7 Seton Hall

During the first week of practice at Seton Hall last month, Andre Barrett , a 5' 8" freshman point guard, fired a pass toward 6' 9" freshman Eddie Griffin , who had an open path to the basket. When the ball sailed out-of-bounds Barrett chastised Griffin for his lack of aggression, and Griffin returned fire in kind until soon the two had to be separated by teammates. Later that night Barrett and Griffin were laughing about the incident in their dorm room, but their near fisticuffs still had teammates abuzz. Explains Barrett , "I don't care who you are. When I step on the court with you, it's my job to make you play harder."

Seton Hall has six freshmen and sophomores among its top nine players, and the new blood is out for blood. By adding one of the nation's top recruiting classes to the core that spurred the Pirates to the Sweet 16 last spring, coach Tommy Amaker has brought a swagger to the program not seen since P.J. Carlesimo last prowled the sidelines, in 1993-94. The Pirates bring back seven players who averaged at least 10 minutes per game, led by junior guard Darius Lane, last year's leading scorer, and center Samuel Dalembert , who was seventh in the nation in blocks despite frequent foul trouble.

Griffin has more innate ability than anyone on this team. Unfortunately he is also the only Pirate who lacks the requisite hubris to dominate. "I don't think it's my place to demand the ball," he says. "I don't want to step on anyone's toes."

Fortunately for Griffin he has a roommate with no such compunction. With Barrett determined to get the most out of him, there should be more shouting matches and more wins in the Pirates ' future.

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