Newark, N.J. — Butler leaned on efficient shooting and timely runs Saturday night to knock off No. 25 Seton Hall 77–66, snapping a four-game losing streak and handing the Pirates a second straight defeat.
Finley Bizjack led all scorers with 25 points, delivering a sharp performance from start to finish. The sophomore guard connected on 4 of 7 shots from beyond the arc and was flawless at the free-throw line, going 7-for-7 to anchor the Bulldogs’ offense.
Azavier Robinson added 14 points for Butler (11-7, 2-5 Big East), while Michael Ajayi continued his steady season with 13 points, marking the 17th time he has reached double figures. Drayton Jones also chipped in 11 points, including key free throws down the stretch.
Seton Hall (14-4, 4-3) was led by AJ Staton-McCray, who scored 17 points. Mike Williams and freshman Najai Hines each finished with 11 points, with Hines pulling down a game-high 16 rebounds to give the Pirates extra possessions.
Butler took control late in the first half, closing on a 15-4 run to build a 34-24 lead at the break. Bizjack fueled that surge by drilling two 3-pointers and scoring six of his 14 first-half points during the spurt.
The Bulldogs carried that momentum into the second half, outscoring Seton Hall 15-8 over the opening stretch to push the lead to 49-32. The Pirates responded with renewed energy and trimmed the deficit to 63-57 with just over four minutes remaining, but Butler quickly steadied itself.
Ajayi and Jones each knocked down a pair of free throws to restore a double-digit cushion at 67-57, effectively halting Seton Hall’s comeback attempt.
Shooting struggles from long range continued to plague the Pirates, who went just 3-for-17 (17.6 percent) from 3-point distance. It marked the second straight poor perimeter outing for Seton Hall, which was 1-for-16 from deep in a loss to No. 3 UConn earlier in the week.
Despite being picked to finish last in the Big East preseason coaches’ poll following a 25-loss season a year ago, Seton Hall entered the game ranked in the AP Top 25 for the first time in four years after a strong start behind a roster featuring 10 new players.
Up Next:
Butler returns home to host DePaul on Tuesday.
Seton Hall travels to St. John’s on Tuesday.
