Oregon vs. Seton Hall: 2019-20 Battle 4 Atlantis game preview

A top-15 matchup highlights the first-round games of the Battle 4 Atlantis. Two talented guards lead Seton Hall and Oregon into a high-powered early-season battle.

Who: 11. Oregon Ducks (5-0) vs. 13. Seton Hall Pirates (4-1)

When: Wednesday, Nov. 27th at 9:30 PM ET

Where: Atlantis Paradise Island in the Bahamas

TV Schedule: ESPN2

Myles Powell and Payton Pritchard. The two senior guards lead their respective teams into a huge early-season matchup in the first round of the Battle 4 Atlantis. #11 Oregon and #13 Seton Hall face off in what is one of the most consistently tough and competitive early-season tournaments. The winner of the game will gain a huge non-conference victory that will be key when its seeding time in early March.

The Ducks, who should fit in well in the Bahamas with their brightly colored jerseys, are undefeated to start the year. Their 5-0 record, their best since 2015-16 and their Elite 8 trip, is highlighted by an 82-74 win over ranked Memphis in a “neutral-site” game in Portland, OR. This game did feature Memphis’ star freshman center James Wiseman, currently suspended, and Oregon still was able to pull out the win, all while missing their own freshman center, N’faly Dante.

The Seton Hall Pirates have also had a strong start to their season. Their lone loss was a 76-73 defeat at home against 3rd ranked Michigan State. In that game, star Myles Powell put up 37 points on 6-14 shooting from three. All this after a significant ankle injury, suffered against Stony Brook, that many initially thought would keep the guard out for “a prolonged absence.”

Speaking of Myles Powell, the battle between him and Oregon star Payton Pritchard will make for quite the show in the Wednesday night matchup. The two guards, both amongst the best in the nation, are the unquestioned leaders of their respective squads. Powell is an absolute bucket-getter who can attack the hoop and drain threes with the best of them. Pritchard doesn’t put up quite the scoring numbers as Powell but is a fantastic distributor (5.6 apg) while still managing to lead the Ducks in scoring.

Pritchard is joined in the backcourt by his former high school teammate, and fellow Oregon native, grad-transfer Anthony Mathis. Mathis is off to a blazing start in his first year with the Ducks, averaging 15 ppg while shooting 64.5% (20-31) from three. Yes, you read that right, over 60% on 30 attempts to start this year.

On his side, Powell and the Pirates are joined by big man from Georgia, Sandro Mamukelashvili. The big man is second on the team with 13.5 ppg and leads the Pirates with 6.0 rpg. At 6’10” and 230 lbs, Mamukelashvili is bigger than anyone active on Oregon and should be able to barbecue some Ducks in the post. In a matchup full of many talented guards, that down low scoring could be the difference-maker.

Oregon and Seton Hall are two very talented teams. The early season matchup will be a high scoring affair and full of entertainment. The winner of the matchup will go on to face the winner of Gonzaga vs. Southern Miss, probably the Zags, while the loser will go into the consolation bracket facing the loser of that same game. No matter the outcome, the Pirates vs. Ducks should be quite the show.

Final Prediction: Seton Hall – 83, Oregon – 80