Seton Hall began a short 2-game road trip in Indianapolis after a 1-1 homestand as they took on the Butler Bulldogs in a successful return for the Davis brothers. They re-entered the win column with a 70-49 victory in Hinkle Fieldhouse.
Femi Odukale led the Pirates on a 13-2 run early in the first half on the strength of seven points. The Bulldogs cut the lead to just four after a made shot from behind-the-arc, though six quick points gave the Hall their first double-digit lead of the game.
The last Butler field goal came at the 6:42 mark of the first half, as the Pirates led 27-16. A last-second triple from Al-Amir Dawes pushed Seton Hall’s lead to 20 headed into the break, 38-18, in what was one of the best halves of basketball the team has played this season.
Butler was held to just 35% shooting from the field and 40% from the free-throw line, while Seton Hall connected on 51% of their shots and made their lone attempt from the stripe. The Pirates held the advantage on the glass 21-to-8, second-chance points 9-to-0, and dominated with 22 points inside the paint to Butler’s eight.
Though the lead was cut to under 20 with 18:10 remaining in the second half, the Hall continued their dominance and kept a commanding lead for the rest of the matchup. Their advantage grew to 27 points at two different points, and Seton Hall went on to beat Butler on the road, 70-49.
Four Pirates notched double-digits in the victory, led by Dre Davis with 15 points on 5-for-8 shooting. Dawes followed with 11 points on the strength of three makes behind-the-arc. Kadary Richmond and KC Ndefo both added 10 points for the Hall.
Defensively, Seton Hall forced 13 turnovers and held the Bulldogs to just 23.5% from the three-point line.
Seton Hall improves to 6-5 in Big East conference play and 13-9 overall with the win. They will return to action in Queens, NY on Feb. 1 as they take on St. John’s and the Red Storm at 8:30 PM.
Thomas Donnelly can be reached at thomas.donnelly@student.shu.edu. Find him on Twitter @_tommyd023.
