At the conclusion of the BIG EAST Tournament’s Championship Game on Saturday night, Seton Hall men’s basketball junior guard Adam “Budd” Clark was named one of five members of the BIG EAST All-Tournament Team.
Also named to the All-BIG EAST Second-Team and All-Defensive Team this season, Clark becomes The Hall’s first All-Tournament selection since Jared Rhoden in 2021, when the former Pirate averaged 20.5 points and 10.5 rebounds to help SHU reach the semifinals.
Helping The Hall reach the semifinals this year as well, Clark averaged 16.5 points, 8.5 assists and 4.5 rebounds per game in the Pirates’ two games in the conference tournament, all while making program history in both.
In fourth-seeded SHU’s first matchup against fifth-seeded Creighton in the quarterfinals, Clark became just the fourth Pirate to compile a 16-point, 7-rebound and 6-assist statline in the BIG EAST Tournament, joining the likes of Isaiah Whitehead, Adrian Griffin, and the unanimous 2025-26 BIG EAST Coach of the Year Shaheen Holloway.
“What I liked about Budd was that he played with a chip on his shoulder,” Holloway said postgame about what he noticed about Clark before recruiting him to The Hall. “He played with the passion, and the heart, and the determination that, you know, I kind of played with.”
“And I love the fact that people counted him out because of his size,” Holloway added. “I knew if he got with me and learned—because he got some things that you just can’t teach, and for him the good thing is that he’s still learning. I think once he continues to keep growing and learning, I think his game can go even higher.”
Clark, along with another 16-point performance from senior forward Jacob Dar, helped lead the Pirates past the Bluejays in a 76-61 win that set the stage for SHU to redeem themselves in the semifinals against top-seeded and eventual champs St. John’s (SJU) after having fallen to the Johnnies inside Madison Square Garden (MSG) already this season.
“That’s what we came to the BIG EAST for, that’s what we came to Seton Hall for,” Clark said. “To play in the big games, on a big stage like the Garden. You can't ask for nothing better.”
The Pirates didn’t have such luck, though (the contest being held on Friday the 13th certainly didn’t help). Despite a signature late rally from SHU, SJU dominated from wire-to-wire for a 78-68 win that put The Red Storm in their second-straight tournament final appearance, and an end to the Pirates’ quest for their first of such since 2019.
Clark once again led The Hall, this time with a 17-point and 11-assist double-double that made him the first Pirate to have at least 15 points and 10 assists in a BIG EAST Tournament game, and just the fifth Pirate with 10 assists in such a game as well. His points-assists double-double was also the first in the tournament since former UConn Huskie Tristan Newton’s in the 2024 Championship Game.
With their conference postseason now over, Clark was one of several Pirates to express interest to keep playing postseason basketball in another tournament, whether the NCAA Tournament or the College Basketball Crown Tournament (the latter being far more likely).
While expressing such interest, Clark also reiterated his intent to return to The Hall for another season—prompting a collective sigh of relief from all of Pirate Nation.
“I'm definitely hoping to keep continuing playing,” Clark said. “And I'm definitely looking to keep playing at Seton Hall, and whatever happens, happens.”
If Clark and The Hall are not one of the 68 teams in the NCAA Tournament’s bracket revealed on Sunday, they will likely return to the court for the College Basketball Crown Tournament, as mentioned, which is held in Las Vegas from April 1-5.
Zachary Mawby is the head editor of The Setonian’s Sports section. He can be reached at zachary.mawby@student.shu.edu.
