Seton Hall University
Illinois State
Gibbs, MBB Hold Off Illinois St. for Paradise Title
11/25/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
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ST. THOMAS, USVI - Junior Sterling Gibbs (Scotch Plains, N.J.) scored a career-high 40 points to lift the Seton Hall men's basketball team to an 84-80 victory over Illinois State in the championship game of the 2014 Ezybonds Global Payments U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam on Monday.
This is the first in-season tournament title for Seton Hall since winning the Independence Bracket of the Philly Hoop Group Classic at the Palestra in 2007. It's the first traditional, eight-team tournament win since winning the Great Alaskan Shootout in 1988.
Gibbs' 40-point outburst is the most scored by a Seton Hall player since Jeremy Hazell dropped 41 points on West Virginia on Dec. 26, 2009. Even more impressive is the manner in which Gibbs scored 40. The point guard was 10-for-14 from the floor, including an impressive 7-for-9 from three-point range, and was a perfect 13-for-13 from the free-throw line.
For his efforts, Gibbs was named Paradise Jam Most Valuable Player.
Freshman Isaiah Whitehead (Brooklyn, N.Y.) also broke out with a career-high 18 points to go with a team-high six assists. Jaren Sina (Lake Hopatcong, N.J.) was a third Pirate in double-figures in scoring. The sophomore finished with 11 points.
Buoyed by Gibbs' hot shooting, Seton Hall used an early 20-1 run to take a 28-7 lead with 8:24 remaining in the first half. Gibbs accounted for 15 of the Pirates' first 23 points on the strength of four, three-pointers. Seton Hall held Illinois State without a field goal for a span of 9:19 as the Pirates built a 30-9 lead with 7:44 left before the half.
Illinois State however, buckled down and responded by preventing The Hall from scoring a field goal for 7:43 before Brandon Mobley (Savannah, Ga.) connected on a three-pointer at the halftime buzzer. The Pirates took a 41-27 lead into the locker room at the half.
The Redbirds scored the first five points of the second half to the Pirates' lead to nine points just 30 seconds in, but Seton Hall responded with a 7-2 run, highlighted by a three-pointer from Sina to boost the lead back to 14 points, 48-34, with 15:56 left to play.
Illinois State went on a 7-0 run to cut the Pirates' lead to just seven points, 53-46, with 12:04 remaining. But again it was Sterling Gibbs to the rescue, connecting on three-pointers in back-to-back possessions extend The Hall's lead back to 13 points, 59-46 with 10:35 to go.
Although the Pirates never trailed in the second half, Illinois State wouldn't go away and kept chipping at the Seton Hall lead. The Redbirds connected on six, three-pointers in the final 1:51, but the Pirates made 16 of their last 18 free-throws to remain ahead. Daishon Knight connected on a three-pointer with just one second left to pull the Redbirds to within four, but that was as close as Illinois State got.
Freshman Desi Rodriguez (Bronx, N.Y.) was also selected to the Paradise Jam All-Tournament Team. The freshman with Virgin Islands lineage had a quiet night on Monday, but burst out with 15 points, nine rebounds and four steals on Sunday vs. Gardner-Webb.
Seton Hall (4-0) will return to action on Saturday, November 29 when it returns to the Prudential Center to host George Washington. Game time is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. Tickets can be purchased by calling 972-275-HALL or by emailing tickets@shu.edu.
