Marquette vs Seton Hall in the Big East highlights a very short college basketball slate on Tuesday night. Sportsmemo college basketball handicapper JM Sports shares his thoughts on this matchup between Marquette and Seton Hall.
Seton Hall has kicked off its conference slate with back-to-back close losses, dropping a four-point game to Providence and a three-point game to Xavier. Marquette kicked off its Big East season with a win and cover against Creighton, but dropped its following game in double overtime to Providence, despite shooting 52-percent from the field.
New head coach Shaheen Holloway did not waste any time in getting his feet wet at Seton Hall, as the Pirates have played a top-30 schedule in the country up to this point. Seton Hall has played six opponents ranked inside KenPom’s top-50 on offense.
Holloway has built his reputation on defense, and the Pirates’ defense will certainly be put to the test tonight against a Marquette offense that is top-20 in both adjusted efficiency and effective field goal percentage. The Eagles are No. 4 in the country in two-point shooting, connecting on 60.2-percent of their attempts from inside the arc.
All four of Marquette’s losses have come by five points or less, including two in overtime, so there’s a very thin line between the Eagles where they currently sit at 9-4, and a potential top-15 spot in the national rankings.
Over 25-percent of Seton Hall’s points have come from the free throw line this season, which is No. 7 in the country. It will be interesting to see how well that translates on the road in Big East play. The Pirates are 2-4 away from home this season, and one of those two wins came in a dreadful 45-43 offensive performance at Rutgers.
As is the case with most games involving Shaka Smart, turnovers will be a major key on both sides. Marquette’s defense is top-50 in creating steals and turnovers. Seton Hall’s offense turns the ball over on 22-percent of its possessions, which is No. 329 in the nation. The Pirates have had a full week off to prep for Marquette’s pressing defense.
Seton Hall has failed to crack the 70-point mark in all six of its road/neutral games this year. The Pirates are likely going to need that in order to compete with Marquette on Tuesday night. Manufacturing points has been difficult for Seton Hall’s offense, and we don’t see the Pirates being able to keep up in this one. Lay the points with Marquette in this Big East showdown.
Prediction: Marquette Golden Eagles -7