Seton Hall Nearly Pulled Off a Miracle Against Villanova
Victory literally slipped through their fingers
Critics of college basketball will say that it’s inferior to the NBA because it’s messy, but sometimes that chaos is what makes it entertaining. The final two seconds of Villanova’s win over Seton Hall were sloppy as hell, but you can’t say that it wasn’t fun to watch.
The Pirates and Wildcats were tied at 74 after Seton Hall’s Takal Molson made a layup with 51 seconds to go. After Villanova missed a three at the other end, Seton Hall had a chance to hold for a game-winning final shot. Shavar Reynolds’s attempt at a deep three went begging, and in the ensuing bedlam beneath the basket, Molson was called for a foul with 1.9 seconds left on the clock.
The controversial foul call sent Villanova down to the other end for a pair of free throws. Cole Swider made just one, giving the Wildcats the lead but giving Seton Hall another chance to win with a two-point basket.
But in college, unlike in the NBA, you can’t call a timeout to advance the ball to midcourt. If the Pirates were going to get a look at a game-winner, they were going to need a perfect full-court pass to set it up.
Molson threw a flawless Patrick Mahomes–like sidearm pass right into the hands of Seton Hall’s best player, big man Sandro Mamukelashvili. And Mamukelashvili couldn’t corral it.
That’s a brutal way to lose a game, especially one that would have been a major upset. The 9–1 Wildcats are ranked third in the nation and were favored by nine points at home. But they hadn’t played since Dec. 23 after a COVID-19 outbreak forced six games to be postponed. The Pirates were in prime position to pick up a big win, and it literally slipped through their fingers.
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