Desi Rodriguez hits game-winner as Seton Hall stuns No. 17 Louisville – Three Takeaways

Desi Rodriguez scored on a game-winning drive in the finals seconds to lead Seton Hall to a 79-77 win over No. 17 Louisville at the KFC Yum! Center.

Rodriguez went for 29 points, 8 rebounds, 4 steals and 2 assists in a monster performance. Khadeen Carrington had 18 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists. Angel Delgado notched his 55th career double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds. And Myles Powell added 13 points.

Deng Adel scored 20 points with 5 rebounds, Quentin Snider had 15 and 7 and  V.J. King had 14 and 5 for Louisville.

FINAL: Seton Hall 79, No. 17 Louisville 77

Desi Rodriguez wins it #shbb pic.twitter.com/PWl6mjaX1q

— Chris McManus (@ChrisSHUhoops) December 3, 2017

Here are three takeaways from the game:

Seton Hall will jump back into the Top 25

After back-to-back wins over No. 22 Texas Texas and No. 17 Louisville this week, Seton Hall (7-1) will jump back into the Top 25 come Monday. The Pirates are in the midst of a huge stretch that is aimed at building their NCAA Tournament résumé,. The Pirates lost to Rhode Island in the NIT Season Tip-Off and then beat Vanderbilt in the consolation game. Next up they face VCU next Saturday at Prudential Center before hosting St. Peters and then visiting Rutgers Dec. 16.

 

Desi Rodriguez is a serious baller

Jalen Brunson of Villanova and Trevon Bluiett of Xavier are probably the two favorites for Big East Player of the Year honors, but at this point Rodriguez has to at least be in the conversation. The former Lincoln High School player was a power forward coming out of high school and is now arguably the most potent wing in the Big East — and one of the top wings in the nation. He entered averaging 18.7 points and 4.4 rebounds per game. In his last three games, Rodriguez has posted 29, 24 and 27 points against Louisville, Texas Tech and Vanderbilt.

 

Louisville seems just fine in the post-Rick Pitino Era

With the loss, the Cardinals are 4-2 heading into games with Siena and then rival Indiana. It seems clear that Louisville remains a Top-25 type team despite all the distractions swirling around the program — including the firing of AD Tom Jurich and head coach Rick Pitino in the wake of the FBI investigation, who is now suing Louisville for $38.7 million. David Padgett should get the full-time job at some point this season assuming the Cards keep playing at this level.

 

Photo: @LouisvilleMBB

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