NEW YORK — If Seton Hall wins its first Big East tournament championship since 1993 on Saturday night at Madison Square Garden, the school may want to send Steve Lavin a case of his favorite red wine.
The former St. John’s coach and current FoxSports1 analyst has done his best this week to provide some lighthearted bulletin board material for the surging Pirates.
After Lavin said on air that the young team might not be able to handle Creighton’s changing defenses, Isaiah Whitehead and company have now rattled off back-to-back wins over No. 6 Creighton and No. 2 Xavier to advance to the Big East title game against No. 1 Villanova.
“Do you know what’s messed up with Lav?” Pirates coach Kevin Willard said after his team’s 87-83 victory over Xavier in the Big East semifinals at Madison Square Garden. “I love him. He texted me for two tickets. He texts me for two tickets. He said, ‘Hey, I need two good tickets behind your bench. Can you take care of it?’ I said, ‘Of course. No problem, Steve. Not twenty minutes later he’s on there saying, I really like this Seton Hall team. I think they’re going to win games in the NCAA Tournament, but I like Creighton.
“He’s the best. He said, ‘We talked before.’ I said, no, he just wanted two more tickets tonight. That’s why he switched it around.”
On air before the Xavier game Friday night, Lavin draped a white Seton Hall jersey over his shoulder and wore a blue tie for Seton Hall’s colors.
“I’m riding with you guys now, I’m on the bandwagon,” Lavin told Whitehead on air after the sophomore went for 20 points, 8 assists and 5 rebounds in the win. “All Pirates, all Pirates.”
Lavin, of course, recruited Whitehead to St. John’s but the Abraham Lincoln star ultimately committed to Seton Hall in what was perceived as a package deal with his coach Tiny Morton, who left Seton Hall after one year to return to Lincoln.
Whitehead was asked on the set with Lavin after the Xavier win why he didn’t choose St. John’s.
“I mean, Coach Lav can answer that for himself,” Whitehead said.
“He knew I was getting fired, it wasn’t a big secret,” Lavin said. “I was getting the pink slip, everyone knew what was coming in. Come on, give it up my man.”
Lavin did get fired and is now enjoying his time as an analyst, while Whitehead and his fellow sophomores look like one of the hottest teams in the nation.
They have won seven of their last eight games, including two wins over No. 5 Xavier.
“‘[Whitehead’s] a monster, he’s the best player in the league,” Xavier coach Chris Mack said. “I voted for him. He is the real freaking deal.”
Whitehead’s fellow sophomores aren’t too shabby, either.
After giving Creighton a season-best 27 points, Khadeen Carrington went for 23 points on 8-for-11 shooting, including 3-for-6 from deep, and 7 rebounds and Angel Delgado added 15 points and 6 boards.
All five Seton Hall starters are from New York and New Jersey, making this tournament run in front of friends, family and fans all the more special.
Seton Hall fans chanted, “We are awesome,” “Let’s go Pirates” and “We want Nova.”
“It’s a great feeling,” Carrington said. “This is what we came to Seton Hall for. This is what we talked about before we even came here, getting Seton Hall back on the map back to where it was. I think we’re doing a great job of it right now.”
Willard said he’s happy the team is doing justice to former coach P.J. Carlesimo, who led Seton Hall to the NCAA championship game in 1989 and Big East tournament titles in 1991 and ’93.
“It’s an honor, to be honest with you,” Willard said. “It’s an honor and a privilege. We’re the first team to get back there since Coach Carlesimo. He set the bar so high, PJ did. Everyone who has followed him tried to achieve his greatness. To get back to where he did it, I think it was in ’93, that in itself is an honor. He has been a great supporter of the program and of mine.”
Now the Pirates must turn around and face No. 1 Villanova in less than 24 hours. The defending Big East Tournament champion Wildcats handled Kris Dunn and Providence, 86-78, in the first semifinal. Villanova is 2-4 in Big East finals.
“They’re a great team,” Whitehead said. “They’re No. 3 in the country. They’re tough. I mean, they have a lot of weapons that can beat you. They shoot the three really well. So, I mean, it’s a great — it’s going to be a great game. I’m looking forward to it. I just can’t wait for it.”
One more win and Seton Hall may want to send Lavin that case of wine.
