(PHOTO CREDIT TO BOB DEA/DALY DOSE OF HOOPS)
MILWAUKEE, WI – Seton Hall had sights on splitting the road trip after falling heartbreakingly to Xavier last week.
It could not be done tonight, as the Pirates (7-7, 0-3 Big East) fell to the Marquette Golden Eagles (10-4, 2-1 Big East) by a score of 83 to 69 on Tuesday night inside Fiserv Forum.
Head coach Shaheen Holloway started the game with a different look with his starting five, excluding a pair of upperclassmen in KC Ndefo and Tray Jackson.
Basketball is simply, a game of runs. Marquette kicked the game off with a 7-0 run—led by Olivier-Max Prosper, with four quick points in the low post. Marquette concluded its run with a pair of triples from David Joplin and Kam Jones with back-to-back threes to lock in the team’s 12-0 run and eventual 14-3 run.
O-Max with the slam!
MU 11 | SH 5 | 1H 13:34 #MUBB | #WeAreMarquette pic.twitter.com/Qkm8IEyp41
— Marquette Basketball (@MarquetteMBB) December 28, 2022
Following a timeout taken by Holloway, it was heard through the Fox Sports 1 feed that he needs more from the older players he has on the roster.
The words from the huddle worked for the Pirates, most notably, the two bench players in, Ndefo and Jackson.
Within the first few minutes, Ndefo swatted away a pair of chances from Joplin that jump-started the Pirates’ run. After the blocks from Ndefo, Kadary Richmond tacked on his second assist by finding Tray Jackson in the corner for a triple to put the Hall within six. It stopped the bleeding in the interim against the Golden Eagles and its previous run.
Seton Hall would tack on another five points to tie the game up at 16, with a Ndefo layup after freshman Jaquan Sanders found the former Saint Peter’s forward down low.
Here comes The Hall!
It's an 11-0 run for @SetonHallMBB and we're all level.#BIGEASThoops x @CBBonFOX pic.twitter.com/70XTOHzuMq
— BIG EAST MBB (@BIGEASTMBB) December 28, 2022
Ndefo, simply put, was the catalyst of getting the team back within single digits, where he tacked on six points, a pair of rebounds, and blocked a trio in just seven minutes on the floor.
Then Marquette went on a huge run to extend the lead to a game-high 14 points with an 18-4 run. Led by Oso Ighodaro, he sent a booming dunk home off a solid no-look pass from the charity stripe from assist machine Tyler Kolek.
Then, it was Seton Hall, who responded with a 12-0 run of their own, who had five straight points from Richmond, who has been the team’s leader the last few games for the Pirates.
To make matters even worse for the Pirates, Joplin sent home a booming triple from the near elbow as the horn sounded to break the Seton Hall run into the locker room.
Things didn’t get better for Seton Hall in the second half, as they found Marquette hotter than they were in the first 20 by shooting over 60% from the floor, led by their bench, who had 15. Nine of those points came from three consecutive triples from Sean Jones that essentially put the game on ice.
Turnovers continued to plague the Pirates, as they turned the ball over eight times, while the Golden Eagles grabbed seven points off those miscues. The Pirates had the ball stolen away six times and were outscored in the paint 24-14 in the second half alone.
Sean Jones with three consecutive 3⃣'s
MU 69 | SH 54 | 2H 7:00 #MUBB | #WeAreMarquette pic.twitter.com/A6H4jJo0j1
— Marquette Basketball (@MarquetteMBB) December 28, 2022
Dre Davis, Tyrese Samuel, and Femi Odukale were the trio of Pirates who landed in double-figures and combined for 13-for-18 from the floor.
It was an unfortunate turn of events for Seton Hall, as Marquette was too hot inside their building and controlling the tempo.
Marquette had three players in double-figures, with Kam Jones tacking 14 points on the scoreboard, Oso Ighodaro with a stellar game, having sunk home a game-high 16 points off eight-of-nine from the floor, and grabbed nine rebounds. Olivier-Max Prosper, who started the game off hot for the Golden Eagles, had 11 points and a pair of rebounds in five-of-seven shooting on the night.
Seton Hall had a bunch of unforced errors, including missed free throws, throughout the game. Odukale struggled from the line, missing six of a possible nine free points. Samuel, Ndefo, and Jackson all missed one bucket from the stripe.
With 1:08 left, 12-for-22 from the line for the Pirates.
79-69 – if you make lets say a total of 18, add 6 to that, it's 79-75.
You have a ball game. Now, you do not.
This team HAS figure things out in more ways than one.#HALLin https://t.co/9FHHlQDbm9
— Joey Jarzynka (@realJoeyJazz) December 28, 2022
A defense that has been a bright spot for Seton Hall was NOT on display tonight, as they allowed 83 points to the Golden Eagles and allowed the team to shoot 54.1% from the floor and NINE triples. Seton Hall got 17 points off the bench, mainly in the first half. Continued miscues for the Pirates included 15 total turnovers that resulted in 18 points for Marquette.
Seton Hall in four games against top-20 KenPom offenses:
82.5 points allowed per game
0-4 recordThis defense is good, but definitely not great. Three of those opponents scored 80+ against the Pirates.
— Matt St. Jean (@mattstdream) December 28, 2022
Quickly on Marquette. Every player who entered for second-year head coach Shaka Smart tacked on at least two points, with the lone player not securing a field goal being Ben Gold. He got two points from the free-throw line in 13 minutes on the floor.
The Golden Eagles also led the way with 28 bench points and a whopping 46 points in the paint.
Seton Hall returns home for a “must-win” on New Year’s Eve this coming Saturday, December 31, to face the St. John’s Red Storm inside the Prudential Center. The game will tip-off at noon on FS1.
