Seton Hall University
No. 23 Pittsburgh
Edwin Shines, But MBB Fades Late
2/5/2013 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
PITTSBURGH, PA. - Junior Fuquan Edwin (Paterson, N.J.) scored a game-high 23 points, but the Seton Hall men's basketball team fell at #23 Pittsburgh, 56-46, on Mondahy.
Edwin accounted for half of the Pirates' offense with 23 points on 7-for-16 shooting. He also recorded a game-high five steals in 36 minutes of action.
The loss is the fourth straight for the depleted Pirates, who drop to 13-10 overall and 2-8 in the BIG EAST. In addition to several lingering injuries, Seton Hall was without the services of sophomore guard Aaron Cosby (Louisville, Ky.), who missed the game due to family reasons.
Pittsburgh's Lamar Patterson got the game started with consecutive three-pointers to give the Panthers an early 6-0 lead. Three minutes later, Tray Woodall's jumper in the lane stretched Pittsburgh's lead to 10-3 with 14:46 left in the first half. But the Pirates responded with a 9-2 run, with the final seven of the Pirates' points coming from Edwin, to tie the score at 12 with 8:43 left before halftime.
With Pittsburgh leading 16-12, Seton Hall scored the next five. A three-point play by Tom Maayan (Galil, Israel) tied the game at 16, and a rebound and put-back by Kevin Johnson (Compton, Calif.) gave the Pirates their first lead of the game, 18-16, with 3:40 to go before the break.
Edwin continued his hot shooting in the closing minutes of the first half, connecting on a pair of three-pointers, to guide Seton Hall into the locker room at the half with a 24-24 tie. The 6-foot-6 swingman accounted for half of the Pirates' points (12) in the first half to lead all scorers.
In a defensive battle, the teams played a nearly identical first half with both teams committing six turnovers and shooting under 33.0% from the field. Seton Hall grabbed just one more rebound than the Panthers.
Before the offenses "exploded" late in the first half, the teams had combined for just 29 points through the first 15:47.
Another jumper by Edwin gave the Pirates a 28-27 lead early in the second half, but Pittsburgh responded with an 8-0 run, capped by a three-pointer by J.J. Moore, to take a 35-28 lead with 14:33 remaining.
Brian Oliver (Glassboro, N.J.) connected on a three-pointer to cut the Panthers lead to 36-34 with 12:38 left in the game. They were the first Seton Hall points scored by anyone other than Fuquan Edwin since there was 3:40 left in the first half. After Pitt extended its lead to 38-34, the Pirates scored the next five points to take a 39-38 lead with 9:43 to go.
Leading 42-41, Pittsburgh went on a 14-2 run, 12 of the points coming at the free-throw line, to take a commanding 56-43 lead with under a minute left to play.
Lamar Patterson registered a double-double for Pittsburgh with a team-high 12 points to go with 10 rebounds. Freshman Steven Adams grabbed a career-high 15 rebounds.
Seton Hall will return to action on Sunday, February 10 when they return to the Prudential Center to face Connecticut. Game-time is scheduled for noon.
