Seton Hall is preparing to defend the Garden State Hardwood Classic title against a hungry Rutgers team Saturday night in Newark, N.J.
The Pirates are 7-2 against Rutgers since the end of the old Big East Conference turned the in-state rivalry series into an annual nonconference affair. The schools now play for a trophy in the shape of New Jersey made out of boardwalk planks salvaged from Hurricane Sandy.
Seton Hall (5-3) has a two-game winning streak in the series, including last year’s defensive struggle, a 45-43 victory at Rutgers.
Both teams continue to uphold a defense-minded reputation, but they both enter Saturday off a loss.
Seton Hall visited No. 6 Baylor on Tuesday as part of the Big East-Big 12 Battle and fell 78-60. The Pirates pulled within 50-47 after trailing by 10 at halftime, but the Bears took over from there.
With NBA scouts on hand to watch Baylor freshman Ja’Kobe Walter, they got a taste of what Kadary Richmond can do at his best. The Seton Hall point guard went for 18 points on 8-of-13 shooting, plus six assists, four rebounds and three steals.
He’s extra motivated to keep the Pirates’ streak against Rutgers alive.
“Especially after a loss at Baylor, I feel like we should come out fiery, ready to go,” Richmond told NJ.com. “I think this game means a little more just because of the fact that we let a big one slip out of our hands, so it’s definitely time to get after it and we definitely need one with our backs against the wall.”
Rutgers (5-3) has lost two straight games by 18 and 19 points, respectively. On Wednesday, the Scarlet Knights rallied to within 50-48 against host Wake Forest before the Demon Deacons scored the next 18 points and earned a 76-57 win.
Aundre Hyatt and Noah Fernandes scored 13 points apiece to lead Rutgers, while Clifford Omoruyi, considered the Scarlet Knights’ best player, had season-lows of four points and four rebounds.
Omoruyi enters the game at 999 career points, in position to become the 46th player in Rutgers history to reach 1,000.
Rebounding has been a major problem for Rutgers, which ranks outside the top 300 nationally in rebound margin (minus-3.6).
Coach Steve Pikiell didn’t appear on Rutgers’ postgame radio show after the loss to Wake. It was a continuation of rebounding troubles seen in a 55-27 disadvantage the previous Saturday against Illinois.
“We didn’t get our own offensive rebounds and we missed a lot and they manhandled us on the glass,” Pikiell said after that game. “You know I’m not happy with that.”
Seton Hall leads the all-time series 42-31.
–Field Level Media
