NCAAB Game Preview - Seton Hall at Georgetown

Wed Feb 5, 2020 8:30 PM EST

Not many people expected Seton Hall's 10-game winning streak to end Saturday against Xavier, and fewer probably thought it would be as one-sided as it was.

However, the final score of the Pirates' 74-62 Big East Conference defeat to the Musketeers in Newark, N.J., seemed pretty flattering. Xavier owned a 30-6 lead just over 12 minutes into the game and totally stomped Seton Hall in rebounding, 51-22. Musketeers forward Tyrique Jones nearly tied the Pirates on the boards, grabbing 18 by himself.

"Definitely a humbling experience," Seton Hall sophomore Jared Rhoden told the Asbury Park (N.J.) Press. "Losing one brings you back to reality. You can't come into every game thinking you're going to (just show up and) win."

Perhaps jolted back out of its aura of invincibility, No. 12 Seton Hall will try to bounce back Wednesday night when it travels to Capital One Arena in Washington for a Big East battle with Georgetown.

The Pirates (16-5, 8-1 Big East) remain in first place in the conference, thanks to Creighton's 76-61 whipping of Villanova later Saturday, but they could enter play Wednesday short one starter. Guard Quincy McKnight injured his left knee with just under six minutes left against Xavier and didn't return.

He is regarded as day-to-day, and wasn't known if he would be able to play against the Hoyas.

"Not as bad as it looked," Seton Hall coach Kevin Willard said of McKnight's injury after the loss to the Musketeers. "Nothing in the ACL and all that stuff."

McKnight has become a key cog in the Pirates' bid for a conference title. He is the team's second-leading scorer at 11.5 points per game while leading the squad in assists (5.3 per game) and steals (1.8).

If Georgetown (13-9, 3-6) fails to show an ounce of sympathy, there's a good reason. It could be without top scorer Mac McClung, who sat out the Hoyas' 73-72 road win over St. John's on Sunday due to a foot injury. The 6-foot-2 sophomore is averaging 16.4 points and a team-high 1.4 steals.

The Hoyas rallied from a 17-point deficit against the Red Storm, getting double-figure scoring from all five starters, including 23 points and five assists from Jahvon Blair.

"To me, this is a great win," Georgetown coach Patrick Ewing said. "Undermanned, we were down (17) at one point and my team didn't give up. They kept fighting, they kept making plays. Look, to me this is a season-defining win.

"What I told them in the locker room is we have to continue to build on this. We can't take a step forward in getting a great win like this and then go backwards."

Georgetown is aiming to avenge a 78-62 loss to Seton Hall on Jan. 3 in Newark, where 7-2 center Romaro Gill's 17 points led four Pirates in double figures.

--Field Level Media