Hall Visits Villanova on FOX Sports 1 Monday
2/15/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
FOX Sports 1 l FOX Sports Go | Game Notes l l Live Audio
SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. - The road trip continues for the Seton Hall men's basketball team on Monday as the Pirates will roll into Villanova, looking to complete a season sweep of the fist-place Wildcats and extend their winning-streak to three in the longstanding series.
The Hall (15-10, 5-8 BIG EAST) moved past sixth-ranked Villanova (23-2, 10-2 BIG EAST) in overtime when the teams met in January; completing its first pair of consecutive victories over the Wildcats since 2003-04.
The Pirates have not taken down Villanova on the road since 1994 however; but have come within 10 points of scoring that elusive victory in four of their last five trips to The Pavilion.
VU will enter the contest coming off six consecutive wins overall and own a perfect 14-0 mark at home this season that includes six victories against league opponents. Villanova has posted 20-straight home wins overall and has not allowed a visitor to score more than 55 points since an 88-75 triumph over Xavier on January 14.
Seton Hall has shown an ability to best the Wildcats in low-scoring affairs though, and with both teams ranking in the top-five in the conference in points allowed - Monday's contest figures to produce more of the same.
Villanova needed last-second heroics from Darrun Hilliard to get by Butler on Saturday and it was Hilliard who scored 31 of the team's 68 points in a three-point win. Standout point guard Ryan Arcidiacono was held scoreless by the Bulldogs and The Hall's success limiting those two guards has played a large role in the Pirates' two recent victories over the BIG EAST heavyweights.
Hilliard and Arcidiacono average over 24 points per game as a duo but are a combined 9-of-40 from the field over the last two contests with SHU.
Conversely, Seton Hall point guard Sterling Gibbs (Scotch Plains, N.J.) has posted 14.8 points and 5.3 assists per game in four appearances against Villanova and handed out a team-high four helpers in January's win. Gibbs totaled 12 points on Saturday - scoring in double-figures for the seventh-straight game - but it was freshman Isaiah Whitehead (Brooklyn, N.Y.) who delivered a team-high 20 points at PC.
Whitehead did not play when these two teams opened the season series and will add another dynamic threat for head coach Jay Wright's defense to contend with.
Villanova had a difficult time containing another newcomer in Khadeen Carrington (Brooklyn, N.Y.) down the stretch as the rookie wasted no time in making his mark on the longstanding rivalry. Carrington helped provide the impetus behind the comeback that forced the overtime in which The Hall eventually prevailed, scoring nine of a then career-high 17 points in the last 10 minutes of regulation and extra time.
While the Pirates thrived on the perimeter against a historically guard-oriented offense, VU junior Daniel Ochefu had a career-night down low with 19 points and 24 boards. Ochefu has continued to thrive throughout the conference slate but has not been able to match the rebounding prowess of freshman Angel Delgado (Bajos De Haina, Dominican Republic) who is in the midst ioof perhaps the most prolific stretch of his young career having pulled down 42 boards in the last three outings.
Delgado currently leads the league with 10.8 rebounds per contest in BIG EAST play.
While Delgado and Brandon Mobley (Savannah, Ga.) will be locked in a battle inside with Ochefu and JayVaughn Pinkston, The Hall's quest to come away with a third consecutive victory against a Villanova team ranked among the top-six in the nation may once again come down to the outside.
The Wildcats are the top outside shooting team in the BIG EAST, knocking down a league-best 8.3 treys and connecting at a 37.2 percent clip. Seton Hall is the best in the league at defending the 3-pointer and has held nine conference foes to five triples or less this season.
The Pirates have limited Villanova to 9-of-43 from downtown the last two times these programs have squared off, holding VU's top-ranked offense to less than 65 points each time.
SHU will aim for its first three-game winning streak in the series since 1998-00 when the two teams tip-off at 7:00 p.m. Eastern on Monday night. The game can be seen live nationally on FOX Sports 1 or through the FOX Sports Go app. Gary Cohen and Dave Popkin will be behind the mic for the radio broadcast on AM970 (WNYM) and the Pirate Sports Network on SHUPirates.com.
