Jared Rhoden didn’t leave the court during Seton Hall’s most recent game. The Pirates needed every second their senior star could give them.
After sweating out a two-point win Saturday night, Seton Hall will return to the court Wednesday night to host Butler in South Orange, N.J.
Rhoden played all 40 minutes of the Pirates’ 66-64 home win over DePaul and led his team with 18 points and 18 rebounds, the latter a career high.
“I think Jared played like a guy that understands what time of year it is and where we are,” coach Kevin Willard said after Seton Hall (16-9, 7-8 Big East) halted a two-game skid.
DePaul came back from an early 12-point hole and nearly pulled off the upset, but Seton Hall’s Kadary Richmond posted up, drove and hit the go-ahead basket with 30 seconds remaining. It was a crucial result for the Pirates, who are tied for sixth place in the Big East and do not need to give the selection committee any reasons to doubt their NCAA Tournament credentials.
Butler (13-15, 6-11) is set to play its third game in six days. The Bulldogs rebounded from a 91-57 destruction at St. John’s on Friday by taking then-No. 8 Providence to overtime Sunday before losing 71-70.
Chuck Harris led four Butler starters in double figures with 17 points. Jayden Taylor missed a 3-pointer on Butler’s last possession that could have reversed the outcome.
“That’s a tough one to swallow, obviously,” Butler coach LaVall Jordan said. “We couldn’t get the stop when we needed. It came down to the last possession. We got a good look at it, but it didn’t drop.”
Seton Hall has won four of its past five meetings with Butler. The Pirates’ 71-56 win at Butler on Jan. 4 was the program’s largest margin of victory in the 19 previous matchups with the Bulldogs. Butler leads the series, 10-9, but The Hall has won four of the past five.
Rhoden led the Pirates that day with 17 points, while Butler’s Bryce Golden led all scorers with 19. The two foes had nearly identical shooting numbers, but Seton Hall made 10 more free throws than the Bulldogs and outrebounded them 36-25.
–Field Level Media
