Seton Hall @ DePaul preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 19, 2019 ) DePaul 97, Seton Hall 93

Seton Hall will probably be without Myles Powell when it visits DePaul on Monday in the Big East opener for both teams. Powell, the Big East preseason player of the year who is averaging 21.2 points, has missed the last two games - both Pirates victories - after leaving the Rutgers contest Dec. 14 with a concussion, and coach Kevin Willard didn't seem optimistic earlier this week as the senior guard goes through the protocol.

"There's a shot that he could play at DePaul, but it's a long shot,'' Willard told the media. "I still don't think that right now it is a possibility. We're hoping to get him back to practice after this break and then ... hopefully for the Georgetown game (Friday). That's a realistic goal right now.'' Seton Hall senior point guard Quincy McKnight has shifted to shooting guard, scoring a total of 42 points in victories over No. 12 Maryland and Prairie View A&M and raising his season average to 11.5. "The transition was hard," McKnight told reporters. "My team has a lot of confidence in me, telling me to keep shooting. As long as they've got confidence and coach (Kevin Willard) has confidence to keep calling plays for me, I'm going to do whatever I can." DePaul has won 12 of its first 13 this season - it's best start since the 1986-87 team opened with 16 straight victories - and is on course to play in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2004 behind junior forward Paul Reed and junior guard Charlie Moore.

TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, Fox Sports 1

ABOUT SETON HALL (8-4): Sophomore guard Anthony Nelson (4.8 points, 3.6 assists per game) slid into the point position when Powell went down and has totaled 22 points and 11 assists in the last two games. Sophomore guard Jared Rhoden (7.8 points, 6.3 rebounds) collected 20 points and 21 rebounds over the past two contests. Romaro Gill, a 7-2 senior center, averages 2.8 blocks - second in the Big East - and boasts 11 in his last three games.

ABOUT DEPAUL (12-1): Reed (15.5 points) leads the Big East in rebounding at 10.9 per game and blocks (3.23), and is one of three players in the conference averaging a double-double after recording 11 points and 12 boards in an 83-78 victory over Northwestern on Dec. 21. Moore averages a team-high 16.5 points and paces the Big East with 6.7 assists after collecting 25 points and 10 assists last time out. Junior forward Jaylen Butz (11.6 points, 6.1 rebounds) scored a career-high 24 points - the first time he's totaled more than 17 - while senior guard Jalen Coleman-Lands (10.9 points) adds scoring depth.

TIP-INS

1. Reed and William & Mary senior F Nathan Knight lead the nation in double-doubles with 10.

2. The Pirates are 7-2 in Big East openers under Willard.

3. Reed recorded 21 points and 14 rebounds - career highs at the time - in a 97-93 victory over Seton Hall on Jan. 19 as DePaul swept both games last season after losing the previous six meetings.

PREDICTION: DePaul 74, Seton Hall 69