The Seton Hall men’s basketball team extended its two-game winning streak to three after beating Creighton, 81-75, on Sunday afternoon in a tightly contested match.
For the second straight game, depth came through for the Pirates, as they had four starters in double figures for points. Myles Cale led the way with 20 on the day, Myles Powell had 19, Sandro Mamukelashvili had 17, and Quincy McKnight had 16.
Cale and Mamukelashvili dropped a combined eight points as the Pirates opened the match on a 12-2 run. Following their opening two points, the Blue Jays went 0-for-6 from the floor before calling a timeout.
Tides quickly turned in favor of the Blue Jays, however, as they responded with their own 12-0 run and forced six turnovers out of Seton Hall in the first nine minutes. Creighton’s early shooting troubles faded away as they went 6-for-8 from the field. Mitch Ballock and Davion Mintz led the way for their side out of the timeout, dropping five points apiece before Kevin Willard called a timeout of his own.
Powell was relatively quiet in the first half given the clinical finishing of Cale and Mamukelashvili. Both progressively played with a bit more selfishness as the half continued, but it cost Seton Hall a few open looks through Powell.
As the clock ran down to end the half, Ballock pulled up from the edge of the arc to drop a last second three-pointer. His shot got the crowd on its feet as it gave Creighton a three-point lead heading into half time at 33-30.
Mamukelashvili kept Seton Hall within reaching distance of Creighton to open the half, sinking two big three-pointers in the opening five minutes.
As the game progressed, both Ty-Shon Alexander and Powell began to light up the court from beyond the arc. Alexander put up five consecutive three-pointers in a second half that saw him finish with 20 points. Powell, who finished the first half with just three points, provided his own trifecta of threes during Alexander’s hot streak to keep the Blue Jays humble.
Though Creighton held the lead for the majority of the second half, a late defensive collapse saw the Pirates grab a crucial away win in Nebraska. The Blue Jays went on a four-minute scoring drought and shot just 1-for-9 from the field during that time.
McKnight, who quietly shelled out a great defensive performance, was a key component to the Pirates pulling off their second half comeback over Creighton.
The Pirates will be back in action on Feb. 20 when they host Xavier at home.
Justin Sousa can be reached at justin.sousa@student.shu.edu or on Twitter @Sousa7474.
