Pirates Score Big Win on Senior Night
by Ray Floriani
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Senior night is special. It is a time to honor the departing seniors before their last home game. Family and friends have the opportunity to share in the moment. Seton Hall’s senior night at Continental Airlines Arena on Tuesday had all of that, and a little more. It was truly ‘senior night’ as Donald Copeland and Kelly Whitney provided the spark in a 72-62 win over Cincinnati. The win kept Seton Hall’s NCAA hopes alive. Copeland led all scorers with 28 points (21 the final half) while Whitney enjoyed an 18-point, 11-rebound night.
Seton Hall made it a priority to come out strong from the opening tip. “We lost three straight and didn’t play well in those games,” Copeland said. “So we talked about getting a good start.”
The Hall built an early seven-point lead before Cincinnati gradually settled down and got back. By halftime the Bearcats enjoyed a six-point lead largely on the play of guards James White and Jihad Muhammad. For the early going in the final half, Cincinnati appeared to be in control. The visitors’ lead increased to eight, and they held an advantage until the final ten minutes. With each time out coach Louis Orr and his staff stressed the emphasis of getting stops and remaining focused on the job at hand. Orr had some capable help as Copeland and Whitney were just as vocal and encouraging with their teammates.
Over the last quarter of the game, the Pirates put 29 points on the board, but most importantly, they got those defensive stops which were crucial to pulling the game out.
“The game was a ‘bump and grind’ game,” Cincinnati coach Andy Kennedy said. “Neither team was executing particularly well. Copeland and Whitney really stepped up.”
What really upset Kennedy was his club’s failure to respond when challenged. In one stretch late in the contest, Copeland and Brian Laing stripped Cincinnati guards of the ball and the Pirates converted at the other end. “Copeland and Whitney really stepped up,” Kennedy added. “They (Seton Hall) attacked us and we were a step behind. We had a lot on the line and we got very passive.”
What Kennedy was alluding to was a possible NCAA bid. The win put Seton Hall at 17-10 and 6-7 in the Big East. Cincinnati fell to 18-11 and more important, 7-8 in Big East play.
Notes
- Resiliency is a key word with this Seton Hall team. The Pirates had come off a home loss to Notre Dame and road setbacks at St. John’s and DePaul before getting this win. “It’s a season and you have to look at the body of work, not three losses here or six wins there,” Orr said. “You can’t get too down (after losses) and you can’t get too high (after wins).”
- Grant Billmeier had another solid effort, though his contributions will not show on the offensive side of the ledger. Billmeier was a force keeping Cincinnati’s Eric Hicks in check. “Hicks is a great player,” Orr said. “In our team meetings we talked about trying a double team or different defenses but Grant said, ‘no I’ll take him’, and he did.” Hicks finished with nine points on 3 of 111 shooting from the floor.
- Cincinnati was paced by Muhammad’s 21 points while White added 17. With Hicks neutralized however, the inside game was not as effective for the Bearcats.
- Orr naturally had the utmost praise for Copeland and Whitney, who played such a key part on and off the floor in rallying the Hall. “Whitney is a warrior,” Orr said, “while Copeland is probably the toughest competitor I’ve ever coached.”
- Whitney’s mother made the trip from Chicago for the special night. Copeland, from nearby Jersey City, had his family, friends and St. Anthony’s High School coach Bob Hurley in attendance. Copeland’s father, Donald Sr., spoke with friends and was happy to hear St. Joe’s had defeated Xavier earlier. Copeland and Dwayne Lee of St. Joe’s were not only high school teammates, but Copeland Sr. coached both in their pre-high school days. “It all went so fast,” the elder Copeland said. “It seemed like not too long ago they (Lee and Copeland) were here playing for the state Tournament of Champions title.”
In the Seton Hall locker room Donald Copeland summed it up saying, “you enter as a freshman thinking you know a lot but it’s a gradual learning process over the four years. I’ve cherished every moment.” So has Louis Orr and the Seton Hall faithful.
