2016 NCAA Tournament Preview: Seton Hall Pirates

Seton Hall is one of the biggest surprises of the college basketball season, upsetting Villanova in the Big East Tournament Final thanks to the play of their young stars, earning them their first conference title since 1993. Can the Pirates keep the momentum going in the Big Dance? Here’s everything you need to know about Seton Hall:

Resume:
Record – 25-8 (12-6 in Big East)
RPI – 31
Strength of Schedule – 82

Starting Lineup:
G Isaiah Whitehead (So.) – 18.1 ppg, 5.0 apg
G Khadeem Carrington (So.) – 14.3 ppg, 3.0 rpg

G Ismael Sanogo (So.) – 4.9 ppg, 7.1 rpg
F Angel Delgado (So.) - 9.9 ppg, 9.6 rpg
F Desi Rodriguez (So.) – 12.7 ppg, 5.2 rpg

Key Player:
Isaiah Whitehead

Whitehead is the unquestioned leader of this team, and he has emerged as one of those secret stars poised to become a household name in the NCAA Tournament. The Brooklyn native has a bit of a streetball toughness to his game - not in a “flashy, too many dribble moves” kind of way, but in a “always in attack mode, never back down” kind of way. That relentlessness allows him to put a lot of pressure on opposing defenses, and now that he has improved his jump shot (38.4 percent three-point shooter), he’s virtually unguardable.

Biggest Strength:
Defense

Seton Hall uses a multitude of different defenses and takes advantage of their long, athletic lineup on the defensive end to get into passing lanes and disrupt shooters. The turnovers they get as a result are nice (7.1 steals per game, 61st in the country), but its the analytics that really love their defensive system as the Pirates rank 16th in adjusted defensive efficiency, per KenPom.com.

Biggest Weakness:
Depth

As you might expect from a program that’s on the upswing, Seton Hall doesn’t have a plethora of top talent on their roster. They rely on their starters to carry them most of the way as they only use an eight-man rotation, something that has hurt them this year if they get into foul trouble.

Outlook:
Seton Hall is the kind of team capable of making a very long run in this tournament. They’re fearless and talented and on an absolute tear, winning 12 of their last 14 games. I think they’re a lock to make the Sweet 16 because of the toughness they play with, but I don’t know if they have enough depth to challenge the top teams in the country.