Rutgers University
Louisville
No. 9/12 Louisville Stops Rutgers, 78-59
Jan 21 | Men's Basketball
PISCATAWAY, N.J. - Freshman guard Mike Rosario (Jersey City, N.J.) scored 21 points, including four three-pointers, but it was not enough as No. 9/12 Louisville defeated Rutgers 78-59 Wednesday evening at the Louis Brown Athletic Center. Rosario has now scored 20 points or more in seven games this season.
| Freshman Mike Rosario recorded 21 points, his seventh game of 20 or more points this season. (Duncan Williams) |
It marked the sixth time in seven games Rutgers has played an opponent ranked in the Top 20.
Rosario scored in double-figures for the 10th consecutive game to lead the Scarlet Knights (9-10, 0-6 BIG EAST). In 19 games this season, the freshman from Jersey City has scored in double-figures 17 times.
Louisville seized control of the game early and used a 23-0 run in the first half to take a 40-20 lead at intermission.
Rutgers cut the deficit to 52-39 in the second half with 12:27 remaining on a three-pointer by sophomore guard Corey Chandler (Newark, N.J.), but the Scarlet Knights could not get any closer. Chandler ended the night with nine points, seven assists and six rebounds.
Freshman Gregory Echenique (Guatire, Venezuela) turned in a strong performance with 13 points and seven rebounds in 38 minutes of action for Rutgers.
Louisville (14-3, 5-0 BIG EAST) was led by Terrence Williams' game-high 23 points.
Rutgers returns to action Saturday at Madison Square Garden vs. St. John's. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. with live television coverage on MSG+.
POSTGAME NOTES
Rutgers shot 50 percent in the second half (15-of-30), becoming the sixth team to shoot better than 50 percent in a single half against Louisville. RU is the first BIG EAST team to accomplish the feat against the Cardinals.
Senior JR Inman (Pomona, N.Y.) finished with five points against Louisville, giving him 1,024 for his career. He passes Rick Dadika (1,023) for 34th-place on RU's all-time scoring list.
Freshman Gregory Echenique (Guatire, Venezuela) recorded a career-high three steals. His previous high was two, set twice, most recently against Syracuse on Jan. 10.
Echenique finished with one block against Louisville, giving him 47 on the season, currently the 19th-best single-season total in RU history.
Echenique played a career-high 38 minutes against UofL. His previous high was 36, set against Marist on Nov. 14. He finished with 13 points, his 11th game in double-figures and his third in RU's last five contests.
Sophomore Corey Chandler (Newark, N.J.) tallied a career-high seven assists. His previous high was six, set at Rider on Dec. 3.
Freshman Mike Rosario (Jersey City, N.J.) recorded 21 points, his seventh game of 20 or more points this season, and his fifth in RU's last eight games.
Rosario matched his career-high with three offensive rebounds. He previously accomplished the feat twice, most recently against Marquette on Jan. 7.
POSTGAME QUOTES
FRED HILL
On Louisville's 23-0 run in the first half: "
Big runs have been one of our nemeses. We missed a ton of easy shots inside, we got good looks but just didn't make them. Also, I really wasn't happy with our transition D. They got out on that run, took advantage of our misses, and they converted them into easy baskets."
On the Knights transition D and the resulting mass substitution:
"I took every one out (in the first half) because I was unhappy with our transition defense."
On Louisville's pressure defense:
"What they do with their press is to try and turn you over, and I thought we did a very good job because we didn't turn the ball over. In the first half, only two of our turnovers were against the press. It wasn't pretty at times, but what we want to do is attack and when you saw us attack and hit the right people, we got wide-open shots. Mike (Rosario) knocked down a couple and we got a layup for him. They make you play frenetic, and I think during that run that's what happened. We got out of sorts." "In the second half, we shot 50 percent, I thought we did a much better job with our composure. We didn't change anything, we just executed better."
On freshman guard Mike Rosario:
"I thought today, I did a better job with Mike, not having him play 38 minutes. I think if you look at his line and see he knocked down some shots, I think it was because his legs were fresher. I have to get him in and out of there more but at the same time, you need guys out there that can score for you and he certainly gives us an opportunity to score."
On UofL senior forward Terrence Williams:
"He's a great player and he had a great game. Obviously he's a long, athletic player. He's their 3-man at 6-6, 6-7 and we're playing small. Those are going to be difficult matchups for us at times. We're playing three guards, and when people talk about playing three guards, there are a lot of players in this league that are 6-3, 6-4 and they are guards. We are asking a lot of Corey (Chandler) right now at 6-1, 180, maybe 185 pounds to go against Terrence Williams and (UConn's) Stanley Robinson, guys that are very long and athletic."
