AP Photo
Forget having the Pirates’ number; the DePaul Blue Demons have Seton Hall on speed dial.
For the second time in just as many weeks, the Pirates (15-7, 5-5) were upset by DePaul (12-12, 6-5) as they fell 75-62 on the rode in Rosemont, Ill. on Tuesday night. The Demons had previously beaten the Hall at the Prudential Center on Jan. 22, 64-60.
Some chalked the original loss up to the absence of Seton Hall’s Isaiah Whitehead. With the star freshman healthy and back on the floor Tuesday, the Pirates were favored by 2.5 points.
SHU was inconsistent on offense. Sterling Gibbs (21 PTS,), Whitehead (14 PTS) and Desi Rodriguez (9 PTS) were all productive in terms of scoring the ball, but overall the Pirates’ lacked the crisp ball movement they had shown in recent games against Xavier and Marquette. The team had just five assists on the night, with four of them coming from Gibbs.
The Pirates were overmatched on the glass, losing the rebounding game 37-27. Angel Delgado pulled in seven boards while Rodriguez grabbed six of his own. All nine players to step on the court for DePaul had at least two.
Free throws kept the Hall afloat for a while, as the team hit 23 of their 26 attempts. However, shotty defense throughout the night would come back to hurt them in the end. DePaul’s biggest benefactors from that defense were Jamee Crockett and Billy Garrett Jr, who scored 21 and 20 points, respectively.
What hurt Seton Hall the most was their inability to hit shots at the end. They scored just one field goal over the final 15:30 minutes of what had previously been a back-and-forth contest.
Now the Pirates have to fly back to Jersey and prepare for a rematch with Marquette on Saturday. Seton Hall beat the Golden Eagles 80-70 on Jan. 28 on their turf. Tip-off at The Prudential Center is set for 12 p.m.
Gary Phillips can be reached at gary.phillips@student.shu.edu or on Twitter @GPhillips2727.
