The Hall Visits DePaul and Wintrust Arena on Sunday

2017-18 BIG EAST Game Seton Hall Pirates (15-5, 4-3 BIG EAST) at DePaul Blue Demons (9-11, 2-6 BIG EAST)
Date/Time/Location	Sunday, January 28 \| 4 p.m., Eastern \| Wintrust Arena (Chicago, Ill.)
Television Broadcast	CBS Sports Network
Radio Broadcast	AM970 The Answer \| Sirius 138 \| XM 201 \| Pirate Sports Network
Game Notes	Seton Hall \| DePaul
Links	Live Stats \| Twitter \| Facebook \| Instagram

Rested and ready to go.

The Pirates, off to their best seven-game start to BIG EAST play, are going eight days between games and the rest has prepared them to handle what will be a grueling end to the regular season. Sunday tips off a stretch of 11 games in 34 days as The Hall looks to make a climb up the standings. The first matchup of the year with DePaul is also Seton Hall's first look at the new Wintrust Arena, the Blue Demons' new home that opened back in November.

A win Sunday would put the Pirates at 5-3 in the conference, which would tie them with seven past previous Seton Hall teams for the second-best 8-game start in school history. No Pirates squad has done it since 2007-08.

The game will tip at 4 p.m., Eastern on CBS Sports Network with Dave Ryan and Steve Wolf on the call. As always, the dynamic duo of Gary Cohen and Dave Popkin will deliver the radio broadcast on AM970 The Answer, simulcast on Sirius 138, XM 201 and the Pirate Sports Network.

THINGS TO KNOW

Seton Hall hits the road for Sunday's BIG EAST Conference matchup at DePaul. The Pirates are looking to get back on the right track after a 73-64 setback to No. 11 Xavier at Prudential Center last Saturday.
Khadeen Carrington had 14 points, five assists and four rebounds, while Desi Rodriguez scored a team-high 19 points. Angel Delgado finished with eight points, four blocks and a game-high 18 rebounds. He is now just two boards shy of becoming the all-time leader in career rebounds during BIG EAST play.
Rodriguez has been the go-to man during league games this year, and is scoring a team-best 16.9 points per game while shooting 48.5 percent (47-of-97) from the field. He scored 19 or more points in five of the seven BIG EAST games to this point.
Senior big man Angel Delgado continues to dominate the paint, and is averaging 13.3 points and 12.3 rebounds during conference play. He has recorded 17 double-doubles in his last 19 BIG EAST games, and is the nation's leader in career rebounds. Earlier this week, he was named to the 2018 Oscar Robertson Trophy Midseason Watch List.
The core four offensive contributors for the Pirates - Delgado, Carrington, Rodriguez, and Myles Powell - have scored 59.1 points per game - 79.5 percent of the team's total points during BIG EAST play.
Saturday marks the 21st all-time meeting between Seton Hall and DePaul. The Pirates lead the all-time series, 14-6, and have won each of the last four meetings.
- 01/02/16 - W, 78-74 (H)
- 03/05/16 - W, 80-66 (A)
- 01/07/17 - W, 87-56 (H)
- 02/25/17 - W, 82-79 (A)
The last time the programs met, Rodriguez led four Pirates with 15 or more points with 19, as Seton Hall used clutch end-of-game free throw shooting to earn the 82-79 victory in The Hall's final game at Allstate Arena. Carrington poured in 18 points and had six assists, while Delgado finished with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Powell scored 13 of his 15 points in a red-hot first half.
The Pirates are aiming for their third true road win of the season. Earlier this year they delivered a 79-77 victory at No. 17 Louisville in front of 19,244 in attendance. On Jan. 6, Seton Hall picked up a 90-87 win at Butler in front of 8,855.
Seton Hall is 5-5 all-time at DePaul.
The team is 10-1 when Rodriguez is the leading scorer, and he has poured in 15 or more in 11 of the last 15 games. The Pirates are 33-10 all-time when he scores 15 or more points.
Head coach Kevin Willard is 8-4 all-time against DePaul.

#PiratePursuit

Seton Hall has flourished in the program's previous two seasons to the likes of which the program has not seen in over 20 years, and they are in pursuit of a truly special 2017-18 campaign.

The Pirates concluded non-conference play with a handful of resume-boosting victories including three over teams currently in the KenPom Top-100. Seton Hall is also 3-1 against ranked opponents this season.

In the Polls

The Pirates head into Sunday receiving votes in both the AP Poll and USA Today Coaches Poll.

It is the first time this season the Pirates have not been ranked in either poll.

Earlier this season Seton Hall was No. 13 in the rankings, the highest since Jan. 2, 2001.

Seton Hall has been in the weekly national rankings 111 times in program history, and 11 times this season.

Building a Resume

The Pirates have already notched several key wins that will loom large down the road, including victories over six teams currently in the KenPom Top-100:

Indiana - 92 (W, 84-68)

Texas Tech - 11 (W, 89-79)

Louisville - 34 (W, 79-77)

Creighton - 22 (W, 90-84)

St. John's - 85 (W, 75-70)

Butler - 35 (W, 90-87)

Legendary BIG EAST Rebounder

Delgado is currently two rebounds shy of breaking Derek Coleman's (Syracuse, 1986-90) all-time BIG EAST rebound record. Delgado's second rebound on Sunday will be No. 702 during BIG EAST play.

The big man is also second on the BIG EAST's all-time rebounding average (11.48) behind only Michael Smith (Providence, 1991-94, 11.66 rpg).

Delgado is comfortable putting up eye-popping rebounding numbers. In 2016-17, he recorded over 200 more rebounds than any other player in the BIG EAST, and set the conference's single-season conference-games only rebounding record (253). He also set the BIG EAST single season conference-games only rebounding average record last season with 14.1 rebounds per game.

Delgado Can Swing It

Angel Delgado's ability to distribute the ball and find the open man has been one of the most important aspects of his game, and has allowed the Pirates offense to click.

He is averaging 3.1 assists per game this season, the most among any non-guard in the BIG EAST and tied for 13th-best overall.

During league play, he has already had four games with five or more assists.

Know How to Score

Between Rodriguez, Carrington and Delgado, the Pirates have an incredible threesome of experienced scorers - the trio has a combined 4,452 career points

Each also has significant experience scoring in double-figures:

Delgado - 77 times

Carrington - 75 times

Rodriguez - 70 times

#EliteDesi

Desi Rodriguez has been the most consistent offensive contributor, and an outright stud all season.

He is averaging a team-best 17.6 points per game, good for ninth in the BIG EAST. He is shooting 50.4 percent (134-for-266) from the field and 36.3 percent (33-for-91) from long range.

Rodriguez earned BIG EAST Player of the Week on Dec. 4 by averaging 26.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists while shooting 55.9 percent in two Seton Hall victories over ranked opponents.

At No. 17 Louisville, the Bronx native went off for a season-high and game-high 29 points. He connected on the game-winning layup with 7.5 seconds remaining to lead The Hall to a 79-77 victory over the Cardinals, the program's first win at Louisville since Feb. 25, 1952.

The Pirates are 10-1 this season when Rodriguez is the team's leading scorer, and 33-10 all-time when he scores at least 15 points. He has scored 15 or more points in 11 of the last 15 games.

Rodriguez is averaging 12.7 points and shooting 57.1 percent in six career games against DePaul. Last year, he averaged 22.0 points in two games against the Blue Demons.

Sanogo the Scorer

Although widely regarded as the team's top defender, Ismael Sanogo has shown the ability to step in and contribute on the offensive end.

Over his last four games he has provided a valuable spark, shooting 15-of-21 (71.4 percent) from the floor, while averaging 9.8 points and 7.3 rebounds per game.

He has gone 4-for-6 (66.7 percent) from three-point range over the last four games. Entering the season, he was 1-for-6 in his career from long range. He also started the season 0-for-7 from deep.

At Marquette on Jan. 9, he scored a career-high 14 points to go along with six boards and a pair of three-point buckets.

Finish Strong

The Pirates pride themselves on defense, and have proven the ability to hold off late pushes by the opposition.

In fact, Seton Hall is 57-5 in its last 62 games (dating back to the start of the 2015-16 season) when holding a lead of seven or more at any point in the contest.

Rebounding on Both Ends

Delgado's ability to rebound on both ends of the floor has earned him national attention.

Earlier this week, he was named to the 2018 Oscar Robertson Trophy Watch List after earning a spot on the 2018 John R. Wooden Award Midseason Top-25 list last week.

Delgado's 4.3 offensive boards per game so far this season is good for sixth in the country. Overall, Delgado's 11.7 rebounds per game ranks fourth in the nation.

Against Vanderbilt earlier this season, Delgado was held without an offensive rebound, snapping a streak of 71 games with one or more offensive boards.

He has grabbed one or more offensive rebounds in 115 of 118 career games.

In six career games against DePaul, Delgado is averaging 11.7 rebounds. He is furthermore averaging 12.8 points while shooting an incredible 71.8 percent (28-for-39) from the field.

Second-Half Heroics

On Dec. 28 the Pirates pulled off a 13-point second half comeback win over Creighton, and an 11-point second half comeback win at Butler on Jan. 6. Seton Hall also trailed Georgetown by 10 in the first half on Jan. 13, but won by 13 points. It has been stellar in the second half all season.

Over the final 20 minutes, Seton Hall is shooting 45.7 percent while holding opponents to 41.6 percent shooting from the field.

One of the main reasons the Pirates have been able to create separation during the second half this season has been their three-point field goal defense. Opponents are shooting just 32.5 percent (68-for-209) from long range over the final 20 minutes.

One of the All-Timers

Carrington has a natural scoring ability that ranks him among the all-time greats at The Hall.

Currently, Carrington is 14th on the all-time scoring leaderboard with 1,589 career points. He also ranks 15th on the all-time assists leaderboard with 323.

The Brooklyn native has scored 20 or more points 21 times in his career.

Some Wine With That?

The man called "Cheese" - Myles Powell, has a smooth and savory stroke from long range, and is leading the Pirates in three-point buckets, shooting 51-for-124 (41.1 percent).

The Trenton native is averaging 16.3 points over his last three games. He scored a team-high 19 points at Creighton on Jan. 17 on 4-of-8 shooting from distance.

Against Georgetown on Jan. 13, Cheese filled the box score with a game-high 19 points, five rebounds, and a career-high six steals.

On Jan. 6 at Butler he drilled a massive three-pointer with just over two minutes to go and shot 4-of-4 at the free-throw line in the final seconds to secure the win.

Earlier this season against Texas Tech, Powell also took control when it mattered most. With 2:05 to go in the game, Cheese banged a three to push the lead to nine. He later made an acrobatic layup, then stole the ball on the ensuing possession and converted a layup while being fouled with 1:20 left. In all, he finished with eight of the team's final 10 points.

When Cheese gets hot, the Pirates feed off his energy and seem to play better as a collective. In fact, they are 14-7 over the course of his career when he makes three or more treys. He has scored in double-figures in 17 of 20 games this year.

In two career games against DePaul, Powell is averaging 14.0 points, 3.0 steals, and is shooting 7-for-16 (43.8 percent) from three-point range.

Owning the Glass

It helps to have the best rebounder in the country, but rebounding is truly a team effort, and the Pirates have proven the ability to dominate.

The Pirates have had a positive margin in 19 of the last 25 games dating back to last season.

The Pirates score an average of 37.1 points in the paint and allow just 28.7 per game.

Offensive rebounds lead to second-chance points, and the Pirates have been excellent in taking advantage. SHU averages 13.2 second-chance points per game, while opponents are averaging 10.5.

Sharing is Caring

Against St. John's on Dec. 31, the Pirates assisted on 19 of their 24 made field goals, the highest percentage of assists to field goals this season.

The Pirates have won 15 of 16 games when they register a positive assist-to-turnover ratio and 20 of the last 22.

Seton Hall has finished with an even or positive assist-to-turnover ratio in 14 of 20 games this year.

A total of four different Pirates have recorded five assists or more in a single game this season (Carrington, Delgado, Powell, Rodriguez).

Getting to the Line is Key

The Pirates are 27-3 over the last 30 games and 12-1 this season with they have more free-throw attempts than their opponent.

Be Like Mike

Junior Mike Nzei is one of the brightest all-around student-athletes at Seton Hall, and the economics major is a two-time All-Academic BIG EAST selection.

Unsurprisingly, his intellect translates to the court in terms of his efficiency and shot selection.

Against VCU, he scored 14 points on 7-of-8 shooting from the field, and currently leads the team in field goal percentage, 59.1, on 39-of-66 shooting.

He is second on the team with seven dunks this season, and the Pirates are 8-1 all-time when he scores in double figures.

Against Creighton on Dec. 28, Nzei pulled down a career-high 14 rebounds.

Not Up in Here!

Delgado tied his career high with four blocks against Xavier last Saturday, and now has a team-high 20 this season.

The team is already up to 81 blocks this year, and needs just two more to cruise past last year's season total of 83.

Offensive Showcase

The Pirates have shot 50.0 percent or better in seven games and 40.0 percent or better in 19 of 20 games this season.

For the year, the Pirates have 322 assists and 283 turnovers (1.1 ratio).

Carrington, Delgado and Powell have a combined 1.5 assist-to-turnover ratio (200 assists, 138 turnovers).