·         Brittany Ray scored in double-figures for the 12^th time this season with 28 points. It was her fifth 20-plus game this season.

·         The Bronx native scored 10-plus for the 15^th time in the last 17 games, dating back to Seton Hall on March 7, 2009.

·         Ray tied her season-high with five treys in the contest. Over the last two games, the senior is 10-of-16 (.625) from beyond the arc.

·         This is the ninth time in 2009 that Ray has led the team in scoring.

·         Ray hit 15 of her team-leading 27 threes in the last four games.

·         For the fourth time this season, Rashidat Junaid tallied double-digits with 10 points. It was the first time in four games the senior has scored. 

·         The Scarlet Knights had their worst shooting performance of the season in the first half, going 7-of-26 (26.9 percent). The previous worst was against Texas (.281) in the Virgin Islands.

·         In the second half, RU tallied their best shooting performance for a half – going 15-for-24 from the field (.625).

·         This is the second time this season that RU has come back after trailing at halftime. Against Prairie View A&M, the Scarlet Knights overcame a one-point halftime deficit. RU was behind, 28-25, at the break to CCSU. When trailing at the half, RU is 2-5 this season.

·         Rutgers wins the first-ever meeting between the two squads. The Scarlet Knights remain perfect against Northeast Conference Schools (19-0).

 

·         Coach C. Vivian Stringer changed the starting lineup for the ninth time this season, using Khadijah Rushdan, Erica Wheeler, April Sykes, Chelsey Lee, and Brittany Ray. All ten Scarlet Knights have earned the nod at least once this season. Only Ray has started every game for RU.

“I wasn’t worried about winning, I was worried about how angry I would be. That is a fact. We were supposed to go home after this game. We will practice tomorrow morning at 4 o’clock in the morning because I am angry about this game. It doesn’t make any sense. Yes, games like this (worry me). (We were) trying to get it done too quickly. We didn’t know what we were supposed to do. We would have had a better chance if we were playing Connecticut or Tennessee. I am disappointed in that because we need to be far more mature and know what we need to do. We didn’t recognize defenses. I am just upset – 19 turnovers, please. I don’t feel like getting up early in the morning, but I will. I will. I hope that we don’t practice so late that some of these kids miss their flights. I should probably let Christmas be determined based upon what percentage of the game we’ve played. That would be interesting. A lot of people would be staying here with me. Central Connecticut was spunky. But, what is good about a game like this is it gives me a chance to see again the things that I saw. On a consistent basis, we do not have twos and threes knocking shots down. April (Sykes) needs to get it together. Her and (Khadijah Rushdan). There is no excuse for it - end of discussion. Erica Wheeler is not going to play because she doesn’t know the plays. That is why we have to play her on the other side. Nikki (Speed) needs to embrace and know what we are trying to get. She is doing it by rotating and that is not good. She needs to understand why. It can’t just be Brittany (Ray). I wanted to not play Brittany and play everyone else to see who shows up.”

 

 

“I think we started out well the first three minutes of the game, but then we got stagnant on offense. We were practicing yesterday to attack the gaps and it seemed like we weren’t doing that. I don’t think we scored for six or seven minutes. We didn’t score at all and that is our fault because we didn’t attack the gaps. We were just passing it around the perimeter and you’re not going to get anything with just passing it around the perimeter. We need to be aggressive in the zone because we have to make things happen.”

“I think everyone needs a break – change scenery, go home, and just relax for a couple of days. When we come back after Christmas break, we always show a different face and a different team. We are going to really work during Christmas break and I think you are going to see a completely different team after this break. Sometimes you just need a break. I think everyone going home will help them clear their minds and come back ready for action.”

 

“I don’t know exactly what the problem was, but it seemed to me that we were out of sync – offensively and defensively. It shows in practice that we have a lot to work on. That is why we are glad that we have this break to work on all these things.”

 

 “We have three freshmen. We have players learning different positions. For example, we have (Monique Oliver) going from a five to a four. It is difficult for them. Being a freshman, I had trouble learning my one position and we are astking them, as freshmen, to learn two or three. Coach is looking for a lot of players to be flexible. With Myia (McCurdy) as well, and she is a senior. It is hard.” 

 

“For me, I know in the first half I came off the bench and right away I had two quick turnovers. One was an over-the-back call and the other was a travel. Then Coach Stringer takes me out. At halftime, coach stressed to get the ball inside, which is what she always stresses, and I took it as I needed to step it up because I knew my team needed me. We were down by three at halftime and someone needed to step it up. I noticed that B-Ray had scored more than half the points. Someone had to step up! Being a senior, I think it is unfair for B-Ray to be there out on the court working so hard and no one out there as another senior leader to help her.”