“With my teams, the game is never over.” Those were the words echoed by Seton Hall’s head coach Shaheen Holloway after their dramatic overtime win. The Pirates came from behind to shock the Huskies not once, but twice with last-second shots to win the game 69-68.
It was a fairly even game throughout, with both teams trading leads back and forth. But, in the final minutes, UConn was able to pull ahead after consecutive three-pointers from Liam McNeeley and Alex Karaban. The Huskies looked to be in complete control at this point, as they went up by as much as seven points with less than a minute remaining.
However, Holloway’s Pirates had other ideas. A quick drive layup from Dylan Addae-Wusu cut the lead to three and put Seton Hall within striking distance. UConn then failed to inbound the ball within five seconds, turning it over and giving the Pirates possession with 12 seconds remaining. That was when Dylan Addae-Wusu nailed a clutch 3-pointer with five seconds on the clock to send the game to overtime.
The game took another swing in overtime, once again in favor of the Huskies. This time the Huskies had a five-point lead with just under a minute remaining. The Pirates were able to cut the lead to one after a layup from Dylan Addae-Wusu and two free throws from Isaiah Coleman. With the Pirates down by one point, Seton Hall guard Garwey Dual was able to steal the ball off the inbound. The ball wounded up in the hands of forward Scotty Middleton who missed the initial layup, but was able to get his own rebound and tip the ball in the net. UConn’s Hassan Diarra heaved a prayer from halfcourt, but the shot hit the front of the rim and Seton Hall was victorious.
It was a horrible performance from the back-to-back defending national champions, who have suffered defeats to multiple unranked opponents this season. But Seton Hall isn’t just an ordinary unranked opponent. The Pirates had just six wins and were on a nine-game losing streak coming into Saturday’s game.
With the win, Seton Hall is now 7-18 overall and 2-12 in conference play. The Pirates’ victory Saturday marks the fourth straight year Seton Hall has beaten Dan Hurley’s Huskies at home.
