Seton Hall basketball shocks No. 7 Marquette as incredible turnaround continues
NEWARK – The question was posed to Al-Amir Dawes after Seton Hall basketball’s 78-75 takedown of seventh-ranked Marquette Saturday, but it could have been asked to anyone and everyone in the Pirates’ locker room.
At the low points, how did you stick with it?
Before the postgrad guard could answer, teammate Kadary Richmond grabbed the microphone on the interview dais and said, “shooters shoot.” That’s an incisive summary of how the Pirates – who had been left for dead – achieved a remarkable turnaround and climbed onto the national scene by beating three ranked opponents in the past 18 days.
They kept plugging away and had each other’s backs, as symbolized by Richmond jumping in to answer for Dawes.
“Our togetherness is through the roof,” Dawes said. “No matter what we’re going through, ups and downs, we’re connected. That’s one thing I am enjoying is we’re together – and when you’re together, you can achieve anything.”
That’s hard to argue. Seton Hall (10-5 overall, 3-1 in the Big East) now has three Quad 1 victories, including Wednesday’s triumph at No. 23 Providence and the Dec. 20 shocker over fifth-ranked and defending national champ UConn. That’s resume-building gold. Taking down Marquette (11-4, 2-2), which had beaten the Hall four straight times, might have been the toughest trick yet.
But Dawes (23 points on 7-of-10 shooting, 3 assists), Richmond (21 points, 5 assists) and fellow senior Dre Davis (11 points, 7 rebounds) were up to the task – with an assist from a sold-out, rocking Prudential Center crowd of 10,500.
Seton Hall is now one of just six teams to record two triumphs over top-10 opponents this season, joining Purdue, Kansas, UConn, Kentucky and North Carolina. This also marks the program's first back-to-back wins over Top 25 foes since 2019, and its first takedown of three ranked teams in a three-week span since 2006.
At this rate, it’s going to be tough to continue to call the Hall an underdog.
“We expect to win games like this,” Dawes said. “This is what we’re here for. To see that it’s finally working and we’re finally getting it, seeing that is pretty nice.”
FIVE TAKEAWAYS
1. Al Dawes, take a bow
He has struggled at times and been much maligned on social media and message boards, but the Newark native showed what he’s capable of. His 15 first-half points staked the Pirates to a 42-39 halftime lead, and his ball-handling as Richmond sat with foul trouble was essential.
“I’ve just been in the gym," he said. "Even when my days have been too low, I’ve been in the gym because that’s the place that got me here. I always take it to the gym and solve my problems there.”
Dawes took smart shots, made all five of his free throws and helped hold Marquette's All-American point guard, Tyler Kolek, to five points and six assists (Kolek took just six shots and committed three turnovers). Richmond spearheaded the group effort against Kolek, made possible by timely switches and good communication.
"Sticking to the plan, knowing when to switch and when not to – we really focused on the details," Dawes said. "We did our homework.”
To head coach Shaheen Holloway's credit, his faith in Dawes never wavered.
"Al works on his shot every single day, before practice, after practice -- I’ve gotta get him out of the gym," the coach said. "He comes back at night and he works at it. It’s a matter of time, right? But he’s gotta understand he has to be more than just a jump shooter, and I think that’s what he’s trying to do, he starting to get into the lane and create, and be a playmaker. Once you start doing those things, your shot comes.”
Dawes committed four turnovers, but he withstood Marquette's pressure well enough to give Richmond a break -- and allow the Pirates' ace playmaker to have gas in the tank down the stretch.
"I’m a ball-handler," Dawes said with a wide smile.
2. Bold lineup move
After missing most of the season with back problems, freshman forward David Tubek suited up – and Holloway showed faith in the forward by starting him in the second half over Davis.
This is coming from a coach who has sent out the same starting five every game this season.
“Just a feel for the game," Holloway said of the decision. "I just needed some energy, I needed some life. Dre didn’t do nothing (wrong), it was a coach’s decision."
During Tubek’s four-minute stint the Hall outscored Marquette by three. So it worked out – and provides a window into just how much Holloway thinks of the 6-foot-7 South Sudan native and the physicality he can bring.
As for Davis, he responded with a big second half capped by a driving baseline layup that gave Seton Hall some breathing room in the final minute as Marquette surged.
"We’re striving to be a good team -- we’re not there yet," Holloway said. "Any good team, you gotta have players that push each other, you gotta have players that, when guys don’t have it — like in the first half, I thought Kadary and Dre didn’t have it, so I went to the bench and guys came in. I gotta have more confidence in all those guys."
3. Bench was better
In terms of minutes played, Seton Hall’s bench came in ranked 334th out of the 362 Division 1 teams and was contributing only a small fraction of the Pirates’ points and rebounds.
On Saturday, the subs took a sizable step forward. After scoring zero points at Providence, they chipped in 12 points and 12 rebounds and held the fort defensively. Backup center Elijah Hutchins-Everett (6 points, 3 boards) played his best game as a Pirate and freshman Isaiah Coleman (4 points, 4 boards) posted a team-high plus/minus of plus-13.
The Hall's bench outscored Marquette's 12-11, and every point counted. Those 12 rebounds also helped the Hall post a plus-18 advantage on the glass.
“They’ve been sticking with it no matter how many minutes they’ve played," Richmond said of the subs. "They’ve been everyday guys.”
Their help is a must over the next two months of the Big East grind.
4. Crowd mattered
Fans’ animus for Marquette and the other midwestern schools will never reach UConn levels, but the packed crowd – including a student section that was fuller and more engaged than it was for the Huskies – provided a similar environment to the Dec. 20 upset here.
"It’s a good feeing to hear the crowd roaring and cheering us when we were down 10 (early)," Richmond said. "That plays a big part in team spirit and morale – we want to go out and play hard and win for our fans.”
There were five standing ovations, plenty of boos for the officials and a record lap total of 16 for traditional fan favorite “flagman” during the under-12 timeout of the second half.
"I think the crowd played a big part," Holloway said. "The crowd was unbelievable from the beginning of the game to the end of the game, so I want to thank those guys.”
Holloway was so hyped about the atmosphere that he mentioned it twice, unprompted, in his postgame press conference.
"I’ll be honest, the crowd kind of got us back into it," he said. "It got us juiced."
5. Look who's in first place?
Four games into Big East play, Seton Hall sits tied atop the league standings with Villanova and UConn. Just like everyone expected, right?
Holloway is wringing every drop out of the sponge, willing this group forward, molding a team in his image.
“I think it’s coming,” he said. “These guys understand, and we played with some passion.”
Now comes a road swing – at Georgetown Tuesday and at Butler Saturday – that could put this squad on the accelerator toward March Madness.
Yes, Seton Hall will start appearing in NCAA Tournament bracketologies Monday.
Marquette coach Shaka Smart put his finger on this wild metamorphosis.
"(Holloway’s) got a group of guys with toughness and grit and poise that now align with his,” Smart said. “And when you have that and you have an older team, you've got a chance to do special things."
Seton Hall vs. Cancer
Seton Hall men’s and women’s basketball programs are running a jersey auction through Jan. 16, with proceeds to benefit the V Foundation's Dick Vitale Pediatric Cancer Fund in honor of Seton Hall alum and Hall of Fame broadcaster Dick Vitale.
The Seton Hall vs. Cancer games will take place Feb. 24 for the men (vs. Butler) and Feb. 17 for the women (vs. DePaul). At each of those games, student-athletes will wear the shooting shirts that have been auctioned off, and then the auction winners will receive the shirt afterwards. For more information visit www.shupirates.com/auctions.
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 shocks No. 7 Marquette -- and the nation
