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TagsBY DAVE RAGAZZO
NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM
With the NCAA tournament fast approaching, teams must first partake in their conference tournament where automatic seeds will be determined and bubbles will burst.
Both Seton Hall and Rutgers will participate in the opening round of the Big East Tournament on Tuesday as the Pirates take on Providence and the Scarlet Knights battle Villanova. All games in the tournament will be held at Madison Square Garden.
Seton Hall’s once promising season will come down to this tournament, as the Pirates will have to make a long run to even get consideration for the NCAA’s. Head Coach Kevin Willard has done a great job moving past the forgettable Bobby Gonzalez era and establishing his own culture at SHU.
Earlier in the season, the Pirates were ranked in the top 25, and SHU fans were all thinking that this could be their year. Yet after losing that top 25 ranking and crashing back to earth, Seton Hall ended its regular season with two horrible losses to Rutgers and a 28 point drubbing by last place Depaul.
“We’ve played two teams that had nothing to lose against us, and we’ve played a little tight,” Seton Hall coach Kevin Willard saidafter Saturday night’s game against Depaul, reports the NY Daily News.
Rutgers’ only chance of an NCAA birth is to win the Big East Tournament, which would be a tough task to say the least. The Scarlet Knights have the 11th seed in the tournament and since beating Florida in December, have not had a whole lot of success.
Rutgers will be looking to avenge last week’s loss to Villanova, who beat the Scarlet Knights on Thursday 77-71.
Unlike Seton Hall, Rutgers ended their season with a win over St. Johns 61-58 on Saturday. They will look to take advantage of some momentum coming and maybe surprise a lot of people.
The win over the Johnnies gave Rutgers their 6th win in conference play, their most in the Big East since the 2005-06 season, when the team went 7-9. “I hope this gives us energy,” Rice said, according to Rutgers' Daily Targum. “I hope this recharges our batteries so to speak. I like the fact that it’s a quick turnaround with somebody who just got done beating you. Hopefully that’s a little more added motivation.”
The first game of the tournament will be between Depaul and Connecticut on Tuesday at noon. Seton Hall is set to play at 7 pm, and Rutgers will start immediately following that game.
