Injuries have been the story of the season so far for Seton Hall. Four key players have missed significant chunks of time, with guards Sterling Gibbs and Fuquan Edwin and forward Patrik Auda missing a combined ten games, center Aaron Geramipoor missing three games and counting, and center Eugene (Don’t Call Me Gene) Teague missing one so far after a nasty fall in their win last week over Lafayette. They’ve had at least one starter unable to play due to injury for each of the last nine games, and as a result, have used 12 different starting lineups in 14 games.
Despite all the injuries, The Hall has managed to pile up a 10-4 record, and won their Big East opener in double overtime on the road at Providence, 81-80. None of the non-conference wins were terribly impressive, but ten wins is ten wins.
They’ve been a good offensive team most of the year, averaging 79.1 points per game, good for third in the Big East. Over the last three games, including the 2OT win over Providence, they’ve been even better: averaging 87.7 points per game while shooting 49% from the floor and dishing out an average of 14 assists a game. Those are the sort of numbers that make them one of the few Big East teams capable of winning a shootout with the Jays.
Key to that increased offensive production has been the insertion of senior Brian Oliver into the starting lineup. Over the last four games since becoming a starter, he’s averaging 17.1 points per game and 6.3 rebounds while playing an average of 37 minutes a contest. A 6’7″, 225 pound forward, Oliver is also their best three-point threat, going 14-27 over those four games (51.9%). His 43 made three-pointers are second-most in the Big East, and already one better than his career-best of 42, achieved a year ago. Against LIU-Brooklyn, he made eight 3-pointers, tying him for the single-game SHU record.
Fellow swingman Fuquan Edwin, a 6’6″ 215 pound junior, is their leading scorer for the season at 12.5 points a game. It’s been a while since Creighton played against a player like Edwin — he’s second in the country in steals per game, averaging 4.8 per 40 minutes, which is just 0.1 less than the entire Creighton team averages. Remarkably, he has 37 steals already this season to lead the conference despite missing three games due to injury. He’s six steals away from setting the career record for most steals in Seton Hall history, and his 1,351 career points are 25th best in school history. Edwin has attempted the most shots on the team, making 42% (52-122) but is not much of a threat from long range, making just 10-37 from three-point range.
6’9″ forward Brandon Mobley has scored in double-figures in six of the last seven games, averaging 13.6 points over that stretch, and scored 16 points with six rebounds against Providence. Over the last three games, he’s been particularly impressive, averaging 14.3 points with a 51.9 FG % (14-27) and a 92.3 FT % (12-13).
They don’t have a ton of depth in the backcourt, but their top players are good enough to allow them to compete most nights. Texas transfer Sterling Gibbs is a dynamic scorer and has posted four 20-point games so far this year, including 27 against Rutgers. He excels at slashing to the rim and drawing fouls; unfortunately for opponents, he’s also a terrific free throw shooter, making 85.1% for the year (103-121). Against Providence, he had 15 points and went a perfect 4-4 from the charity stripe over the game’s final 10 seconds. He’s also good at setting up his teammates, assisting on 28% of their baskets while he’s on the floor and dishing out an average of 3.9 assists a game, eighth best in the conference. Along with Bryce Cotton of Providence and Markel Starks of Georgetown, Gibbs is one of three players in the Big East that lead their team in both scoring and assists.
Joining him in the backcourt is Jaren Sina, a 6’2″ freshman that has made an immediate impact — he boasts a team-high 4.7 assists/game and has a 7:1 assist to turnover ratio in SHU’s last 3 wins. He’s also a good shooter, as evidenced by his making four 3-pointers in a five-minute span against Virginia Tech in November, but he prefers to be a table-setter for his teammates and shoot only when left open.
All of that, and I haven’t even mentioned a familiar face, Gene Teague, who has damn near been a one-man wrecking crew this year. Teague played against Creighton three times while he was at Southern Illinois, averaging 10.3 points and 5.3 rebounds in those three games while matched up against Gregory Echenique, one of the few times the two ginormous centers got to actually bang against another ginormous center in MVC play. Teague leads the Big East in offensive rebounds (3.8/game), and is second in the conference in rebounding (9.4/game) and field goal percentage (.620). Over the last six games that he’s played in, Teague has averaged 15.3 points, 12.8 rebounds and shot 75.0 pct (33-44).
How the heck was this team picked to finish in the bottom of the conference by most prognosticators? That’s what I’m left wondering after scouting them and watching them beat Providence on Tuesday. There’s one helluva lot of talent on this team.
For one, their defense leaves a lot to be desired. Seton Hall ranks 286th in three-point defense, and are prone both to undisciplined mistakes and to failing to help each other out when they get beat — they don’t recover and fill gaps especially well. For the season, opponents make 37% of their three-point attempts and almost 43% overall.
For another, they’re extremely streaky. Against Oklahoma earlier this year, they built an 11-point lead with about ten minutes to play, but collapsed down the stretch and were suddenly unable to execute on either end. Against Providence, they nearly did the same thing — the Pirates had a 12-point lead with 12:45 to go, and after blowing the lead, needed two overtimes to win.
They’re banged up heading into this game, as both Teague and Edwin are 50/50 to play against the Bluejays. 6’11” center Aaron Geramipoor is a gametime decision with an ankle injury. Without the core of their frontcourt, Seton Hall will need to do something they haven’t done all year — play even passable defense on the perimeter — to keep this one close, because they’ll have no one with experience to guard Doug McDermott inside.
About the Pirates: Seton Hall assistant coach Oliver Antigua coached Creighton’s Devin Brooks in high school at St. Raymond’s in the Bronx … Seven of the Pirates’ 10 wins have come on their home floor, and in nine home games, Seton Hall is allowing less than 69 points per game and has forced opponents into 20 more turnovers than assists (97 assists/117 turnovers) … At home, SHU has out-rebounded opponents by an average of four boards/game (36.3-to-32.3) … After taking a 30-28 lead into the break at Providence; SHU has now led at halftime in all 10 of its victories this season. In games won, The Hall has out-scored the opposition by an average of just under nine points in the first half compared to a narrow +2.8 average margin in the second half in those games.
One Big Paragraph with Lots O’Dots™: Creighton hasn’t trailed in any of its last five games, double-digit home wins over Nebraska, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, California, Chicago State and Marquette … Jahenns Manigat averaged 5.6 points per game in the first eight contests this season, making 15-of-33 field goal attempts (45.4 percent), but since returning home from CU’s eight-day trek to California, Manigat has averaged 11.2 points on 19-of-36 marksmanship (52.8 percent) from the floor … Creighton is 2-0 in true road games this season, having already won at Saint Joseph’s and Long Beach State. The Bluejays also won their road finale last season, at Bradley, giving them a three-game winning streak on the road … Creighton is 19-8 in true road games the past three years, and 31-12 when you also include neutral site games.
The RUN-DMD Show: Doug McDermott enters Saturday’s game 51st in NCAA history with 2,532 career points. With two points or more, he’d surge into the top-50 in NCAA history (which, COME ON, this is Doug we’re talking about, so he’ll be in the top-50 after this game). If he reaches his season average of 24 points, McDermott would move up to 41st place. Again, this is Doug we’re talking about, so that’s probable. And should McDermott match his collegiate high of 44 points, he’s rise up to 38th in NCAA history in points.
It’s Doug. Don’t rule it out.
Out of Context Ron Swanson Quote: “There are three acceptable haircuts: high and tight, crew cut, buzz cut.”
The Last Time They Played: On March 16, 1991, Seton Hall eliminated Creighton from the NCAA Tournament two days after the Bluejays upset #15 New Mexico State in the first round for their first tourney win since 1974. The Jays jumped on P.J. Carlisimo’s squad early, taking a 32-31 halftime lead on Todd Eisner’s three-pointer on the final possession of the half.
Third-seeded Seton Hall, the Big East champs that year, ratcheted up their defense and completely shut the Bluejays down in the second half. Over the first ten minutes, they went on three separate shutout runs (7-0, 9-0 and 12-0), part of a 29-9 spurt that blew the game open. The Pirates would eventually build a 27-point lead, before a late Creighton run made the final score (81-69) more respectable.
The loss ended the Creighton career of Chad Gallager and Bob Harstad, the Dynamic Duo of CU hoops. Gallagher led the Jays in his final college game with 17 points and 12 rebounds, while Harstad had 13 points and eight rebounds.
Needless to say, the Jays owe ’em one for Chad and Bob.
The Series: Seton Hall leads the all-time series with Creighton, 6-1, though the teams have met just once in the last 62 years, a 1991 NCAA Tournament contest in Salt Lake City won by the Pirates.
Greg McDermott has never faced Seton Hall or coach Kevin Willard. Willard, however, is 1-0 all-time against Creighton, leading his 2009-10 Iona team to a 63-55 win over the Bluejays at the Old Spice Classic.
Gratuitous Linkage: Chris McManus of South Orange Juice details the gruesome injury Eugene Teague suffered against Lafayette, which caused him to be carried off the floor on a stretcher.
This Date in Creighton Hoops History: On January 4, 1998, Creighton blew out Drake in front of 3200 fans at the Civic Auditorium, 86-54. CU’s bench outscored Drake’s 26-0 in the first half, a period which saw the Bulldogs attempt just nine shots over the first 11 minutes thanks to ten turnovers, as the Jays built a 24-9 lead.
Rodney Buford, averaging 20.5 points coming into the game, scored just 11 but dished out five assists as he got his teammates involved. In typically understated fashion, after the game Dana Altman told the media, “For the most part — getting 86 points and shooting the ball 54 percent — we did a decent job.” That decent job was their biggest margin of victory in seven years, and moved them to 2-1 in MVC play as Altman’s rebuilding job picked up steam.
Completely Random, Totally Rad Music Video of the Day: For Creighton’s first Big East game in New Jersey (and first game in New Jersey, period, in decades), this seems ‘propriate. And yes, I just turned “appropriate” into a contraction, because I had to do something to try and salvage some coolness after slotting Bon Jovi in here.
The Bottom Line: Creighton gets hot from the outside against Seton Hall’s shoddy perimeter defense, and wins convincingly.
Jays 77, Seton Hall 66