Rutgers Hosts LSU Saturday Night in BIG EAST/SEC Challenge
Nov 30 | Men's Basketball
PISCATAWAY, N.J. - Rutgers (4-3) looks to improve to a perfect 5-0 at home when it welcomes LSU (4-3) to the Rutgers Athletic Center on Saturday (Dec. 3) evening for a 7:00 p.m. tip-off. The game is part of the inaugural BIG EAST/SEC Challenge. Last season, the Scarlet Knights downed Auburn 63-54 at the Consol Energy Center in Pittsburgh in the previously named SEC/BIG EAST Invitational.
The Rutgers Student Athlete Advisory Committee is sponsoring a Toy Drive for the contest versus the Tigers. Fans are invited to bring new, unwrapped books and toys for the area's neediest children. Representatives from Rutgers SAAC will be on hand to collect donations.
The game will be televised live nationally on ESPNU with Mike Crispino calling the action and Tim Welsh offering the analysis. On the radio, the contest will be broadcast live on the Rutgers Radio Network, WOR 710 AM in New York and WCTC 1450 AM in New Brunswick. Chris Carlin will serve as play-by-play announcer and Dick Lloyd will provide commentary. WRSU (88.7) will also broadcast the game.
Saturday evening's contest will mark the first meeting on the collegiate hardwood between the Scarlet Knights and Tigers. It signals the fifth game this season (Sacred Heart, Hampton, Illinois State, Richmond) and the fifth time in six games that Rutgers will be squaring off against an opponent for the first time in its history. RU has a 5-12 all-time record against current members of the SEC.
Rutgers, under the direction of second-year head coach Mike Rice, is coming off a dominant 94-56 victory over UMBC Monday evening at the RAC. The Scarlet Knights dished-out 27 assists, their most since 1992. Point guard Myles Mack (Paterson, N.J.) shot seven-of-nine, including three-of-four from behind the arc, to score a game and career-high 20 points. He combined with fellow freshmen guards Jerome Seagears (Silver Spring, Md.) and Eli Carter (Willingboro, N.J.) to score 39 points on 14-of-21 shooting with 13 assists. Seagears had 10 rebounds and five steals, while Carter connected on four-of-six shots to tally 12 points. Rutgers shot 55.7 percent (34-61), including an impressive 58.8 percent (10-17) mark from behind the arc. The Retrievers made just 36 percent (18-50) of their field goals thanks to a stingy RU defense that also forced 20 turnovers.
Sophomore forward Gilvydas Biruta (Jonava, Lithuania), who was recently named to the Cancun Challenge Riviera Division All-Tournament Team, shot five-of-six to score 13 points versus UMBC. He leads the Scarlet Knights in both scoring (12.1) and rebounding (6.4).
LSU, under the leadership of fourth-year head coach Trent Johnson, is coming off a 59-58 comeback victory at Houston Tuesday night. Senior forward Storm Warren deposited a pair of free throws with 1.2 seconds on the clock to ensure the win. The Tigers, who committed just five second half turnovers, erased a 38-30 halftime deficit. Warren was one of four players to compile double figures for LSU. He finished with 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting off the bench. Sophomore guard Andre Stringer is averaging 12.0 points-per-game to pace a balanced scoring attack for the Tigers that features four players in double digits.
