, owning an all-time record of 122-39. Last season the Pirates went 2-0 against the NEC with a 65-57 victory over Fairleigh Dickinson on Dec. 5 and a 61-45 victory over Monmouth only three days later. Seton Hall is 33-0 since their last loss to an NEC team, a 90-95 double-overtime loss to Wagner in 1979.
NEW FACES
The Pirates added three highly talented freshman to the roster for the 2006-07 and all three look to make a difference immediately. Larry Davis, Eugene Harvey and Kashif Pratt are three guards that come from well-respected metropolitan high school programs. Davis led Christ the King to a 24-5 record and the New York City Catholic High School title game while averaging 13.2 points per game his senior year. Harvey joins Seton Hall as one of the nation’s most highly regarded point guard prospects and could be running the Pirates’ offense sooner than later. Pratt averaged 15 points and six rebounds for Rice High School, but is even better known as a defensive specialist. The SHU backcourt is in good shape for years to come.
IN NEW PLACES
Seton Hall lost five players from last season’s roster, including their top two scorers, Donald Copeland and Kelly Whitney. Copeland and Whitney graduated, while Marcus Cousin, David Palmer and Mike Pilgram transferred. Copeland and Whitney combined for 31.3 points per game and were both named Second Team All-BIG EAST last season. Whitney also led the team with 7.9 rebounds per game.
THREE CAPTAINS FOR 2006-07
Seniors Grant Billmeier and Stan Gaines as well as junior Brian Laing will serve as team captains for Seton Hall during the 2006-07 season. Billmeier was the lone Pirate captain last season and brings his hard work and unselfishness to the leadership position again. Gaines, a former transfer from Minnesota, is playing in only his second season with the Pirates, but his infectious energy and enthusiasm make him an excellent choice as captain. Laing, the lone non-senior of the trifecta, is a real breakout candidate this season and will provide an experienced leader when it is time to look towards next season.
BENCHMARKED FOR SUCCESS
Joining head coach Bobby Gonzalez on the bench this year are three experienced and talented assistant coaches that will surely prove to be a positive influence on the 2006-07 Pirates. Kevin Murphy followed Gonzalez to Seton Hall after three years as his assistant at Manhattan. There, he helped guide the Jaspers to the 2004 MAAC title and NCAA Tournament berth. Geoff Billett joins the SHU staff after five seasons as an assistant at Monmouth. As a player, Billett scored 1,480 career points for Rutgers and graduated as the school’s all-time leading three-point shooter. Dermon Player brings a standout basketall acumen and remarkable recruiting skills to the Pirates. As a coach and athletics administrator, Player is no stranger to the metropolitan high school and AAU scene.
HOLLOWAY RETURNS
Shaheen Holloway, the school’s all-time assist leader who played from 1996-00 and helped lead the Pirates to the 2000 NCAA Sweet Sixteen, has returned to Seton Hall as the team’s administrative assistant. Holloway scored 1,588 points during his career, which ranks him 12th all-time at SHU. He dished out 681 assists and had 231 steals (2nd all-time), while also hitting 185 three-pointers (5th all-time) in 116 games. In 2000, he was named the BIG EAST’s Most Improved Player, and he earned all-league status three times in his career.
TV SCHEDULE ANNOUNCED
Seton Hall will have at least 17 regular-season games televised nationally or regionally in 2006-07, starting Dec. 9 with a game on YES against Penn State. The Pirates will be on MSG seven times, YES and Fox Sports New York three times, ESPN 360 twice and a game a piece on ESPN and ESPNU.
RADIO INFORMATION
The Pirates will once again be on WABC 770 AM, or its affiliates ESPN Radio or Radio Disney. Gary Cohen and Dave Popkin return for their fourth season of coverage on the broadcasts. Cohen will handle play-by-play duties with Popkin as the analyst. WABC will carry 15 games this season. WEPN, ESPN Radio 1050 AM will broadcast four, and Radio Disney WQEW 1560 AM will carry 10.
SETON HALL BASKETBALL HISTORICAL NOTABLES
* The men’s basketball team went to the Final Four in 1989 and lost in the championship game to Michigan by one point in overtime, 80-79. The Pirates won BIG EAST tournament titles in 1991 and 1993 and regular season titles in 1992 and 1993. All of the above was under the guidance of current San Antonio Spurs assistant coach P.J. Carlesimo.
* A starter on the 1989 Final Four team, Ramon Ramos, was inducted into the Seton Hall Athletic Hall of Fame on Feb. 9. Ramos was tragically injured in a car accident prior to playing a single game for the Portland Trailblazers in December of 1989. He has lived in Puerto Rico since the accident, under the care of his famly, after recovering from a coma and life-threatening brain damage. He was in New Jersey for the induction ceremony, where he was presented by Carlesimo.
* Seton Hall has a national championship under its belt. The Pirates won the 1953 NIT, then considered the premier national tournament.
* The program’s all-time leading scorer is Terry Dehere (2,494 points, 1989-93). Leading rebounder Walter Dukes (1,697, 1950-53) still holds the NCAA single-season rebounding record of 734 in 1952-53. CBS analyst Bill Raftery coached Seton Hall from 1970-81 (154-141 record).
