Seton Hall a 1.5-Point Road Underdog vs DePaul With Myles Powell’s Status Uncertain

• DePaul is a 1.5-point home favorite over Seton Hall in the Big East opener for both teams
• Seton Hall star guard Myles Powell’s status for the game is uncertain because of a concussion
• DePaul is off to its best start since the 1986-87 Blue Demons opened with 16 straight wins

Seton Hall (8-4, 1-2 away) is a 1.5-point road underdog against DePaul (12-1, 8-1 home) tonight at Wintrust Arena in Chicago (Dec. 30, 8:30 PM ET) in the Big East opener for both teams.

The status of Pirates’ star guard Myles Powell remains uncertain after he suffered a concussion on Dec. 14 in a loss at Rutgers.

Seton Hall vs DePaul Odds

Odds taken Dec. 30.

Powell, who has missed the last two games, is officially questionable. The senior guard and preseason Big East Player of the Year is averaging 21.2 points a game. Seton Hall has won both games without him.

Meanwhile, DePaul has won three games in a row since taking its only loss of the season on Dec. 8 against Buffalo.

DePaul opened a 1.5-point favorite then the line moved in Seton Hall’s direction before swinging back as can be seen at our Seton Hall vs DePaul Odds page.

The Hall is Banged Up

Powell is not the only injury the Pirates are dealing with. Seton Hall is also likely to be without their second-leading scorer until sometime in February.

Junior forward Sandro Mamukelashvili broke his right wrist in a loss at Iowa State on Dec. 8. He has sat out the last three games and won’t be back anytime soon. He is averaging 12.3 points and 5.3 rebounds.

SANDRO MAMUKELASHVILI WITH AN EARLY CONTENDER FOR DIME OF THE YEAR pic.twitter.com/TxhtAhrbDO

— Seton Hall Barstool (@SetonHallStool) November 6, 2019

Despite missing both players, Seton Hall beat then-No. 7 Maryland, 52-48, at home on Dec. 19 as a seven-point underdog. Three days later, the Pirates overcame a halftime deficit to defeat visiting Prairie View A&M and cover the 17.5-point spread.

Senior guard Quincy McKnight has stepped up with Powell and Mamukelashvili sidelined. McKnight has scored 42 points in the last two games, raising his season average to 11.1.

Seton Hall’s defense was particularly impressive against Maryland. The Pirates held the Terrapins to 27-percent shooting, forced 17 turnovers and blocked 15 shots. Romaro Gill and Ike Obiagu, both 7-foot-2, had six blocks each.

DePaul’s Best Start in 33 Years

DePaul is off to its best start since winning 16 straight games to begin 1986-87 season. The Blue Demons have won 10 games before January for the first time since the 1999-2000 season and have high hopes of reaching the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2004.

Junior forward Paul Reed is averaging a double-double with 15.5 points and 10.9 rebounds a game. He is averaging three blocks a game and has recorded double-doubles in 10 of DePaul’s 13 games.

Junior point guard Charlie Moore doubles as both a scorer and facilitator, averaging 16.5 points and 6.7 assists. Junior forward Jaylen Butz (11.6) and senor guard Jalen Coleman-Lands (10.9) are also scoring in double digits.

Here are how the team match up in the KenPom.com categories:

Looking at the Rankings

Seton Hall began the season ranked 12^th. It dropped out of the poll following a 10-point loss at Iowa State and a 20-point loss at Rutgers.

However, the Pirates’ other two losses were tight ones as they fell by three points to then-No. 3 Michigan at home on Nov. 14 and by two points to then-No. 11 Oregon on Nov. 27 at the Battle 4 Atlantis in the Bahamas. Of course, those defeats came with Powell and Mamukelashvili in the lineup

DePaul is still unranked despite its gaudy record, though it received the 28^th-most votes in this week’s poll. However, there is a #RankDePaul hashtag movement.

Just now seeing a #rankdepaul hashtag emerging…

We did not start it, but we are definitely here for it.

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— DePaul Basketball (@DePaulHoops) December 2, 2019

The Blue Demons have been dinged for a relatively soft schedule, though they are 3-0 against Big Ten teams with road wins against Iowa and Minnesota and a home victory over Northwestern.

DePaul also beat Texas Tech, the runner-up in last year’s NCAA Tournament, in overtime at the Wintrust Center.

Do Blue Demons Have Pirates’ Number?

DePaul beat Seton Hall twice last season when the Pirates went to the NCAAs while the Demon Deacons wound up in the NIT. DePaul has also been on the right side of the spread in four of the last five meetings between the schools.

Seton Hall is 8-4 against the spread this season but 2-2 as underdogs. DePaul is 8-5 ATS and 5-3 as favorites.

It’s tough to handicap the game with Powell’s status uncertain. However, Seton Hall showed it can beat a quality opponent without him by toppling Maryland.

The pick: Seton Hall +100 on the moneyline