Rutgers Defeats DePaul to Advance to BIG EAST Semi's
Mar 04 | Women's Basketball
HARTFORD, Conn. - Junior guard Matee Ajavon (Newark, N.J.) poured in a game-high 21 points and classmate Essence Carson (Paterson, N.J.) added 18 to lead No. 18/21 Rutgers to a 63-55 win over tenth-seeded DePaul on Sunday evening at the Hartford Civic Center.
The Scarlet Knights (20-8), seeded No. 2 in the BIG EAST Championship, advance to the semifinal round to face No. 3 Marquette. The Golden Eagles posted a 61-51 win over No. 6 Pitt in the final quarterfinal game of the evening.
The Blue Demons (19-12) had four players post double-digit scoring led by junior Missy Mitidiero with 14. Junior Allie Quigley and Caprice Smith each had 11.
"Veteran players hit tough shots and that's what it's all about," Rutgers head coach C. Vivian Stringer said following the game. "Anyone can say they can do this or that when it doesn't count. But you put your life on the line and it becomes a different issue."
Carson broke up the seventh tie of the first half (23-23) with a steal and subsequent lay-up with 4:39 left in the first period. After DePaul called a 30-second timeout, Rutgers forced a Blue Demons turnover on their next possession. The Scarlet Knights took advantage of the opportunity with Ajavon working through traffic in the paint to find freshman Myia McCurdy down low in the paint for the lay-up and the four-point edge at 27-23.
DePaul answered with a flurry of three-pointers, hitting three consecutive in a one-minute span. Junior Missy Mitidiero drained her third of the period to lift the Blue Demons to a 32-27 lead. A free throw by McCurdy cut the advantage to four (32-28) at intermission. The two teams combined for 30 turnovers in the first half.
Following a jumper by Prince to stat the second half, DePaul kept up its activity behind the arc. Jenna Rubino hit her third of the game with 16:58 on the clock to give the Blue Demons a 35-30 lead.
Carson tallied RU's next five straight points - two from the stripe and the conversation of an old-fashioned three-point play - to tie the game at 35-35 with 16:36 to play.
After DePaul took a 43-42 lead on a free throw by Rubino, Rutgers reeled off a 13-2 run to push ahead, 53-44. Carson highlighted the spurt with a pair of triples.
DePaul got within four (55-54) with 3:46 remaining after on a jumper by Erin Carney. Ajavon answered on the Scarlet Knights next possession with a trifecta as the shot clock was set to expire to quickly build a cushion and advance Rutgers to the next round.
"Since the beginning of the year I've been labeled the leader" Ajavon said in the post-game press conference. "I know that during the BIG EAST tournament, it's one-and-done. Your back is against the wall'if you lose, you're going home. I don't want to go home and neither do my teammates. I just try to be a positive model to them and show them that we work hard. We belong there. We don't want to go home and we're going to do anything in our ability to stay."
Rutgers will face Marquette on Monday, March 5 at 8:00 p.m. The televised on ESPNU.
POSTGAME NOTES:
WITH THE WIN '?
The Scarlet Knights move to 20-7 on the season. The 20th win marks the 23rd 20-win season in program history, the ninth under head coach C. Vivian Stringer during her tenure at the helm of the RU squad. Stringer has 23 20-win campaigns in her career as a head coach.
RU has won 15 of its last 18 games. In their last 12 games, the Scarlet Knights have posted 10 wins.
Rutgers took a 2-1 lead in the all-time series record. The Scarlet Knights and the Blue Demons split the two meetings this season.
Rutgers also moves to 16-11 all-time in the BIG EAST tournament. In quarterfinal match-ups, the Scarlet Knights are 8-4 all-time.
STAGING A COMEBACK
The comeback victory marks the fifth time the Scarlet Knights have come back and won despite trailing at halftime. When facing a deficit at the break, Rutgers is 5-4 this season.
DOUBLE-DIGITS AGAIN
Classmate Matee Ajavon scored 21 points, her 12th double-digit outing of the year. In the last six games, Ajavon has posted double-figures five times, including three 20-plus point performances.
Essence Carson scored 18 points, her 21st double-digit performance this season, and 14th in the last 16 games.
'DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR WORTHY' PERFORMANCE
2006 and 2007 BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year Essence Carson had the tough task of matching up with DePaul's Allie Quigley. Quigley was averaging 15.9 points heading into Sunday's contest and, earlier in the season, hit the Scarlet Knights for a career-high 37 points. Quigley went 7-of-11 from beyond the three-point line. Carson held the 2007 All-BIG EAST First Team selection to 11 points on 4-of-14 shooting and a
0-for-7 performance from behind the three-point line, the eighth time this season Quigley has failed to connect on a three-point attempt.
CONSISTENCY FROM THE FIELD
Rutgers shot 50 percent from the field (23-of-46), the eighth time this year the Scarlet Knights have shot 50 percent or above. RU, ranked second in the conference in field goal percentage, has shot above 40 percent in 13 games.
MOVIN' ON UP
With one block in the game, Kia Vaughn moved into two within two swats of second place on the single-season chart with 76 blocked shots this season. Sue Wicks holds the record with 97 blocks, set during the 1986-87 campaign.
Junior Matee Ajavon, who scored her 1,000th career point at Syracuse (Feb. 14), moved to 21st on the career scoring list with 21 points in tonight's game, passing Patty Delehanty (1978-82) who held the slot previously with 1,077 points. Ajavon now has 1,096 points in her career.
