Revenge-minded Pirates see ‘big test’ in Rutgers

Seton Hall won the game it was supposed to lose. The young Pirates stunned Kentucky, beating the Blue Blood powerhouse in overtime at the Garden, a sign this year could be as much about reloading as rebuilding after graduating the core from the past three NCAA Tournament teams.

This Saturday, against rival Rutgers in the annual Garden State Hardwood Classic, coach Kevin Willard’s team gets the chance to prove that result wasn’t an anomaly and that the difficult non-conference schedule has sped up its development.

“This is a big test,” Willard said in a phone interview Friday. “We obviously had a big win at the Garden, but now you got to step up and play a really good team on your home floor. Are you going to be focused? Are you going to be ready to take on another big challenge? Because that’s what this is.”

Motivation shouldn’t be needed, not after how last year’s meeting finished, with Rutgers stunning then-No. 15 Seton Hall at a sold-out RAC. The Scarlet Knights fans would storm the court after the home team erased a nine-point deficit in the final 5:41.

The Prudential Center is sold out for Saturday’s game, creating what should be an electric atmosphere. This Seton Hall team is different, but current starters Myles Powell, Myles Cale, Sandro Mamukelash- vili and Mike Nzei played in that game. They know what that defeat felt like, losing New Jersey bragging rights and the taunting that followed.

“They remember,” said Willard, who is 6-6 in his career against Rutgers as Seton Hall’s coach. “This is a hard game wherever it falls. It’s always a battle, it’s always a tough game. It’s always an emotional game. No matter where this falls, it’s always a big game.”

The two teams enter the annual showdown from different vantage points. The Pirates, further along than most expected at this point, believe they can challenge for a fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament bid. The Scarlet Knights are hoping not to finish in the Big Ten cellar for the fifth straight season.

Seton Hall (6-3) just upset Kentucky, its biggest non-conference victory in more than two decades, while Rutgers lost at Fordham, a dismal setback. But otherwise, the Scarlet Knights (5-4), led by impressive sophomore lead guard Geo Baker, have been impressive, beating Miami and playing well in losses to ranked foes Michigan State and Wisconsin. They’ll have to slow down Powell to repeat last year’s result.

“They’re playing with tremendous confidence,’’ Rutgers coach Steve Pikiell said of Seton Hall. “We’re a team figuring it out a little bit. But when we figure it out, we’re pretty good.”