2023-24 Monmouth Basketball Gameday Preview: Game Ten
                                                                                     
Monmouth Hawks (5-4, 0-0 CAA) at Seton Hall Pirates (5-4, 0-0 Big East)
Tuesday, December 12, 2023 - 6:30 p.m.
Prudential Center, Newark NJ
 
TV
FS1
Play-by-Play: Alex Faust
Analyst: Donny Marshall

RADIO
Monmouth Digital Network
Play-by-Play: Matt Harmon
Analyst: Steve Bazaz

QUICK BULLETS
-Jakari Spence made a buzzer-beating three the last time out to beat NIU
-Spence's shot was featured as #1 on ESPN's Sports Center's Top 10 plays
-Monmouth trailed NIU by 19 before coming back to win
-MU is taking on its second of three NJ opponents this season (Princeton, Rider)
-This is the 15th ever meeting between Monmouth and Seton Hall
-The Hawks are playing at the Prudential Center for the second consecutive year
-Nikita Konstantynovskyi comes off his third double-digit game of his career
-Xander Rice has scored double digits in eight of nine games this season
-Abdi Bashir was named the CAA Rookie of the Week on 11/27
-The Hawks have started the same five in all nine games
-MU seeks its second Big East win ever

A MONMOUTH WIN WOULD...
-tie Monmouth's regular season win total from 2022-23
-mark the sixth win of the season for Monmouth
-be MU's second road win of the season
-be MU's first ever win over Seton Hall
-give Monmouth its second win over a Big East opponent ever (Georgetown, 2015)
-register as the 195th win of Rice's career
-hand SHU its fourth loss of the season
-make Monmouth 1-1 against New Jersey competition this season

MORE INFO ON THE ALL-TIME SERIES
-The series is 14-0 Seton Hall
-Of those 14 games, 13 have been played at Seton Hall, with the Pirates visiting West Long Branch in 2009, the second game in Monmouth's 
current arena
-The teams met in last years season opener, a SHU victory in Holloway's SHU debut
-King Rice is 0-3 as the Monmouth head coach against Seton Hall
-MU is 1-34 all-time against Big East members
-The lone win against a Big East foe came with an 82-67 win at Georgetown in 2015
-This is the 11th meeting between Rice and Holloway as head coaches
-Rice is 3-7 against Holloway all time
-The schools are separated by 45 miles

NOTES FROM THE LAST TIME OUT
-Monmouth trailed by as many as 19, their largest comeback of the season.
-Nikita Konstantynovskyi scored in double figures for the third time this season.
-Xander Rice scored in double digits for the eighth time in nine games.
-Abdi Bashir made three triples, and is now shooting 63.3% from deep on the year.
-This was Monmouth's first buzzer beater since February 4, 2022 (Marcus McClary vs. Fairfield).
-Jaret Valencia set a career-best with four steals.
-Spence posted a season-high nine points.
-This was Monmouth's first game against a MAC opponent since Eastern Michigan in 2010, and the first ever in West Long Branch.
-MU was better from three, 42% to 25%.
-The Hawks topped NIU off the bench, 21-5.
-Monmouth was better on second-chance points, 21-11.
-The game featured six ties and seven lead changes.

NEXT UP
-Monmouth will host Rider for an in-state meeting Saturday
-The teams will meet for the second year in a row as non-league foes
-Monmouth will take on its final of three NJ opponents (Princeton, Seton Hall)
-The game will air on SNY, NBC Sports Philadelphia and FloSports