Pirates head to Providence: Game Preview

After two huge home wins against West Virginia and UConn, the 13-2 Pirates of South Orange head out to Rhode Island to take on the Providence Friars. Despite their 0-3 Big East record, the Friars can potentially pose a tough task for this Seton Hall squad. At 11-5 overall, Providence has had some solid victories in non-conference play, including wins over South Carolina and Boston College, with both of those games being on the road. The Friars are led by leading scorer, Vincent Council and leading rebounder, LaDontae Henton. Council averages 16.1 PPG and is a presence in the guard spot. Freshman Forward LaDontae Henton is very close to averaging a double-double, with 13.1 PPG and 9.2 RPG. Henton is a force down in the post and still had 3 more years to go in a Friar uniform after this year ends. An advantage for the Pirates though, is that they have a rebounding machine of their own in Herb "Papacy" Pope. The Pope man is averaging 18.3 PPG and 10.7 RPG and as many Pirate fans know, the man can lead a team. Pope is a true leader on the court and has been a go-to guy for the Pirates all year. Another threat for Seton Hall is Jordan Theodore. "Theo" is 7th in the nation in assists per game and as we all saw in the UConn game, he can score when he wants to. After not scoring a point in the first half, Jordan hit 3 three-pointers in a row and sparked a Pirate run, which in my opinion led them to their victory. If Theodore gets hot, it could be the end of the game. One more asset Seton Hall has is how versatile they are. They can score in many different ways and with many different people, again as we say on Tuesday night. Against UConn, every starter except for Patrik Auda scored in doubel figures, including Freshman Aaron Cosby, who had 4 three-pointers. Brandon Mobely also came off the bench and put up 8 quick points in the first half to give them momentum going into halftime. Not just in the UConn game but in other games this season, the Pirates have proved they can find scorers in other places besides Herb Pope, Fuquan Edwin, and Jordan Theodore. If you are scouting Seton Hall, one last thing that one cannot overlook is how stingy the Hall's defense can be. Allowing only 48 points against West Virginia and 63 against UConn, this Pirates defense has proved that they can guard the top players in the Big East, including Andre "Who's Pope?' Drummond. On Tuesday night the defense held Drummond to only 5 points and stopped him from getting the ball at a lot of points in the game. Overall, I think the Pirates will prevail but Providence will not be a cupcake game and give Seton Hall a run for their money
My Prediction: Seton Hall 83 Providence 73