WHO: Seton Hall Pirates (4-1)
WHEN: 5:00 PM CT (Friday, November 24, 2023)
WHERE: LionTree Arena (San Diego, CA)
TV: FOX
RADIO: Hawkeye Radio Network (Gary Dolphin, Bob Hansen)
MOBILE: foxsports.com/mobile
ONLINE: foxsports.com/live
FOLLOW: @IowaAwesome | @IowaHoops | @IowaonBTN
LINE: tba
KENPOM SPREAD: Iowa -1 (54%; Iowa 80, Seton Hall 79)
Seton Hall started the season 4-0, much like Oklahoma, Iowa's opponent on Thursday at the Rady Children's Invitational. Much like Oklahoma, that 4-0 record was built on a soft schedule loaded with cupcakes -- none of Seton Hall's wins came over an opponent ranked higher than 233rd in the KenPom rankings and three of the opponents sit in the 300s of the KenPom rankings.
Unlike Oklahoma, Seton Hall came up short in its first test against a notable opponent -- the Pirates fell 71-63 to USC on Thursday. In some ways, that looks like an odd loss -- Seton Hall lost despite a 17-6 edge in offensive rebounds and a 19-13 advantage in turnovers. But the Pirates could only turn those 17 offensive boards into 10 second chance points and those 19 turnovers into 25 points.
USC opened up a 10-point halftime lead and kept the Pirates at arm's length through the second half. The Trojans also notably outpaced the Pirates behind the 3-point line (10-for-23 versus 3-for-16 for Seton Hall) and at the free throw line (21-for-27 versus 10-for-12 for Seton Hall).
LIKELY SETON HALL STARTING FIVE
G Al-Amir Dawes (6'2", 185, 12.8 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 2.3 apg, 1.0 spg, 47.5 FG%, 38.5 3FG%)
G Dylan Addae-Wusu (6'4", 215, 8.0 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 2.5 apg, 2.3 spg, 37.5 FG%, 30.0 3FG%)
G Kadary Richmond (6'6", 205, 14.0 ppg, 7.0 rpg, 4.5 apg, 2.8 spg, 56.8 FG%, 14.3 3FG%)
F Dre Davis (6'6", 210, 12.8 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 1.5 apg, 55.9 FG%, 25.0 3FG%)
C Jaden Bediako (6'10", 240, 9.5 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 0.5 apg, 55.9 FG%, 25.0 3FG%)
Any discussion about Seton Hall has to begin with do-everything guard Kadary Richmond, who leads the team in scoring (14.0 ppg), rebounding (7.0 rpg), assists (4.5 apg), and steals (2.8 spg). He's also shooting 56.8% from the floor. Slowing him down is going to be tough assignment, one that will probably be tasked to Tony Perkins.
Even in Seton Hall's loss to USC, Richmond was a bright spot, scoring 18 points and grabbing six rebounds. He did have six turnovers, though, so there may be opportunities for Perkins (or whoever is guarding him) to get some loose balls and turnovers that could lead to transition scoring opportunities.
Seton Hall ranks 73rd nationally in offensive efficiency, but the Pirates make a living inside the 3-point arc. The Pirates rank 325th nationally in three-point rate (29%) and aren't good at the long ball when they do try it (29.1%, 276th). But the Pirates rank 117th in eFG% (52.0) and have been very good attacking the rim and scoring (55.5% on 2-point attempts, 57th nationally).
That strength on 2-point tries also connects to their excellence on the offensive glass (30th nationally in offensive rebound rate); they rebound a lot of their misses and (eventually) score them. The Pirates are also a good free-throw shooting team (77.8%, 35th nationally), but don't get to the line all that often (174th in free throw rate).
The Pirates' defense has also been stout this season (47th in defensive efficiency). Their success on that side of the ball has been fueled by their ability to contest shots (40th in eFG% defense), force turnovers (43rd nationally in turnover rate), and prevent opponents from rebounding misses (opponents are only rebounding 25.9% of their misses, which ranks 87th nationally). Seton Hall has been good at defending inside the 3-point arc (allowing 44.9% on 2-point shots, 64th nationally) and behind the arc (allowing 28.0% on 3-point shots, 65th nationally).
Outside of Richmond, Al-Amir Dawes and Dre Davis have been the two main contributors for Seton Hall this season. Both are averaging 12.8 ppg, with Dawes adding 2.3 apg and Davis adding 5.8 rpg. Big man Jaden Bediako has averaged 9.5. ppg and 6.5 rpg in just 19 minutes of action per game, while Dylan Addae-Wusu has chipped in 8.0 ppg and 2.5 apg as the fifth starter.
Iowa's losses to Creighton and Oklahoma put some added emphasis on this game. Iowa does not want to fall to 0-3 this season in games against non-cupcakes. This Iowa team needs to show that it can contend with -- and beat -- major conference opponents.
KenPom rates this game as another toss-up, just like the Oklahoma game, with Iowa very slight favorites (54%). The Oklahoma game wasn't much of a toss-up in practice, primarily because Iowa struggled to hit any shots until it was too late to matter. In order for Iowa to have a shot at winning this game, better shooting is a must, especially from 3-point range. Iowa has been ice cold from deep for the past two games and if that streak hits three in a row, Iowa will probably be headed back to Iowa City at 3-3 overall.
This also feels like a game where Iowa's senior leadership needs to assert itself. Patrick McCaffery and Tony Perkins had extremely forgettable games against Oklahoma, but Iowa needs them to produce in order to win. Patrick and Perk need to flush Thursday's bad performance and come back strong on Friday night; they've long been streaky performers, but Iowa really needs them to find some good form in a hurry.
