Seton Hall 73, DePaul 72
ROSEMONT, Ill. -- Fuquan Edwin hit a game-winning bank shot with seven seconds left, lifting Seton Hall to a 73-72 victory over DePaul at Allstate Arena on Wednesday.
The game was the Big East opener for both teams.
Edwin's game-winner came seconds after he missed a potential go-ahead jumper. The Pirates, however, regained possession and set up for the final bucket.
Jamee Crockett's bid for a game-winning 3 pointer missed, and the ball bounced toward half court as the final seconds elapsed.
The Pirates (12-2) won their seventh straight game, while DePaul (9-5) dropped its second in a row.
Aaron Cosby scored a game-high 24 points for the Pirates. Seton Hall's Brandon Mobley had 16 points and 10 rebounds, while Eugene Teague and Edwin each closed with 11. Teague also grabbed 15 rebounds.
Crockett paced the Blue Demons with 16 points. Brandon Young had 15 points for DePaul, while Durrell McDonald and Charles McKinney had 12 and 10 points, respectively.
The Pirates are now 14-20 in Big East openers, while DePaul slipped to 1-7.
DePaul led 72-71 into the final minute before losing the ball with 26 seconds to go.
DePaul trailed 40-28 in the first half before trimming the margin to 40-33 by halftime. Seton Hall used hot 3-point shooting to claim an early lead but then struggled beyond the arc through much of the second half.
DePaul tied the game at 52 on McDonald's 3 pointer with 9:45 to play. Fifty seconds later, Young's layup and free throw opened a 55-52 lead, the Blue Demons' first of the game.
McKinney's bank shot with 8:15 remaining extended a 10-0 run for a 57-52 lead.
Seton Hall roared back thanks to revived long-distance shooting, tying the game at 64 on Mobley's 3-pointer with 5:01 left. But DePaul climbed back ahead at 67-64 on a Young free throw and Crockett's long jumper with 3:53 showing.
The Pirates hit their first four shots -- including three consecutive 3-pointers -- to open a 11-5 lead by the 16:52 mark of the first half. The Blue Demons managed just 2 of 6 in the same span.
DePaul crept to within a point at 11-10 on Worrel Clahar's 3-point play but could never overtake Seton Hall. The Pirates kept the Blue Demons at arm's length and then surged to a 40-28 lead by the final minute as Kyle Smith hit three free throws after being fouled on a baseline 3-point try.
But DePaul sliced the deficit to 40-32 by halftime after a Crockett putback and a McDonald buzzer-beating 2-pointer.
The Pirates were 7 of 12 from beyond the arc in the first half behind Cosby's 15 points. The Blue Demons hit 14 of 34 (41.2 percent) from the field while Crockett hit seven points.
Seton Hall resumes Big East play Saturday at Notre Dame, while DePaul plays at Providence on Saturday.
NOTES: The Blue Demons lost their fifth consecutive conference opener. Their lone win in a Big East opener was a 84-78 victory over then-No. 17 Villanova in 2007-08. Last year, DePaul fell 87-68 to No. 1 Syracuse in a league opener at Allstate Arena. ... Cleveland Melvin's season-long streak scoring double figures ended last Saturday after 26 games in a non-conference loss to city rival Loyola. The DePaul forward scored six points Wednesday. ... Seton Hall and DePaul met twice in Big East play last year, but only one game is scheduled for 2013. ... Pirates junior guard/forward Brian Oliver earned a Big East honor-roll citation this week after he scored 20 points -- all in the first half -- with six 3-poiners in a 60-59 victory over Stony Brook. That victory closed Seton Hall's first perfect December (6-0) since 1998-99 ... DePaul was ranked 28th in NCAA stats with an average of 9.5 steals per game before Wednesday, while Young was the only Blue Demon ranked in the top 10 nationally in scoring and assists. He's averaging 16.2 points and had 320 assists entering the week.
