Spokesman-Review
National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Butler 61, Seton Hall 54
When: 8:30 PM ET, Wednesday, January 25, 2017
Where: Prudential Center, Newark, New Jersey
Officials: # Tim Clougherty, # Michael Stephens, # Earl Walton
Attendance: 7009

NEWARK, N.J. -- Andrew Chrabascz bounced back from his first scoreless outing in 105 games to score 16 points in No. 11 Butler's 61-54 win over Seton Hall on Wednesday at Prudential Center.

The Bulldogs (18-3) are now tied with Villanova for first place in the Big East at 7-2.

Butler shot a season-low 35 percent (19 of 54) but was tough on defense, holding Seton Hall (13-7, 3-5) to 29 percent.

"It's a byproduct of our league, but some of it's on ourselves," Butler coach Chris Holtmann said of the poor shooting. "We certainly have to be more efficient."

Chrabascz, who averages 11 points, shrugged off his failure to score in 33 minutes in a 70-69 win over DePaul on Saturday.

"You try to forget about it as much as possible," he said. "I'm a four-year guy. Everyone has a game like that in a career. My teammates picked me up."

On Wednesday, Kelan Martin added 10 points and 11 rebounds and Kethan Savage tossed in 15 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for his first double-double of the season.

The Bulldogs have won five straight in the series and hold a 7-1 overall lead.

Seton Hall's Angel Delgado recorded his 15th double-double of the season, with 12 points and 22 rebounds. The junior forward from the Dominican Republic became the first player to grab 20 rebounds in back-to-back Big East games. He hauled in 20 against St. John's on Jan. 22.

Desi Rodriguez contributed 12 points for the Pirates, who converted just two of their last eight shots.

Myles Powell drained a 3-pointer to give Seton Hall its first lead of the second half, 45-44, with 6:33 left. Butler regained the lead at 46-45 on two free throws and, after a free throw from Delgado, Chrabascz's traditional three-point play extended Butler's lead to 49-46.

The Bulldogs built the lead to 58-49 with 2:02 to play on a 9-0 run, capped by Savage's three-point play. Butler was then able to limit the Pirates in the closing possessions.

Seton Hall shot a woeful 21 percent, making just 7 of 33 shots, in the first half and trailed 26-19. It marked the first time in seven games that Butler led going into halftime.

The Pirates converted just 1 of 11 3-pointers in the half.

"Butler is one of the best 3-point defensive teams, not only in the league, but in the country," Seton Hall coach Kevin Willard said. "We're having a hard time understanding how to score on them (Butler). And I have to do a better job on that."

Butler used a 12-0 run to move ahead 15-5 with 8:57 left in the half. Seton Hall failed to score over 4:36, missing 13 shots.

The Bulldogs scored three straight points from the line to extend their lead to 20-10 with 2:56 remaining in the half.

Both teams made a combined 3 of 21 shots in the first seven minutes.

"I thought both teams came out and played really hard and tough defensively," Willard said. "I don't think either team played well in the first half because both teams played physically."

NOTES: Seton Hall grabbed over 50 rebounds for the second time this season, recording 52. ... The Pirates shot a season-low 29 percent. ... Seton Hall F Angel Delgado leads the nation in offensive rebounds per game, is second in total rebounds and third in double-doubles. ... The No. 11 ranking represents Butler's highest since it was No. 9 on Dec. 28, 2015. The Bulldogs' highest rank ever was No. 8 on Feb. 19, 2008. ... Butler junior F Kelan Martin is one of 19 players on the midseason watch list for the Oscar Robertson Trophy (player of the year) voted on by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association.
Top Game Performances
 
Butler   Seton Hall
Andrew Chrabascz 16 Scoring Khadeen Carrington 12
Andrew Chrabascz 2 Assists Angel Delgado 3
Kelan Martin 11 Rebounds Angel Delgado 22
Andrew Chrabascz 4 Free Throws Made Angel Delgado 6
Kamar Baldwin 1 Steals Ismael Sanogo 4
Andrew Chrabascz 1 Blocks Ismael Sanogo 3
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Butler 61 35.2 8-20 15-27 9 40 4 5 11
Seton Hall 54 28.6 4-24 14-24 8 48 5 6 12