It’s hard to say whether Seton Hall had a breakthrough last night or just got healthy, whether the Pirates turned the corner or just beat a bad team.
Whatever the case, Seton Hall got what it desperately needed against South Florida, a slump-busting 55-47 win at the Prudential Center.
Mired in a four-game losing streak, Seton Hall (13-6, 2-4 Big East) got a big game from Fuquan Edwin (game-high 16 points, 10 rebounds) and the returns of Brandon Mobley and Brian Oliver just when they were needed most, the pair combining for 23 points on 11-of-12 shooting in their comebacks.
“It’s nice to come back at a time we need a win, and to actually get that win,’’ said Oliver, who had nine points on 3-of-3 shooting. He had missed five straight games since spraining his right ankle on Dec. 26, while Mobley was returning after suffering a right shoulder injury in their loss to Providence.
Mobley had torn his labrum last year and had surgery on July 29, with six sutures put in. When one ripped loose, he came out of the Providence game and missed the Marquette defeat as well. But with his team slumping, he was desperate to play.
“There was a lot of concern. The only thing that mattered was winning,’’ said Mobley, who had 14 points and five rebounds on 7-of-8 shooting. “Coach [Kevin Willard] didn’t give a rah-rah speech. We knew what we had to do. We didn’t want to put ourselves in that 1-5 hole.’’
Williard had told his team about how USF had decided its season last year, and would again. After a 15-2 Pirates team suffered a one-point loss in Tampa last year — Jordan Theodore missing the front end of a one-and-one, the Pirates lost six straight and missed the NCAA tourney.
Last night’s result was better. The Pirates dominated the boards 35-22, and held the Bulls (10-8, 1-5) to 33.9 percent shooting. And after watching USF shoot its way to an upset of Georgetown Saturday, the Hall pushed out its 3-2 zone and held the Bulls to 3-of-19 shooting from behind the arc, including 0-for-7 by deadeye Toarlyn Fitzpatrick.
“We practiced for the first time in over a month with nine guys. That really helped us as we got a little confidence,’’ said Willard. “We grinded it out a little bit.’’ That’s one thing this team is starting to learn — that it’s not going to be 30-point blowouts too often. It’s going to be a grinder.’’