Seton Hall University
No. 6 Villanova
Pirates stun previously unbeaten No. 6/5 Villanova
1/3/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
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NEWARK, N.J. - For the second time in four days, the Seton Hall men's basketball team sent a nationally ranked opponent home from the Prudential Center empty handed as the Pirates rallied to earn an impressive 66-61 overtime victory, handing previously unbeaten No. 6/5 Villanova its first loss of the season before a sell-out crowd on Saturday.
The Hall is now 12-2 overall with unblemished marks of 8-0 at home and 2-0 in the BIG EAST after previously dispatching No. 15 St. John's, 78-67, in the conference opener on Wednesday. Saturday's matchup was the 106th all-time between the two longstanding rivals and the first since Seton Hall upset the then-No. 3 Wildcats in the 2014 BIG EAST Tournament as the Pirates have now posted two-straight wins over VU for the first time since 2002-04.
The win also marked the first time that SHU has defeated ranked opponents in consecutive outings since 2005-06, and it is the first time since 1991-92 that the team has beaten Associated Press top 15 teams in back-to-back games (Feb. 8, 1992 at No. 10 Connecticut & Feb. 11, 1992 vs No. 10 Syracuse). The Pirates are 2-0 in league play for the first time since a 1999-00 campaign in which the program advanced to the Sweet 16.
Junior Sterling Gibbs (Scotch Plains, N.J.) finished with a game-high 20 points after leading the way with 25 against the Red Storm and handed out four assists. Freshman Khadeen Carrington (Brooklyn, N.Y.) came up huge with a season-high 17 points off the bench, 11 of which came in the second half and overtime. Senior Brandon Mobley (Savannah, Ga.) chipped in 10 points, six rebounds, four blocks and three steals despite fouling out in the extra period.
Daniel Ochefu finished with career-highs of 19 points and 24 rebounds for the Wildcats (13-1, 1-1 BIG EAST) who had matched their best start in program history by out-scoring opponents by an average of 18.2 points per game coming into the day.
Gibbs, Mobley and Carrington combined to record all 27 of the team's points in the second half as the Pirates were forced to battle back after relinquishing their halftime lead on the first possession of the period. Villanova took their first lead of the game less than a minute into the second frame and played from in front for the next 13 until a Gibbs 3-pointer late in the shot clock leveled the score at 52-52 with 6:21 left in regulation.
The teams were not separated by more than one possession for the remainder of the half and with the clock approaching one minute, Carrington got to the rim and finished with his off hand to put SHU in front, 58-56. Kris Jenkins hit two free throws to tie the score for the fifth time in the half with 36 seconds to go and both teams missed out on opportunities to deliver the decisive blow to send the contest into overtime.
Trailing 62-61 three minutes into the extra period, Carrington spun to the basket and finished again and later stepped to the line to hit two clutch free throws to extend the lead to 64-61 with 0:23 to play. Gibbs came up with a steal to deny Villanova a chance to tie the score again and Jaren Sina (Lake Hopatcong, N.J.) sealed the win with two more freebies.
The Pirates blitzed the Wildcats to start the contest, jumping out to an early 14-point edge behind hot shooting and up-tempo play. Carrington picked out Haralds Karlis (Riga, Latvia) in the left corner for a trey that increased the gap to 17-3 just over six minutes into the action. The Wildcats' Josh Hart got to the rim for a layup on the ensuing possession, giving the visitors their first field goal of the afternoon 6:23 into the game.
Seton Hall connected on eight of its first 11 attempts in the period but found the mark on just three of its final 18 tries prior to halftime as the sixth-ranked Wildcats methodically climbed back into contention. Foul trouble for SHU played a major role in the half as Villanova entered the bonus with 11:25 remaining; in the midst of an 11-2 run that pulled VU back to within five at 19-14.
In all, seven players for The Hall picked up two fouls in the period as the Wildcats paraded to the line 22 times but only sank 10 (.455), stunting their comeback efforts. Aside from their abundance of opportunities from the line, Villanova helped offset 7-of-25 (.280) shooting in the period with 11 offensive boards that led to seven points.
The Hall will head on the road next, first traveling to take on Xavier in the first of a two-game stint away from home that will also take the Pirates through Omaha to face Creighton later in the week. Tip-off between Seton Hall and the Musketeers is scheduled for 7 p.m. from the Cintas Center in Cincinnati on Wednesday, January 7. The contest will be televised nationally on CBS Sports Network while the Seton Hall radio team of Gary Cohen and Dave Popkin will have the call for 570AM (WMCA) and The Pirate Sports Network on SHUPirates.com.
Seton Hall will return to the Prudential Center on Tuesday, January 13 when Butler visits The Rock for a 7 p.m. matchup. To purchase tickets, click HERE or call the Seton Hall Ticket Office at 973-275-HALL (4255).
