Seton Hall Wins Big East Tourney, 69-67 Over No. 3 Villanova
NEW YORK (AP) — Isaiah Whitehead scored 26 points, including the deciding three-point play with 18 seconds left, and Seton Hall won the Big East Tournament for the first time in 23 years by defeating No. 3 Villanova 69-67 on Saturday at Madison Square Garden.
Whitehead drove hard on the right side, flipped the ball in softly off the glass and was fouled. His free throw gave the Pirates a 68-67 lead. Villanova had two more chances sandwiched around a free throw by Angel Delgado, but the Pirates held on to beat the defending champions.
It was Seton Hall's third Big East Tournament title, the others coming in 1991 and 1993. The third-seeded Pirates (25-8) earned the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, their first berth in 10 years.
Seton Hall led for almost the entire game, going ahead by 14 points in the first half and 11 at halftime. The top-seeded Wildcats (29-5) finally started hitting from 3-point range in the second half. They tied the game four times before finally taking their first lead since 3 minutes into the game when Kris Jenkins' 3-pointer gave them a 67-64 lead with 50 seconds to play.
A free throw by Whitehead 8 seconds later made it a two-point game but Villanova didn't score again, turning the ball over once and missing three shots, including one that fell short at the buzzer from Ryan Arcidiacono.
Whitehead, who had eight of the Pirates' 13 turnovers, was selected the tournament MVP. Desi Rodriguez added 12 points for the Pirates and Derrick Gordon had 10.
Jenkins led the Wildcats with 23 points, and Josh Hart had 17. Arcidiacono scored five points and was 2 for 10 from the field, including 1 of 6 from 3-point range.
Seton Hall built its 40-29 halftime lead by taking advantage of eight Villanova turnovers, three off the team's average for a game. The Pirates shot 56.7 percent in the half (17 for 30) while the Wildcats shot 44.4 percent (12 for 27), including 2 of 9 from 3-point range.
CITY LIGHTS: The Empire State Building was lit in red and blue in honor of the Big East Tournament. It was the fourth time in the last five years the building has been lit in the conference's colors on the night of the championship game.
TIP-INS
Seton Hall: The last time Seton Hall won the Big East championship, only Gordon on the current roster was born. ... The Pirates entered this season with five wins total over Top 5 teams. They have four this season. ... Seton Hall came into the game second in the league in three team defense statistics: points allowed (67.8), field goal percentage (40.0) and 3-point percentage (31.5).
Villanova: The Wildcats were 20 of 38 from beyond the arc in the first two games (52.6 percent). ... Villanova entered the game first in the conference in two defensive categories: points allowed (63.5) and field goal percentage (38.7). ... The Wildcats' first two Big East Tournament titles came 20 years apart: 1995 and last season.
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