Welcome Home to the Hall, Halloway!
In recent events in March 2022, Shaheen Halloway and his squad made an unbelievable run in the road to the NCAA College Basketball National Title, aka March Madness. Halloway during this run was the head coach at St. Peter’s University, located in Jersey City, New Jersey. Halloway and his team were doubted by most everyone going into the tournament. They only gained entrance by pulling off an unexpected run and winning the MACC conference tournament. In an even bigger surprise, and an upset for the ages, the Peacocks took down second seeded Kentucky in the round of 64. Shaheen’s squad led by Junior leader, Doug Edert, led the team to an elite 8 run, where they fell to the University of North Carolina. Not to overlook the Cinderella story for St. Peters, but the bigger story comes after the loss in the elite eight. Three days after losing to UNC, Coach Shaheen Halloway was hired by Seton Hall University to be the next head basketball coach, replacing Kevin Willard, who was hired by The University of Maryland just days prior.
In many college basketball fans’ eyes, the move to Seton Hall is undoubtedly an upgrade. The facilities at Seton Hall are top-notch compared to St. Peter’s. Seton Hall put in a brand new practice facility in Walsh gym located on campus. This is a coach’s dream to have a multi-million dollar upgrade for both the coaching staff as well as the players. During the tournament, stories came out about St. Peter’s problems with their facility, which include flooding, and poor funding for the team. Shaheen himself made 300,000 per year at St. Peter’s, but will now be making a reported 2.4 million per year. It is safe to say this is an upgrade.
What makes the transition to Seton Hall so special for Halloway is that the university is his alma mater. Shaheen played all four of his collegiate basketball years at Seton Hall, where he graduated in 2000. Seton Hall fans are calling it Holloway’s welcome home.
Not only are the fans excited to see what Halloway has to bring to the table, but big names in the sport of basketball are also saying great things about him. Ed Cooley, the Providence Friar’s head coach, who also made a huge run in the 2022 NCAA tournament said, “Shaheen is a natural fit for Seton Hall and the Big East. He is an intelligent coach and his energy is infectious.” Energy at the Prudential Center is a necessity for the success of the team and Halloway himself even says that students and fans need to be at the Rock (Prudential Center) and “get lit.” Not only have Big East coaches praised Halloway, but also previous players have spoken well about him. Desi Rodriguez, class of ‘18, who is also the 13th all-time leading scorer for the university, states: “I definitely believe Shaheen will be a great head coach at Seton Hall because he is so passionate about his job, he wants to win, he builds great relationships with his players and he wants the best for everyone around him.” With people of importance to this university speaking so highly of Halloway, Shaheen should feel excited and ready to be welcomed home.