Willard sees IU as potential trap

Ignore the 12 ¹/2-point spread. Forget the season-opening 21point home loss to Indiana State. Seton Hall will get pushed by Indiana on Wednesday night — Kevin Willard is convinced of it, and he’s made sure his players won’t overlook the Hoosiers.

“I’m hammering it into them,” Willard said in a phone interview on Tuesday as his team prepared to host Indiana at the Prudential Center in the third annual Gavitt Games — eight games pitting the Big East against the Big Ten. “I’ve watched their games. They play at a much faster pace than anyone we’ve seen thus far. They really try to throw the ball inside more than anyone we’ve seen. I think they’re a very good basketball team.”

Willard believes Indiana (1-1) is just struggling to adjust to a new coach, former Dayton head man Archie Miller. The Hoosiers still have plenty of talent, led by big man De’Ron Davis and senior guards Robert Johnson and Josh Newkirk. They rebounded from the Indiana State loss by knocking off Howard at home on Sunday.

“This is definitely a challenge,” Willard said. “They’ve got good players and they’ve got a good coach. They’re just getting used to each other. That’s what it looks like during the games.”

It will undoubtedly be a step up for the 22nd-ranked Pirates (2-0) after comfortable wins over Fairleigh Dickinson and Monmouth to begin the season. Seton Hall’s depth has been apparent — Willard has used 10 players in his rotation, including freshmen Jordan Walker, Myles Cale and Sandro Mamukelashvili — and so has its ball movement, averaging 15.5 assists. Senior Khadeen Carrington has tallied 10 in the two wins for the Pirates, who averaged 12.2 assists per game last year.

“We’re playing really unselfish,” Willard said. “I love that.”