PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Sophomore Jeremy Hazell (Harlem, N.Y.) scored four of Seton Hall’s last five points to lead the Pirates to a 65-60 victory over Rutgers in Piscataway on Sunday.  The victory completes the season sweep of Rutgers and marks the first time either has swept since the 2003-04 season.

Seton Hall (13-9, 4-6) received strong play from both of its seniors playing in their final game against Rutgers.  Senior Paul Gause (Pittsgrove, N.J.) finished with 10 points and four steals.  With the score tied at 60 and only 1:25 left in the game, Gause stole the ball and hit Hazell for the go-ahead dunk.  The 5-foot-11 guard then hit one of two free throws with only 19 seconds remaining to push the Hall lead to 63-60.  Seton Hall’s other senior John Garcia (Brentwood, N.J.) finished with 13 points, eight rebounds and three blocks.  On Rutgers’ final possession, it was Garcia who pulled down the defensive rebound with only three seconds left and found Hazell for another dunk and the proverbial nail in the coffin.  For his efforts, Garcia was named the 2008-09 John Calabrese MVP of the game.

Rutgers (10-14, 1-10) was led by freshman Mike Rosario who finished with 15 points.  Hazell led the Pirates with 21 points.

Seton Hall jumped out to a 13-7 lead on the strength of a quick five points.  Gause hit a three-pointer, then stole the ball and hit a streaking Hazell for an uncontested slam dunk with 13:15 left in the first half.

Rutgers roared back with a 15-4 run, which gave the Scarlet Knights their largest lead of the game, five at 22-17.

Back-to-back three-pointers by Seton Hall junior Robert Mitchell (Brooklyn, N.Y.) enabled the Pirates to regain the lead, 23-22.  Mitchell had eight first half points and led the team with five rebounds.  A 7-0 Seton Hall run highlighted by a Eugene Harvey three-pointer stretched the Pirates lead to four, 30-26, with 2:22 before halftime.

The lead changed hands eight times in a very close first half which had the teams tied at 32 going into the locker room at halftime.  Hazell led the Pirates with nine points, while Rutgers senior Anthony Farmer also scored a team-high nine points.  Despite the tied score, the shooting percentages were dramatically different.  Rutgers hit 50.0% of their shots from the floor, while Seton Hall could only muster 35.5%.

The Pirates took a 45-40 lead with 14:10 remaining following a three-pointer by freshman Jordan Theodore (Englewood, N.J.).  But Rutgers answered back with five quick points capped by a Corey Chandler three-pointer to tie the score at 45 with 12:45 remaining in regulation.

Over the final 12:49 of the game, neither team would enjoy a lead greater than two points.  For the game, the score was tied 10 times and the lead changed 16 times. 

Seton Hall out-shot Rutgers, 42.1%-to-41.1% for the game and forced more turnovers, 20-12.

Seton Hall will be back in action on Tuesday, February 10 when they travel to Chicago, Illinois to take on DePaul.  Game time is scheduled for 9:00 p.m. ET.