Men's Basketball Readies for Hartford, Thursday
12/2/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
GAME NOTES - HARTFORD at SETON HALL (12/3/09)
**PDF is updated to include last night's Hartford vs. Yale game**
HARTFORD (2-5) at SETON HALL (5-0)
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Prudential Center - Newark, N.J.
7:00 p.m.
SETON HALL STATUS
The Pirates are a perfect 5-0 following their second straight blow-out victory, a 93-53 win over NJIT on Monday. Once again Seton Hall received a balanced effort which included four players scoring in double-figures. Sophomore Herb Pope picked up his fourth straight double-double with a game-high 22 points and 11 rebounds. He also included five blocks. Junior Jeremy Hazell topped the 20-point mark for the fourth time in five games this season. Tonight's game against Hartford is the third of nine straight home games for Seton Hall.
HARTFORD'S STATUS
Hartford will play host to Yale the night before they take on Seton Hall. Prior to the Yale game, the Hawks had lost their last two contests including a 68-56 loss at Dartmouth on Nov. 28. Hartford returns three starters from a team that went 7-26 last season and finished ninth in the America East. Junior Joe Zeglinski is again leading the Hawks in scoring with 14.3 points per game. Currently, five Hawks are averaging in double-figures in scoring. Hartford has already posted victories over Marist and Fordham this season.
SETON HALL - HARTFORD SERIES
This is will be only the third meeting all-time between Seton Hall and Hartford. The Pirates have won both prior meetings including their most recent match-up, an 85-67 victory at the Meadowlands on Dec. 27, 2000.
LAST 2 GAMES (Seton Hall 2-0)
Date Score Location
Dec. 27, 2000 - SETON HALL 85, Hartford 67 - East Rutherford, N.J.
Dec. 15, 1984 - SETON HALL 89, Hartford 63 - South Orange, N.J.
PIRATES vs. AMERICA EAST
Seton Hall has a solid history of success against the current teams of the America East Conference. The Pirates have only played four of the nine teams in the conference, but have sported a 10-1 record against them all-time. Their lone loss came to Boston University on Dec. 19, 1963.
PIRATES TROUNCE NJIT, 93-53
Seton Hall enjoyed their second easy victory in as many games with a 93-53 trouncing of NJIT on Monday. Despite a slow start, the Pirates used a 23-4 run to pull away for the easy win. Four players scored in double-figures for the Pirates. Seton Hall out-shot, 50.0%-to-30.6%, out-rebounded, 47-to-39, and forced more turnovers, 18-to-12, than the Highlanders.
BLOCK PARTY
Seton Hall came out swatting vs. NJIT on Nov. 30. The Pirates blocked 11 shots which is the highest total in the Bobby Gonzalez era. Sophomore Herb Pope recorded a season-high five blocks, while junior Robert Mitchell had three, senior John Garcia had two and the unlikeliest of them all, 5-foot-9 Darnell Gatling had one.
DEATH, TAXES AND A POPE DOUBLE-DOUBLE
...are three things that have been a certainty these days. Against NJIT, sophomore Herb Pope notched his BIG EAST-leading fourth straight double-double with a career-high 22 points and 11 rebounds. He also had five blocks, all in 25 minutes of action.
MITCHELL MILESTONE
With nine points vs. NJIT on Nov. 30, junior Robert Mitchell is became the 105th player in Seton Hall history to record 500 career points. Teammate John Garcia reached the same milestone late last season and currently ranks 93rd all-time with 539 points.
BIG EAST LEADERS
Even though Seton Hall's first BIG EAST game is still almost four weeks away, it's important to note that several players rank high amongst the conference leaders in various statistical categories. Sophomore Herb Pope currently leads the BIG EAST with 11.4 rebounds per game and ranks second with 3.4 blocks per game. Junior Jeremy Hazell is second in the conference in scoring with 20.6 points per game and leads the BIG EAST with 3.2 made three-pointers per game. Senior Eugene Harvey is tied for seventh with 4.8 assists per game and is third with 2.4 steals per game.
BIG WINS
Since Seton Hall's buzzer-beating victory over Saint Peter's in the season-opener, the Pirates have averaged 23.5 points in margin of victory. Most recently, the defeated NJIT by 40, 93-53. Added to their 29-point victory vs. LIU on Nov. 28, it is the first time that Seton Hall has won consecutive games by at least 29 points since they defeated Central Connecticut by 39 and Mount St. Mary's by 32 on Dec. 2 and 3 in the 1988-89 season.
NOVEMBER REIGN
Seton Hall's victory over NJIT completed another perfect month of November for Seton Hall. In fact, the Pirates are now 19-2 in the month of November under Bobby Gonzalez. During the 2007-08 season, Seton Hall was an impressive 6-0 during the month. The Pirates' only losses in November came to Fairleigh Dickinson in 2006-07 and #12 Memphis last season.
PIRATES CAGE BLACKBIRDS, 95-66
In a dominating effort from the start, Seton Hall ran their record to a perfect 4-0 with a 95-66 dismantling of LIU on Nov. 28. Five players scored in double-figures for Seton Hall, who out-shot the Blackbirds 45.9%-to-34.3%. The Pirates also forced more turnovers, 21-to-8.
500/500 FOR GARCIA
With his 11-rebound performance vs. LIU, fifth-year senior John Garcia became the 34th player in Seton Hall history to record 500 career points and 500 career rebounds. Prior to Garcia, the last Pirate to join the exclusive club was Brian Laing, who finished his career with 1,313 points and 554 rebounds. The last frontcourt player was Kelly Whitney who finished with 1,448 points and 763 rebounds.
HAZELL NAMED TO WEEKLY HONOR ROLL
Junior Jeremy Hazell was named to the 2009-10 season's first BIG EAST Conference Weekly Honor Roll. The 6-foot-5 guard averaged 20.3 points per game through the season's first three games, all of which resulted in victories. Hazell has totaled 59 points in Seton Hall's last two games. Last year, Hazell earned Weekly Honor Roll recognition four times.
HARVEY NEAR TRIP-DUB
Senior Eugene Harvey flirted again with a triple-double. Against LIU, he scored 18 points, dished out eight assists and recorded a career-high seven steals in only 28 minutes of action. Last season, Harvey came close with 12 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists vs. Columbia. Seton Hall has had only one triple-double in its history... Eddie Griffin vs. Norfolk State during the 2000-01 season.
FIVE IN DOUBLE FIGURES
In Seton Hall's victory over LIU, five players scored in double-figures. It marked the first time since last season's opener vs. Saint Francis (N.Y.) that five Pirates reached at least 10 points. Against LIU, Jeremy Hazell scored 21 points, Robert Mitchell scored 20, Herb Pope had 19, Eugene Harvey had 18 and Jordan Theodore had 11.
STILL UNDEFEATED
With the victory over LIU, Seton Hall improved to 5-0 for the first time since the 2007-08 season. That season, the Pirates won their first six games before losing. It is only the second time since the 2000-01 season that Seton Hall is 5-0.
STREAK SNAPPERS
Seton Hall's 89-79 victory at Cornell snapped the Big Red's 21-game home win streak. It was the longest such streak in the nation at the time. Cornell scored the first eight points of the game, but the Pirates out-scored them 40-to-27 in the rest of the first half.
MOVING UP THE ASSIST CHART
With his eight-assist performance vs. LIU, senior Eugene Harvey moved up to fourth on Seton Hall's all-time career assist list. He's now only 68 assists away from passing Gerald Greene for third place on the list. Shaheen Holloway (681) and Andre Barrett (662) rank first and second on the career ranking. With at least 25 games remaining, Harvey would have to average 2.7 assists per game to pass Greene, 8.1 to pass Barrett and 8.8 to pass Holloway.
2009-10 CAPTAINS
Four players have been named captains for the 2009-10 season. Seniors John Garcia and Eugene Harvey have been named a captain for a second straight season. Junior Jeremy Hazell and senior Robert Mitchell are first time honorees.
GONZALEZ RECEIVES EXTENSION
Bobby Gonzalez has received a contract extension to remain the Pirates' men's basketball head coach through the 2014-15 season. "This extension serves as a strong indicator of the University's commitment and support for Bobby Gonzalez as head coach of our men's basketball program," Quinlan said. "We expect to be successful and believe that Coach Gonzalez has taken the necessary steps to position our program for future success. He has made progress with the program in only three years and we are very pleased to have him as our head coach." Gonzalez is in his fourth season as the Seton Hall head coach. In three seasons, he has a 47-46 overall record in South Orange, which already ranks him eighth on the school's all-time wins list.
SWISHIN' AND DISHIN'
With 1,355 career points and 461 career assists, senior Eugene Harvey is one of only five Seton Hall players all-time to amass at least 1,200 career points and 400 career assists. The other members include Andre Barrett (1,861/662), Nick Galis (1,651/410), John Morton (1,621/452) and Shaheen Holloway (1,588/681).
GARCIA NARROWLY MISSES DOUBLE-DOUBLE
Fifth-year senior John Garcia had a strong season-opener vs. Saint Peter's. The 6-foot-9 center scored nine points and pulled down a team-high 10 rebounds to go with three blocks. Last year, Garcia was fourth in the BIG EAST in blocks per game.
PIRATES REGISTER BIG WIN OVER BIG RED
Cornell had won 21 straight home games, the fifth longest streak in the nation, before Seton Hall's impressive 89-79 victory Friday night in Ithaca. The Pirates out-shot, 44.6%-to-44.4%, out-rebounded, 43-to-36, and forced more turnovers, 13-to-8, than Cornell. Despite falling in an 8-0 hole to start the game, Seton Hall led by as many as 18 before rolling to a 10-point victory. Cornell had been receiving votes in both the AP and Coaches Polls prior to the loss.
HAZELL EXPLODES FOR 33 POINTS
Junior Jeremy Hazell exploded for a game-high 33 points in a victory at Cornell on Nov. 20. The guard was 12-for-25 from the floor and made five three-pointers. During one stretch in the second half, Hazell scored 10 straight points for Seton Hall. Late in the first half, he also completed a rare four-point play. The performance marked the eighth time in Hazell's career that he has topped the 30-point mark.
DOUBLE YOUR PLEASURE
At Cornell, both Herb Pope and Robert Mitchell registered double-doubles. Pope finished with 11 points and 12 rebounds, while Mitchell notched 14 points and 10 rebounds. It was the first time that two Pirates had recorded double-doubles in the same game since John Garcia and Eugene Harvey recorded them vs. Columbia last season.
CAREER NIGHT FOR THEODORE
Sophomore Jordan Theodore came off the bench to record a career-high 20 points on 6-for-10 shooting at Cornell. The 6-foot back-up point guard also grabbed four rebounds and dished out four assists in 28 minutes of action. It's the eighth time in his career that he has scored in double-figures.
OFFENSE ARRIVES AS PIRATES STOP MONMOUTH
Fresh off their buzzer-beater victory in the season-opener vs. Saint Peter's, the Pirates traveled to Monmouth for the first time in program history. Behind a strong offensive effort, Seton Hall defeated the Hawks, 87-72. The Pirates shot a blistering 52.5% from the field, compared to Monmouth's 45.6%. Seton Hall also out-rebounded their first opponent of the year, 40-to-33.
RAINING FROM THREE
In only 2+ seasons, junior Jeremy Hazell is quickly moving up the career made three-pointers list. Currently, he ranks sixth all time with 199. He only needs seven more to pass Levell Sanders for fifth on the list.
GONZALEZ VS. METRO AREA
With the victory over NJIT, Seton Hall notched another win over a NY metropolitan area team. Against teams from New York City or the State of New Jersey, the Pirates are 22-5 in the Bobby Gonzalez era. At Seton Hall, Gonzalez's teams have only lost to FDU, Rutgers and St. John's. Furthermore, Gonzalez's teams are 67-26 against said teams when including his seven years at Manhattan.
MEN OF STEAL
Seton Hall had a season-high 14 steals vs. LIU on Nov. 28, and then duplicated that effort with 14 more against NJIT on Nov. 30. Senior Eugene Harvey recorded 11 steals alone over the two game span and currently ranks among the BIG EAST leaders in the category. To date, the Pirates are averaging 9.4 steals per game which ranks third in the conference.
BUZZER-BEATER SEALS WIN
The Pirates won their season-opener against Saint Peter's with the help of a buzzer-beating game-winning three-pointer by senior Eugene Harvey, 53-51. Last season's leading-scorer Jeremy Hazell had a rare night where he was 0-for-10 from the field, but other Pirates stepped up. Harvey led the team with 16 points, while junior Robert Mitchell chipped in 11 points.
JESSE MORGAN TO JOIN PIRATES
Jesse Morgan became the second member of the 2010-11 recruiting class to sign with Seton Hall. The 6-foot-5, 175-pound, shooting guard is highly regarded as an extremely versatile wing player who can shoot the ball well and score in bunches. A First Team All-City selection at Olney High School in his native Philadelphia, he averaged 28 points per game, the third-best total among city-league players, and led the Trojans to a 19-3 record.
AT PRUDENTIAL CENTER
This season Seton Hall is 3-0 at Prudential Center and is 25-12 all-time in the building. Furthermore, Seton Hall is 8-10 all-time at Prudential Center against BIG EAST opponents.
PIRATES HOST FOR 2010 NCAA REGIONAL
Seton Hall University has been named a host institution for the Regional Round of the 2011 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship. In conjunction with Seton Hall serving as host, the Prudential Center will be the competition venue for two games of the regional semifinals on March 25, 2011 and the regional final on March 27, 2011. It will mark the first time the City of Newark has hosted the event. It is the first time Seton Hall has hosted a round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship since 1999.
HAMPTON ADDED TO 2009-10 STAFF
Colin Hampton has been hired as Coordinator of Basketball Operations. In this role, Hampton will assist in ensuring the team's academic goals and will work closely with Seton Hall's office of academic support services for student-athletes. He will also be the Pirates' primary video operative and aid in game-to-game scouting. No stranger to Seton Hall basketball, Hampton is fresh off two years of managerial experience with the team. During this time, he served as assistant video coordinator in addition to his typical manager responsibilities.
HALL SIGNS JACKSON
After spending two years at a junior college, Jamel Jackson will bolster the Pirates' backcourt in 2009-10. The 6-foot-3, 195-pound shooting guard originally committed to Seton Hall last spring, but decided to return to Technical Career Institute (TCI) in Manhattan, N.Y. for his sophomore year in order to concentrate on academics. Jackson will have two years of playing eligibility remaining once he joins Seton Hall. A Third Team All-American and Region XV Player of the Year as a freshman at TCI, Jackson brings a reputation as an excellent shooter to South Orange. He averaged 24.5 points per game as a freshman and 21.5 points per game as a sophomore. The talented guard was also named to the 2008 All-Sportsmanship Team.
SETON SIGNS HALL
Ferrakohn Hall (Memphis, Tenn.) a 6-foot-8, 215-pound forward and true freshman will join the Pirates in 2009-10. A First Team All-State selection as a senior at White Station High School in Memphis, Tenn., Hall averaged 15 points and nine rebounds per game while leading his team in blocks. An athletic forward, he earned All-District 15 honors and was a nominee for selection as a McDonald's All-American. In two seasons at White Station, Hall guided the Spartans to a 58-20 record and two appearances in the Class AAA Tennessee State Championship. He ranks as the #46 power forward recruit in the nation by rivals.com, and #38 among all small forwards by ESPNU.com.
HARVEY AT THE BUZZER
Senior Eugene Harvey came off the bench for the first time after 93 consecutive starts to begin his career, but that didn't affect his production. A strong second half led the senior to a fine game with a team-high 16 points, six rebounds and four assists in 32 minutes of action. Harvey also moved ahead of former teammate Brian Laing for 22nd on Seton Hall's all-time scoring list.
PIRATES WELCOME FUQUAN EDWIN
Highly touted 6-foot-6, 205-pound small forward Fuquan Edwin (Paterson, N.J.) has signed a national letter of intent to attend the University and play basketball for the Pirates beginning in the 2010-11 season. As a junior, Edwin averaged 16 points and eight rebounds a game in helping Paterson Catholic to a second consecutive Passaic County Championship. A Second Team All-State and All-County selection, he is the #77-ranked prospect in the Hoop Scoops Top-100. Among the nation's small forwards, Scout.com ranks him #48, while ESPN ranks him as the #23.
THREE-POINT SPECIALIST
In the 2009-10 season, Jeremy Hazell broke the single-season three-pointers attempted record with 290 and tied Terry Dehere's record with 105 three-pointers made. In only two seasons, Hazell ranks eighth on SHU's career three-pointers made list with 183 and seventh on the attempted list with 524.
RETURN OF ELITE SCORING DUO
This season marks only the second time in school history that Seton Hall has begun a year with two 1,000-point scorers on their roster. Senior Eugene Harvey and junior Jeremy Hazell both eclipsed the milestone in 2008-09. The only other time Seton Hall has returned two 1,000-point scorers was in the 1987-88 season when Mark Bryant and James Major returned for their senior years after scoring their 1,000th points during the 1986-87 season. That year, Seton Hall made their first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance.
SETON HALL IS MR. ROBINSON'S NEIGHBORHOOD
Junior Jeff Robinson is poised to join Seton Hall at the conclusion of the first semester. Robinson played basketball for a season and a half at the University of Memphis. Due to NCAA transfer regulations, Robinson had to sit out the remainder of the 2008-09 season and the first semester of the 2009-10 season. The 6-foot-5, 232-pound Robinson played in all 28 games in 2007-08 as Memphis marched to the NCAA title game. The first game Robinson will be eligible to join the Pirates will be Dec. 19 when they host Temple.
PRESEASON BIG EAST PREDICTIONS
Seton Hall is predicted to finish 10th in the 16-team BIG EAST Conference. Villanova is the favorite to win the regular-season title in the 2009-10 BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll. Notre Dame's Luke Harangody has been picked as Player of the Year. Cincinnati's Lance Stephenson was selected BIG EAST Rookies of the Year. The lone Seton Hall individual with preseason honors was junior Jeremy Hazell who was selected to the Second Team.
GARY & DAVE RETURN
The broadcast team of Gary Cohen and Dave Popkin will be back for their seventh season covering Seton Hall on the Pirates' radio flagship station, 77WABC. For the third straight year, all Seton Hall broadcasts will be heard on 77WABC. The 2009-10 season marks the 21st season for radio engineer Mike Infantino.
HALL PASS AT WWW.SHUPIRATES.COM
Go to www.SHUpirates.com to listen to all of Seton Hall's home and away games as a part of the Hall Pass. Gary Cohen and Dave Popkin will bring you all the action. New for the 2009-10 season, all of Seton Hall's non-televised games will be carried via live VIDEO stream as part of the Hall Pass package. Watch all of the action live while listening to Gary and Dave's radio broadcast. Get the HALL PASS Today!
TV EXPOSURE
Seton Hall's slate features 10 games on national television. All 18 of the Pirates' BIG EAST match-ups will be televised either nationally or regionally this season. Seton Hall will play in the first conference game of the year, Saturday, Dec. 26 vs. West Virginia, on CBS at 3:30 p.m. Following the CBS game, the Pirates will appear on national TV on Jan. 2 vs. Virginia Tech on ESPN2, Jan. 14 at Georgetown on ESPN or ESPN2, Jan. 21 vs. Louisville on ESPN or ESPN2, Jan. 28 at USF on ESPN or ESPN2, Feb. 2 at Villanova on ESPNU, Feb. 11 vs. Notre Dame on ESPNU, Feb. 20 at West Virginia on ESPN, Mar. 4 at Rutgers on ESPN or ESPN2 and Mar. 6 at Providence on ESPN360. The remaining nine conference games will be BIG EAST Network local telecasts with seven being broadcasted on SNY, one being shown on MSG and one being shown on MSG+. The Pirates' game vs. DePaul on Sunday, February 14 is the BIG EAST Network Game of the Week.
LOOKING AHEAD
MASSACHUSETTS
Monday, December 7, 2009
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Prudential Center
Newark, N.J.
TV: None
Live Video Stream: www.SHUpirates.com
Radio: WABC 770 AM / WSOU 89.5 FM
NOTEBOOK: Seton Hall will remain at home on Monday, Dec. 7 vs. Hartford for game four of nine straight games at Prudential Center. This will be only the third meeting all-time between Seton Hall and UMass with the Minutemen winning the first two match-ups. Most recently, UMass defeated the Pirates, 73-60, in the Great Alaska Shootout on Nov. 29, 1997. Massachusetts returns two starters from a team that went 12-18 last season and finished 10th in the Atlantic 10. Last year's leading scorer, Ricky Harris, returns to lead a young group of Minutemen. So far in 2009-10, UMass has won just two of their first six games. Harris and junior Anthony Gurley are both averaging over 17 points per game.
