Jared Rhoden scored 15 points and 11 boards, and Kadary Richmond chipped in 10 points, helping No. 25 Seton Hall to an 85-63 victory over Wagner on Wednesday night at the Prudential Center.
The Pirates are now 27-6 all-time versus Wagner and 21-1 at home. SHU bench has been strong outscoring opponents reserves 187-86 through their first five contests. First-year Seahawks coach Donald Copeland spent the last four seasons at Wagner as an assistant coach.
Wagner took its first loss of the season after postponing three games since Nov. 17 due to a COVID-19 pause. With the loss, the Seahawks falls to 2-1 on the season, while the 25th nationally ranked Pirates improve to 6-1 on the year.
Seton Hall raced out to an early 13-4 lead, the Seahawks clawed their way into the contest, senior forward Jahbril Price Noel hit a three with 6:57 to play in the first half to cut the deficit to 23-19.
In the final four minutes of the first half, Wagner went on an 8-2 run, buckets was made by Raekwon Rogers, Ford, and Zaire Williams to cut the deficit to 35-33 at the break. SHU never trailed in the game, but Wagner shot 46.8% from the field in the opening 20 minutes to keep the game competitive.
Coming out of the half, Rogers tied the contest at 35-35, then Rogers again cut the deficit to 40-37 with 17:58 left on the clock, but the Pirates responded with an 11-0 run, jump started by Samuel with six points to extend the lead to 51-37.
After being held to just 43.8% (14-32) from the field in the first half, Seton Hall made some adjustments offensively and shot 60.6% (20-33) in the second half to seal the victory. Tyrese Samuel, also contributed 15 points and six rebounds off the bench.
The Pirates amped up the defensive pressure on the perimeter and pulled away for the victory late.
Rodgers led Wagner (2-1) with 15 points on 7-of-9 shooting. Jahbril Price-Noel chipped 11 points and Elijah Ford had 10.
”This is our second game in a row that we played pretty poorly in the first half. So we had a good conversation in the locker room about how important it is to perform two halves,” Rhodes said. ”So I think everyone came out with a little chip on their shoulder, a little bit more edgy, and I think we picked up the intensity.
Wagner: After a 2-0 start, the Seahawks are coming off a COVID-19 pause due to an outbreak in the program that postponed three of their games. They were without their top two scorers, Will Martinez and Alex Morales, as well as DeLonnie Hunt. Bobby Jordan filled in as interim head coach for Bashir Mason.
Seton Hall: The Pirates are in the midst of the five-game homestand after spending their first two weeks on the road. It end with a visit from No. 8 Texas and a rivalry game against the Scarlet Knights.
UP NEXT:
Wagner: At Stony Brook on Saturday.
Seton Hall: Plays Nyack on Saturday.
