Preseason Preview: Seton Hall

The first official practices of the 17-18 college basketball season are in the books and Paint Touches is celebrating by counting down every Marquette opponent from worst to first. Each preview will contain a look at how the opponent did last season, who they lose, who they gain, reasonable expectations for their season, and our own prediction of how their matchup(s) with Marquette will go. This series will start with the most under of underdogs and progress all the way up to most unbeatable of opponents. Today’s preview covers the last Big East team that Marquette faced in the 16-17 season, the Seton Hall Pirates.

Team: Seton Hall Pirates
16-17 Record: 21-12 (10-8 Big East)
Postseason?: An end of the season 5 game winning streak pushed them to a 9 seed where they lost in their opening game against Arkansas
16-17 KenPom: 51
Date: 01/09/18 & 02/07/18
Location: BMO Harris Bradley Center and the Prudential Center
Coach: Kevin Willard (8th Season)
Projected KenPom Range: 15-50
Projected Conference Finish: 4/10 in the Big East

Departures from 16-17
Madison Jones: Starting PG: 29.5 mpg, 5.8 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 3.2 apg, 1.8 spg, 0.1 bpg, 2.0 tpg, .411 FG%, .311 3P% (Graduated)
Jevon Thomas: Benchwarmer: 9.3 mpg, 0.7 ppg, 1.0 rpg, 0.8 apg, 1.1 spg, 0.0 bpg, 1.3 tpg, .182 FG%, .333 3P% (Only appeared in 10 games) (Graduate transferred to Texas-Permian Basin)
Aramaveer Singh: Benchwarmer: 9.3 mpg, 1.3 ppg, 1.6 rpg, 0.1 apg, 0.0 spg, 0.1 bpg, 0.6 tpg, .200 FG%, .167 3P% (Only appeared in 9 games) (Midseason transferred, destination unknown)
Myles Carter: Benchwarmer: 6.6 mpg, 0.8 ppg, 1.4 rpg, 0.0 apg, 0.2 spg, 0.0 bpg, 0.6 tpg, .286 FG%, .000 3P% (Only appeared in 5 games) (Dismissed and transferred to Seattle University)
Rashed Anthony: 3rd Man off the Bench: 4.4 mpg, 0.2 ppg, 0.6 rpg, 0.0 apg, 0.0 spg, 0.0 bpg, 0.1 tpg, .333 FG%, .000 3P% (Graduate transferred to Saint Louis)
Dalton Soffer: Benchwarmer: 2.7 mpg, 0.5 ppg, 0.2 rpg, 0.0 apg, 0.1 spg, 0.0 bpg, 0.1 tpg, .167 FG%, .167 3P% (Only appeared in 11 games) (Transferred to Cal State San Marcos)
Michael Dowdy Jr: Benchwarmer: 1.5 mpg, 0.0 ppg, 0.2 rpg, 0.0 apg, 0.0 spg, 0.0 bpg, 0.0 tpg, .000 FG%, .000 3P% (Only appeared in 6 games) (Graduated)
10% of scoring, 10% of rebounding, 28% of assists, 32% of steals, 7% of blocks, 9% of 3PM

Arrivals:
Myles Cale: 4-star SG, ranked #87 overall by 247Sports
Jordan Walker: 3-star PG, ranked #178 overall by 247Sports
Romaro Gill: JUCO transfer from Vincennes University
Sandro Mamukelashvilli: 3-star PF, ranked #197 overall by 247Sports
Phillip Flory: Walk on SG

Probable Starters:
PG: Khadeen Carrington: 6-4 195 lb SR: 33.3 mpg, 17.1 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 2.9 apg, 1.2 spg, 0.3 bpg, 2.3 tpg, .424 FG%, .382 3P%
SG: Myles Powell: 6-2 195 lb SO: 23.8 mpg, 10.7 ppg, 2.2 rpg, 0.9 apg, 0.9 spg, 0.2 bpg, 1.0 tpg, .392 FG%, 332 3P%
SF: Desi Rodriguez: 6-6 220 lb SR: 31.9 mpg, 15.7 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 1.8 apg, 0.8 spg, 0.4 bpg, 2.1 tpg, .439 FG%, .355 3P%
PF: Ish Sanogo: 6-8 215 lb SR: 23.3 mpg, 3.0 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 0.8 apg, 0.9 spg, 0.6 bpg, 1.1 tpg, .438 FG%, .333 3P% (1 for 3)
C: Angel Delgado: 6-10 245 lb SR: 33.0 mpg, 15.2 ppg, 13.1 rpg, 2.2 apg, 0.6 spg, 0.3 bpg, 3.0 tpg, .543 FG%, .000 3P%

Probable Bench:
Michael Nzei: 6-8 205 lb RSJR PF
Myles Cale: 6-5 200 lb FR SG
Jordan Walker: 5-11 155 lb FR PG
Romaro Gill: 7-2 245 lb JR C

Probable Benchwarmers:
Eron Gordon: 6-3 200 lb SO SG
Sandro Mamukelashvilli: 6-10 230 lb FR PF
Phillip Flory: 6-5 195 lb FR SG
Taurean Thompson: 6-10 225 lb SO PF (Redshirtting)
Quincy McKnight: 6-4 180 lb JR PG (Redshirtting)

Notes:

• Kevin Willard finds himself in a now or never type situation going into this season. He has gotten the Pirates to back to back NCAA tournaments for the first time since the early 90s, but both were one and done trips. The Pirates bring in a senior heavy roster which puts them in great position for the first deep run of the Willard era, but also means that this might be Willard’s last shot. Seton Hall used a late 5 game winning streak last season to push themselves from fringe bubble team to a 9 seed. Though seven players have departed from that roster, only one of them was a player of any significance. This experienced squad is poised to make a big jump and could compete for the top spot in the Big East.
• The only departure of any significance for the Pirates is starting PG Madison Jones. Jones didn’t offer much in the scoring department but he was an excellent playmaker and the best pickpocket on the roster. Replacing him might be trickier than expected. The only true PG left on Seton Hall’s roster is true freshman Jordan Walker, who projects more as a project than an immediate starter. That means that Khadeen Carrington will likely have to slide over from the 2 to the 1. Carrington did play the point when Jones wasn’t on the floor but he is much better off the ball. Whatever position his playing, Carrington brings elite level scoring to the game. His go to move is attacking out of the pick and roll, either getting to the rim or kicking it out to an open shooter. He’s not too bad a shooter himself, making over 38% of his 3P attempts last season.
• You can’t talk about Seton Hall without talking about the monsters they have in the paint. Big East coaches breathed a sigh of relief when it was reported that Angel Delgado was going to try his luck in the NBA draft. Unfortunately for them, Delgado withdrew his name and returned for his senior season. Delgado is one of the best rebounders of the modern age of college basketball. He had two separate double digit streaks of double doubles last season. Offensively, he is limited to around the basket work, but his superb footwork and strength allow him to be very effective in that role. His best rebounding comes on the offensive glass where he has been known to buy the Pirates first, second, third, and ever fourth chances to score. In his first two seasons, Delgado struggled on the defensive end but that was an area of great improvement as a junior. He still struggles in space but he has fantastic at neutralizing other posts and defending the rim. Alongside him is Ish Sanogo. Sanogo doesn’t have nearly the pedigree that Delago has, but he is another strong rebounder. Between the two of them in the post, Seton Hall is near guaranteed to win the vast majority of 50/50 balls.
• Though he doesn’t get as much recognition as either Carrington or Delgado, Desi Rodriguez might be the best two-way player that Seton Hall has. Rodriguez has been the second scoring option for the Pirates since he arrived. He can take his man off the dribble but is much more a spot up shooter than Carrington is. He shines on the defensive end and is the best perimeter defender on the roster. He didn’t get the steals like Carrington and Jones did, but he was much better at locking his man down and denying penetration. Alongside Rodriguez is rising sophomore Myles Powell. He came to campus last season with a lot of extra weight and a reputation as a shooter. He worked admirably, dropping over 40 pounds but his shot wasn’t quite what was promised. He did lead the team with 68 makes, but his 33% accuracy left something to be desired. If he gets his shot right this season, he could be a breakout performer in the Big East.
• Bench production was a huge concern for Seton Hall. They technically had an 8-man rotation, but Rashed Anthony was more of a warm body than a contributor. Michael Nzei will continue to be a valuable 6th man, bringing energy and athleticism. The rest of the bench will likely be rounded out by their 2017 class. Their prize recruit is top 100 Myles Cale. Cale comes to them from a town in Delaware where he averaged over 26 points a game. He is an absurdly athletic player who should be able to make an immediate impact off the bench. 3-star Jordan Walker is likely to get playing time as the only true PG on the roster though his minutes will be limited. An intriguing addition was JUCO big man Romaro Gill. He is a legitimate 7 foot 2 and played for JUCO powerhouse Vincennes. His team stayed ranked #1 in the NJCAA for most of last season. He was a bit player, averaging 5 point and 5 boards but also over 2 blocks per game. If he can give Delgado a few minutes of rest and bring some rebounding and rim protection than Seton Hall’s bench should be improved from last season.

Prediction:
Marquette and Seton Hall split two tight contests in the regular season, the home team taking each one. Seton Hall won the rubber match with a six-point victory that felt like a blowout. The biggest challenge Marquette had was fighting off the bigs of Seton Hall. Sanogo and Rodriguez alone combined for 50 rebounds in their two regular season games. Marquette invested in some athletes that should help on that front. Even so, expect the two teams to split the series again.