In his first game since suffering a broken wrist and a gunshot wound, Jeremy Hazell exceeded expectations.
The Seton Hall senior guard scored 23 points on 10 of 17 shooting in the Pirates’ 78-67 win Wednesday night at DePaul.
“I didn’t know I was going to play this game,” Hazell said. “I thought I was going to play two games after this, probably against Georgetown (Jan. 18), but I’m just happy I played (tonight).
“I was just happy to get back with my team. When they told me I could play, there was no holding back.”
Hazell broke his left wrist in a Nov. 19 win over Alabama in the Virgin Islands. While he was recuperating, he suffered a flesh wound when he was the victim of a shooting during a botched robbery attempt in Harlem.
SNY.tv broke the news earlier Wednesday that he would return for the DePaul game — and the remainder of the season — instead of redshirting.
Hazell, a first-team preseason All-Big East selection, had an alley-oop dunk to make it 77-60 with 2:17 left. He scored 15 points in the second half.
Hazell said he never doubted that he would return to the court even after being shot.
“I was just blessed,” he said. “I’m just happy that I’m still here playing basketball. I thank God for that.”
Hazell did not start and entered the game 4 minutes into the first half with a sleeve covering his left arm and wrist.
He missed his first shot, a 3-pointer, but then sank a layup and made a 3-pointer to give Seton Hall an 11-6 lead. He scored eight points in the first half on 3-for-7 shooting.
Seton Hall (8-9, 2-3 Big East) looks to be a completely different team with Hazell back in the lineup.
His long-range shooting opens up the inside for Herb Pope (15 points, 6 rebounds) and allows point guard Jordan Theodore (10 points) to create more driving and passing angles.
DePaul, meanwhile, has dropped 17 straight Big East games and is 1-39 in its last 40 league games.
“We’re going to come back tomorrow and work just as hard,” said DePaul coach Oliver Purnell. “We have to keep our poise and stay focused on what we have to do to beat a specific opponent. If we don’t, it’s hard to win. If we do, we’ll have a chance to win games.”
(The AP contributed)
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