Seton Hall at Butler: 2017-18 college basketball preview, TV, prediction
Butler and Seton Hall are two of the top teams in the Big East this season. They will do battle this weekend at Hinkle Fieldhouse. Who comes out on top?
Matchup: No. 21 Seton Hall Pirates (13-2, 2-0) at Butler Bulldogs (12-4, 2-1)
Time: 2:30 p.m. ET on January 6th, 2018
TV schedule: Fox Sports 1
Location: Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN.
Entering this game, Seton Hall and Butler are holding down the No. 3 and No. 4 spots in our Big East rankings, respectively. Given this, the teams have both been impressive in the early going this season and are looking to make a statement in Big East play. So far, the Pirates and the Bulldogs have made it clear that their expectation this season is to hear their name called on Selection Sunday. Both teams have compiled solid resumes to this point in the year and they are eager to add another key win this weekend when they face off against each other.
In our first projected field for this season, Seton Hall secured a No. 5 seed while Butler snagged a No. 6 seed. You can see the rest of the Bracketology update here.
Butler Bulldogs Basketball
Butler is the home team in this one and they will be playing in front of their “Home Sweet Hinkle” faithful. Fans of the Bulldogs are some of the best in the nation and they will enter the doors in droves with another opportunity for a top-25 home victory. In Butler’s last home game, the fans were able to rush the court after knocking off then-undefeated and No. 1 Villanova.
On the season, the Bulldogs are led by an elite duo of Kelan Martin and Kamar Baldwin. While both of these players were very solid in non-conference play, their play in the first league games of the year has been utterly ridiculous. In these three games, Baldwin is leading the team with 26.0 points per game while Martin is just behind him at 25.3 points per game. These games did not come in cupcake situations, either. So far this year, the Bulldogs have won on the road against Georgetown, upset Villanova at home, and lost to Xavier on the road.
These two are clearly at the top of the scouting report for every team facing the Bulldogs but don’t forget about junior Paul Jorgensen. Paulie, as he has been named by the Butler faithful, has ridiculous range and the green-light from anywhere on the floor. He has been the best 3-point shooter for the team at 41.9%. Jorgensen is also third on the team in scoring at 12.1 per game on the season.
In addition, the Bulldogs will have their hands full inside during this game. With this being said, the play of Tyler Wideman and Nate Fowler will be incredibly important. Wideman, a senior, is a consistent inside performer on both ends of the floor who excels in using his muscular frame to grab rebounds. Fowler, on the other hand, can stretch the floor on offense at 6’11” and is improving inside and on the glass with each game.
The reason the play of Butler’s bigs will be so important is Seton Hall’s Angel Delgado. One of the best big men in the entire nation, Delgado is a double-double machine. For the season, he is putting up more-than-modest averages of 13.7 points and 11.5 rebounds per game. The great thing about Delgado is that he is also one of the better passing bigs at 3.0 assists per game. It certainly helps that he has plenty of solid offensive options to pass the ball to.
Leading the way in scoring for the Pirates is senior Desi Rodriguez. The 6’6″ wing is putting up 18.6 points per game this season and is a threat to score at all three levels. He is shooting over 50% from the field this season and is getting 23.0 points per game in Seton Hall’s first two conference game.
After Rodriguez, Myles Powell (14.7 points) and Khadeen Carrington (14.1 points) are also spectacular offensive options. These two players excel as 3-point shooters and can score on their own or in catch-and-shoot opportunities. Seton Hall ranks just within the top-100 in the nation in 3-point shooting percentage at 37.0% and that is thanks in large part to these two.
Team Statistics
Butler Bulldogs
Seton Hall Pirates
PPG: 80.1 (68th)
Points against: 70.3 (139th)
FG percentage: 47.8% (63rd)
FG% against: 43.7% (184th)
3P percentage: 34.7% (200th)
3P% against: 36.9% (279th)
W/L streak: 1L (at Xavier)
PPG: 80.8 (64th)
Points against: 68.5 (96th)
FG percentage: 48.1% (51st)
FG% against: 41.8% (106th)
3P percentage: 37.0% (99th)
3P% against: 32.3% (87th)
W/L streak: 4W
Next: Big East power rankings (v. 5)
In the end, I think this game will come down to free throw shooting and Butler has a clear advantage in that department. Although Seton Hall gets to the line much more often than Butler (22.4 FTA per game to 16.1 FTA per game), Butler is a much better shooting team from the line. For the season, the Bulldogs are capitalizing on 74.7% of their free throw shots (50th in the nation) whereas the Pirates are just 65.5% from the line (315th in the nation).
This advantage at the foul line could go a long way in a close game such as this one and Butler also has home-court advantage. Even though the game is taking place over Winter Break for Butler students, Hinkle Fieldhouse will be full and eager for a victory.
Final prediction: Butler 84, Seton Hall 78