Seton Hall basketball falls at No. 6 Baylor as must-win vs Rutgers looms
In college basketball, can you build off an 18-point loss on the road against an elite team?
Seton Hall is going to find out.
The Pirates fell at sixth-ranked Baylor 78-60 Tuesday night, dropping to 5-3 on the season and 0-3 against high-majors. That sets up a virtual must-win against neighborhood rival Rutgers in Saturday’s Garden State Hardwood Classic in Newark.
Baylor (9-0) sports the best offense in the nation and it showed, shooting 10-of-22 from 3-point range and 50 percent overall from the field. The Bears built a 14-point first half lead that the Hall whittled to three midway through the second half before hitting a wall.
3 THOUGHTS
1. Kadary Richmond needs help
Seton Hall’s point guard was the best player on the floor, tallying 18 points on 8-of-13 shooting to go along with six assists, three steals and just one turnover. The senior more than held his own in his duel with ace Baylor playmaker RJ Dennis, who has a lot more weapons at his disposal. But Richmond logged 37 minutes and without any reinforcements, he seemed to wear down.
"That’s him being tired," Holloway said in his postgame radio interview. "I keep telling him, if you’re tired let me know and I’ll take you out."
On the whole, the Hall’s offense moved the ball fairly well, with 13 assists on 23 buckets compared to just 11 turnovers.
2. Solid showing for the bigs
Backup center Elijah Hutchins-Everett returned to action after a concussion had sidelined him for the past five games. He was a presence, tallying four points and seven boards (including four offensive) in 11 minutes off the bench. That’s a big positive going forward as starting center Jaden Bediako (10 points, six boards, four blocks) looked solid once again and freshman forward David Tubek (3 points) shook off some more rust in this first half cameo but may have injured his back.
"He told me he hurt his back, so that’s why he didn’t play the second half," Holloway said on radio. "I’m a little nervous about that. But I just think he’s got to get used to the bumps and grinds, get used to getting hit. As long as it’s not injured, he has to get used to the physicality of the game right now. He came in the first half and gave us some good, positive minutes.”
3. Problems persist as must-win looms
Postgrad guard Al-Amir Dawes is now shooting 6-of-35 against high-major opponents this season. He also has committed 9 fouls across those three games. The Pirates can’t win these kinds of contests without Dawes at least shooting respectably.
Perimeter defense continues to be an issue. Baylor will carve up most opponents, but the Pirates still aren’t rotating and recovering well.
In order to beat Rutgers and Missouri and salvage the non-conference schedule, at least one if not both of these concerns has to get righted.
3 QUOTES
From Shaheen Holloway’s postgame radio interview:
1. On the effort: “We showed it in spurts just like we did in San Diego. Can’t play in spurts against good teams…We haven’t found that consistency yet and we’ve got to find it quick.”
2. On Hutchins-Everett’s return: “He actually played better than I thought he would just from the standpoint of he only had two practices. He came in and gave us a boost. That was good to see, so that’s a positive for us.”
3.On Al Dawes: "He ain’t making shots. He’s just not making shots. Al is one of our leaders, right? He’s going to take some tough ones; some of these tough ones I’ve got to live with. But he just didn’t make his shots tonight.”
Jerry Carino has covered the New Jersey sports scene since 1996 and the college basketball beat since 2003. He is an Associated Press Top 25 voter. Contact him at jcarino@gannettnj.com.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Seton Hall basketball falls at No. 6 Baylor; must-win vs Rutgers looms
