The game plan for Seton Hall coach Kevin Willard from day one was to play a tough non-conference schedule that both set up the Pirates for the brutal Big East Conference and helped them build an impressive NCAA Tournament résumé.

With five weeks to go before Selection Sunday, Willard’s master plan appears to be working perfectly.

After back-to-back road wins at Georgetown and at then-No. 10 Villanova last week, the Pirates (18-5, 10-1 Big East) moved back to No. 10 in Monday’s AP Top 25 poll from No. 12. They were previously installed at No. 10 on Jan. 20. Four other Big East clubs made the poll: No. 15 Villanova, No. 18 Marquette, No. 19 Butler and No. 23 Creighton, which visits the Prudential Center Wednesday.

Rutgers, which dropped out of the AP Top 25 last week, remains unranked after receiving two points in voting this week.

POLL ALERT: Preseason No. 1 Michigan State drops out of AP Top 25; Baylor, Gonzaga top poll, Seton Hall up to No. 10, Penn State jumps to No. 13.



Full poll: https://t.co/xXlGQKLkGZ



More college basketball coverage: https://t.co/N0HLv6oHbR pic.twitter.com/BrSaTqrTnT — AP Top 25 (@AP_Top25) February 10, 2020

“I complain about the schedule all the time, but I think our schedule really helped us,” Willard said Saturday after his team won at Villanova for the first time since 1994 via a 70-64 victory.

In the non-conference, Myles Powell and company won at Saint Louis before losing at Iowa State and at Rutgers. They also played three tough games in the Bahamas, blowing a 19-point lead against then-No. 11 Oregon before rebounding to beat Southern Miss and Iowa State. At home, they lost a three-point game to then-No. 3 Michigan State and later beat then-No. 7 Maryland when Powell was down with a concussion. Powell on Saturday said the concussion was “ the best thing that happened to this team” because it helped his teammates learn to play without him.

“I thought those [non-conference] games really prepared us for an unbelievable atmosphere like it was [at Villanova] and also a tremendous basketball team,” Willard said. “So the non-conference schedule, although it was brutal, it was testing and although it wasn’t as everyone wanted it to go, I think it really prepared us for the rest of the season.”

As a result of this schedule, check out these numbers on the Pirates’ résumé:

They have gone 12-1 since the Rutgers loss, their only defeat coming last Saturday at home against Xavier. Before that they had won 10 straight.

They have eight Quad-1 wins, 13 combined Quad-1 and Quad-2 wins.

Their six Quad-1 road wins are the most in the nation.

They have three Top-10 wins (No. 7 Maryland, at No. 5 Butler, at No. 10 Villanova) and two Top-10 road wins.

They are currently projected as a 3 seed by the NCAA Division men’s basketball committee.

They have a 3-game lead atop the Big East.

Willard didn’t want to think or talk too much about his lead in the Big East, though. Every night in the league is a grind, beginning with Wednesday against another Top-25 opponent.

"I’m going to let these guys enjoy this win,” Willard said after the Villanova win. “I think Creighton’s as good as anybody in the conference, so we have to get ready for a team that’s much different, plays at a different pace and a different style.”

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POWELL HONORED AGAIN

Powell was tabbed Big East Player of the Week for a fourth time on Monday.

Powell averaged 26.5 points and 5.0 rebounds in helping the Pirates to a pair of road victories. In a 78-71 win at Georgetown, Powell poured in a game-high 34 points. He followed that performance with a team-high 19 points in a 70-64 win at 10th-ranked Villanova. The senior shot 48 percent from the field and 12-of-12 from the foul line. In six Big East road games, Powell is averaging 27.0 points per game.

Andy Katz of NCAA.com Tweeted last week that he would vote for the Trenton native to win the Naismith Award.

If I had to vote today, @Myles_MBP_23 would get my vote for @NaismithTrophy. Postgame for @marchmadness after @SetonHallMBB extended its @BIGEASTMBB lead to 3 games with a win @NovaMBB. https://t.co/ABDGxfSW2R — Andy Katz (@TheAndyKatz) February 8, 2020

Adam Zagoria is a freelance reporter who covers Seton Hall and NJ college basketball for NJ Advance Media.