Seton Hall vs. Columbia 2016 final score: Pirates dismantle Lions

The Seton Hall Pirates returned Thursday evening to the Prudential center to take on the Columbia Lions. Both squads came out strongly in the first half with the Pirates shooting 54 percent while the Lions shot a very respectable 50 percent in the first half. In the end, the Pirates would cruise to a 95-71 victory to improve to 5-2.

From the onset of the game it was clear that Columbia would have a difficult time containing Angel Delgado as he registered yet another double-double with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Desi Rodriguez responded to his poor second half performance against Stanford on Sunday by displaying his versatility as a player. Rodriguez was able to get to the rim and hit outside jumpers, which is what the Pirates need Rodriguez to continue to do on consistent basis.

Adding to Seton Hall’s offense was Khadeen Carrington who scored 17 points, and freshman Myles Powell was simply dominant, shooting 7-for-10 with all of those coming from beyond the arc, leading the team in scoring with 21 points.

What We Learned

The Pirates Responded to the Challenge

Everyone knew that heading in to Wednesday that the Pirates were big favorites, so this was a different type of challenge. The obstacle the Pirates faced was if they would be able to come out focused after the disappointing week in Florida.

That answer was yes. This was seen through their ability to hold on to the ball more as they committed only 12 turnovers as opposed to the 23 against Stanford.

One other aspect that showed the Hall’s focus was their ability to show movement on offense and make cuts to get to the bucket. The Pirates were rather lazy on offense and settled for many contested jump shots against Stanford, but that looked a lot different on Thursday night.

All the Pirates Need is Consistency

As stated before, this game is nothing to look too much into as it was against one of the weaker teams they will play this season in Columbia. With that being said, if Seton Hall can do the small things they were able to do against Columbia consistently, they have an opportunity to remain a top Big East team.

Things that Still Need to be Fixed

As good as the Pirates looked Thursday night, there are some things that will be need fixed for when this team faces stiffer competition down the road. In the second half, this was not much of an issue, but one thing the Pirates need to do is guard the perimeter much tighter and switch on screens.

Early on Columbia had way too many open perimeter shots and open lanes to the basket which came off of screens. Another thing that will have to be worked on is the Hall’s depth not on offense but on defense. Off the bench, players like Veer Singh and Rashed Anthony need to improve their defensive game. The last two games when Williard has gone to the bench it has been shown the Pirates are vulnerable defensively. These things will need to be addressed down the road as against big east teams these things can be costly.

Seton Hall gets on the plane early to tomorrow morning and flies out to Hawaii, this will be a very important two game stretch as they take on Hawaii on next Tuesday and California the next night.