SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. – For the Seton Hall men and women’s teams, the home opener brought the first win of the young season. And for respective coaches Kevin Willard of the men and Anne Donovan, the women, it was their fist triumph on the Hall sideline.
The Seton Hall men evened their record at 1-1 with a resounding 92-68 victory over Cornell at the Prudential Center on Sunday.
The keys:
- Tempo. In the 65-61 triumph at Albany on Friday, Cornell was involved in a 59-possession game. Seton Hall was edged at Temple on Friday in a 72-possession meeting. Clearly, the team that could dictate the tempo it preferred, would have one noted advantage. Fueled by a full court press that forced Cornell into nine first half turnovers, the Pirates drew the Big Red into that faster pace. At the half it was a 42 possession contest with Seton Hall sporting a 50-35 advantage.
- Rebounding. The pirates owned a 46-29 edge on the boards. Of greater significance was the offensive rebounding percentage. That category saw the Hall own a 46-25% edge in offensive rebounding percentage.
Jeremy Hazell finished with a game-high 28 points. If there is such a thing as a ‘quiet’ 28, Hazell produced them. He shot 8-of-11 from the floor and was 8-of-8 from the line in 28 minutes. Of greatest significance is Hazell stayed within the framework of the offense and did not force a shot. On a number of occasions he passed up good lucks to find a teammate with a better one.
“He took quality shots,” Willard said of Hazell. “He’s played terrific for us the two games and he has played terrific all pre-season as well.”
Aaron Osgood, a 6-9 senior, led the way for Cornell with 19 points. Osgood had little help inside as the Big Red tried their hand from beyond the arc. They came up short, hitting 5 of 24 (21 percent) from three-point land.
The numbers:
Possessions: Cornell 79, Seton Hall 78
Offensive Efficiency: Cornell 86, Seton Hall 118
On Tuesday the Seton Hall women entertained Temple in their home opener at Walsh gymnasium. They fell behind 11-3 after the first four minutes. Gradually they settled down, regrouped and went on to post a convincing 79-52 decision over the Owls.
“The first few minutes we came out excited with a little nervous energy,” Donovan said. “We missed some defensive assignments. Once we got past that we settled down and got back in it.”
The keys:
- Resiliency. As noted the first four minutes saw Temple as the aggressor. The Pirates did not panic or waver. Rather, they stayed with their game plan while showing some solid defense and generally playing extremely hard on both ends of the floor. Donovan noted that a switch to a 2-3 matchup zone midway through the first half was instrumental as the Owls struggled solving it and the Hall got on track offensively.
- Getting to the line. Seton Hall trailed 30-26 at intermission, and at that juncture the Pirates were 2 of 4 from the line. “That is something we talked about during half time,” Donovan said. “We were settling for jump shots and not attacking. We decided to get to the rim the second half,” It was effective, as the Hall finished 24 of 35 from the line. That 35 attempt figure was a bit inflated as Temple was in a fouling mode to extend the possessions in the latter minutes. Still, the Pirates got the message. And executed.
Jasmine Crew led Seton Hall with 16 points. Kandice Green, a 6-1 junior forward, had a notable 15-point, 12-rebound outing. Freshman guard Ka-Deidre Simmons of nearby Shabazz (Newark, NJ) High School was impressive in relief with 10 points and three assists at the point guard spot.
Temple placed three in double figures, all with 13 points : Forwards Natasha Thames and Kristen McCarthy as well as guard Owedia Wallace.
Offensive Efficiency in a 77-possession game:
Temple 77
Seton Hall 94
Note: What is offensive rebounding percentage? One of Dean Oliver’s Four Factors, OREB PCT is calculated as follows.
OREB PCT = OFF REB/ (OFF REB + Opponents’ Defensive Rebounds)
It basically let you know what percentage of possible rebounds, following your missed shot, you were able to secure.
