Seton Hall University
11-4,2-3Big East
DePaul
10-6,1-5Big East
Late Game Rally Not Enough For No. 20 Pirates At DePaul, 96-92
1/13/2022 8:51:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Chicago, Ill. - Despite cutting its deficit to two late after trailing by 11 with 56 seconds to play, the 20th-ranked Seton Hall men's basketball team couldn't dig itself out of the hole and DePaul took advantage as the Blue Demons topped the Pirates, 96-92, on Thursday at Wintrust Arena.
Senior Jared Rhoden (Baldwin, N.Y.) scored 25 points to lead the Pirates (11-4, 2-3 BIG EAST). Graduate student Bryce Aiken (Randolph, N.J.) chipped in with 22 points on 11-of-12 shooting from the free throw line.
How It Happened
The Blue Demons took control from the opening tap and stretched their lead to as large as 18 with 1:23 left before halftime. DePaul went into the locker room with a 17-point advantage, 52-35.
The Pirates used a 6-2 run, featuring four points by Rhoden and a thunderous dunk by junior Tray Jackson (Detroit, Mich.) to start the second half that cut their deficit to 12, 53-41, but DePaul used a 7-2 spurt that drove their lead back up to 17, 60-43, with 14:37 to go.
Every time the Pirates got their deficit to 11, the Blue Demons, eager for the first BIG EAST win of the season, had an answer. DePaul led by 11 again with 56 seconds left but The Hall had one more run in it as a Rhoden three-pointer with 21 seconds left capped an 8-4 run and made it a four-point game, 90-86. Twice did the Pirates make it a two-point contest on free throws by Aiken and graduate student Jamir Harris (North Brunswick, N.J.) but DePaul did their job at the charity stripe that iced the game.
Inside the Box Score
- The Pirates finished plus-two on the glass, 42-40, and had a 10-7 advantage in assists.
- Seton Hall shot 91 percent (29-of-32) from the charity stripe.
- The Blue Demons committed one more turnover than the Pirates, 12-11.
- Four Pirates finished in double-figures; Rhoden, Aiken, sophomore Kadary Richmond (11) and Jackson (10).
- The Pirates' defense allowed DePaul to shoot only 26 percent from three-point range.
- Freshman Brandon Weston (Brooklyn, N.Y.) made his first appearance of the season.
News & Notes
- Seton Hall drops to 88-10 since 2015-16 when it scores 80 or more points.
- DePaul snapped a four-game losing streak with its win against the Pirates.
- The Hall's 17-point halftime deficit was its largest of the season.
- Graduate student Ike Obiagu (Abuja, Nigeria) finished with five blocks and a season-high 10 rebounds, two shy of his career-high 12 boards set vs. Boston College on March 2018 when he was at Florida State.
- Obiagu passed Ramon Ramos and John Garcia on Seton Hall's all-time blocks list and now has 150 in career as a Pirate.
- Obiagu has now registered a block in 24 consecutive games dating back to last season, the longest streak in the country.
- Rhoden moved past Ramon Ramos and Daryll Walker on the Pirates' all-time scoring list and he now sits at 1,025 career points.
- Richmond led the Pirates with six assists, his fourth five-plus assist game of the season and the 12th of his career.
