Rutgers men's basketball prepares for battle with Seton Hall in Garden State Hardwood Classic
The Rutgers men's basketball team will face in-state rival Seton Hall in the Garden State Hardwood Classic on Saturday. The Scarlet Knights (5-3, 0-1) will be looking to bounce back following their last two games, which they lost by a combined 37 points.
Rutgers and the Pirates (5-3, 0-0) have fared similarly in the season so far. While both teams sit at 5-3, neither have beaten any of the stronger opponents on their schedules. Seton Hall has fallen to the University of Southern California, Iowa and Baylor, while the Knights have fallen to Princeton, Illinois and Wake Forest. Both teams will be coming into this contest looking for their first signature win.
In the modern history of the Garden State Hardwood Classic, the Pirates lead with 27 all-time wins to Rutgers' 17. Seton Hall has won the series' last two games, including a 45-43 rock-fight road victory at Jersey Mike's Arena on Livingston campus last season.
The Daily Targum spoke with Thomas Donnelly, head sports editor of The Setonian, ahead of the matchup. Donnelly offered some more insight about the Pirates and what should be expected heading into Saturday's game.
"The strength is definitely defense," Donnelly said. "I think that (head coach Shaheen Holloway) is one of the most defensive-minded coaches in the entire NCAA."
Head coach Steve Pikiell is also a defensive-minded coach, which is what last season's low-scoring matchup between the Knights and Seton Hall can be attributed to.
The defensive-oriented coaching is not the only similarity between the two teams, as both have been getting off to slow starts in their games this season.
"As for weaknesses, it's definitely just been (that) every single game, there's a slow start," Donnelly said. "There has not been a game that I've watched that this team (Seton Hall) has gotten off productively."
Rutgers can relate on that front, as it has consistently played poorly at the beginning of its games. The Knights opened up their game against the Fighting Illini (7-1, 1-0) trailing 18-4 and did not fix things against the Demon Deacons (5-3, 0-0), as they opened up that game down 18-3. Clearly, positive play right out of the gates will be crucial for both teams on Saturday.
The Pirates will also be looking to improve their shooting in this game and will be focusing on getting better open shots to do so.
"I think it's the quality of shots," Donnelly said, diagnosing the issue with Seton Hall's three-point shooting thus far.
Donnelly also spoke about the Pirates' lack of presence in the frontcourt.
"As of right now, I don't think the frontcourt is even comparable to last season — as mediocre as it was, even then," Donnelly said.
Seton Hall will primarily rely on Jaden Bediako down low and will look for him to slow down senior center Clifford Omoruyi. The depth runs thin in the frontcourt for the Pirates outside of Bediako, so Omoruyi will need to impose his will and perform better than he has in recent games for Rutgers to win.
The magnitude of this rivalry cannot be understated, and both teams' intensity should be at an all-time high. The Garden State Hardwood Classic will tip off on Saturday at 8:30 p.m. at the Prudential Center in Newark. The game will be broadcast on Fox Sports 1 and 88.7 WRSU FM.
"I'm gonna go with a 61-59 Seton Hall win," Donnelly said in his prediction for the game.
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