Pirates Set for first BIG EAST Meeting with Creighton
1/3/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 3, 2014
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SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. - After earning an 81-80 double-overtime victory at Providence in the BIG EAST opener on New Year's Eve, the Seton Hall men's basketball team looks to keep rolling as the Pirates are set to welcome Creighton to the Prudential Center on Saturday. The Hall's first BIG EAST home game of the season tips at 3 p.m. on FOX Sports 1.
Seton Hall enters the matchup with Creighton (11-2, 1-0) having won six of its last seven games; while reaching the 80-point mark on five occasions during that stretch. The two schools last met on the hardwood in the second round of the 1991 NCAA Tournament - a game won by The Hall, 81-69 as part of a run to the Elite Eight - and will be squaring off as conference foes for the first time.
Seton Hall improved to 10-4 on the year by outlasting a tough Friars squad in a back-and-forth affair despite the absence of red-shirt senior center Eugene Teague (Vineland, N.J.) who was sidelined by a concussion sustained in a win over Lafayette on Dec. 27. The victory at Providence was the first for the Pirates in three trips to overtime this season. The Hall's more proficient outside shooting helped secure the team's first conference road win since the 2012-13 BIG EAST opener at DePaul.
Redshirt-senior Brian Oliver (Glassboro, N.J.) was instrumental in the effort, knocking down four treys as part of a team-high 18 points. Oliver has now hit at least two 3-pointers in nine of the last 10 games and Seton Hall currently ranks third in the league with 7.5 3-pointers/game.
Led by All-American forward Doug McDermott, an up-tempo Creighton attack is often unforgiving for opponents struggling to find the range. Entering league play, McDermott stood as the second-leading scorer in the nation and the Bluejays ranked first in the country in 3-pointers made. In the school's inaugural BIG EAST game, McDermott and company followed a familiar path to victory as the 6-foot-8 senior tallied a game-high 19 points and Creighton added 13 more treys rolling to a 67-49 victory over preseason favorite Marquette.
While McDermott garners most of the accolades and recognition, 6-foot-7 Ethan Wragge is one of the premier stretch forwards in college basketball. Wragge is listed among the top-five nationally in total 3-pointers made and after adding four more against Marquette is now shooting an even 50 percent (50-for-100) from downtown during his senior campaign.
McDermott (24.3 ppg) and Wragge (12.4 ppg) are however the only two Bluejays who average in double-figures scoring. If Seton Hall's pair of versatile forwards in Patrik Auda (Brno, Czech Republic) and Brandon Mobley (Savannah, Ga.) can help limit their impact to combine with a Pirate backcourt that is at full strength; The Hall will be well-positioned to improve to 2-0 in conference for the first time since 1999-00.
The Pirates and Bluejays will tip-off at 3:07 p.m. on Saturday in a national telecast carried by FOX Sports 1. Seton Hall's radio team of Gary Cohen and Dave Popkin can be heard on 570 AM (WMCA) or through SHUPirates.com.
