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Coach Jordan Postgame Press Conference

PISCATAWAY, N.J. - Despite a career-high 16 points from sophomore forward Junior Etou, Rutgers (2-2) was unable to defeat St. Peter's (1-4), dropping a 68-50 decision to the in-state foe Tuesday night at the RAC. The Peacocks shot 52.2 percent (12-of-23) from behind the arc to earn the victory.

Etou shot 6-of-10 to go along with six rebounds in 36 minutes of action. It was his third 10-plus point outing in the Scarlet Knights' first four games of the season.

Senior guard Myles Mack dropped 13 points, seven assists and four steals for Rutgers, while senior forward Kadeem Jack added 10 points in the loss.

St. Peter's shot 44 percent (20-of-46) from the field overall. The Scarlet Knights shot 38 percent (18-of-48) and were out-rebounded by a 36-to-26 margin.

With Jack in foul trouble during the first half, St. Peter's was effective on the offensive side of the floor. The Peacocks made six three pointers, with forward Martin Dominique connecting on two of those triples. Dominique paced St. Peter's in the opening minutes with 12 first-half points.

Mack provided the last offensive punch before the midpoint, scoring on a fast-break steal with 18 seconds remaining as RU entered the locker room trailing 31-19.

Etou gave RU an offensive spark in the second half, draining two three-pointers and scoring 14 points down the stretch. Jack also contributed, drilling his own three-pointer from the top of the floor to bring the deficit to 49-39 with 11:16 remaining.

The Scarlet Knights were never able to get within with single digits, however, as Dominique finished with a game-high 22 points on 7-of-12 shooting with four three-pointers to lead St. Peter's. He was joined in double figures by guards Chazz Patterson and Trevis Wyche with 13 and 12 points, respectively.

RU forced 17 Peacock turnovers in the loss.

Rutgers returns to action on Friday (Nov. 28) when it meets Vanderbilt in the Barclay's Center Classic in Brooklyn at 7 p.m. The Scarlet Knights will then play Virginia or La Salle at either 7 or 9:30 p.m. on Saturday (Nov. 29). Both games will be broadcast live on the NBC Sports Network.

POST-GAME NOTES
Junior Etou scored a career-high 16 points. He led Rutgers in scoring for the first time in his career.
· Etou led the team in rebounding for the fourth consecutive game.
· Myles Mack had seven assists, giving him 309 for his career. He passed Marquis Webb for 12th on Rutgers all-time list. It was his 20th career game with 5-plus assists.
· Mack scored 13 points, reaching double figures for the 66th time in his career.
· Kadeem Jack had three steals, tying his career high.
· Jack had 10 points, the 34th time in his career he reached double figures.
· Greg Lewis and Mike Williams both tied career-highs with two blocks.
· Rutgers started guard Myles Mack, guard Bishop Daniels, forward Junior Etou, forward Kadeem Jack, and center Greg Lewis for the second straight game.

POST-GAME QUOTES
Rutgers Head Coach Eddie Jordan

Opening Statement: "St. Peter's deserved the win. They played harder than we did. They made shots, they had more enthusiasm, more energy and that's a credit to coach [John] Dunne and his staff. We got out coached, out played and they deserved it. All the credit goes to them. We didn't try hard enough, didn't make shots and we just didn't have enough."

On St. Peter's effectiveness from behind the three-point line (12-of-23): "They made shots. They made shots and when you have a really good player, we would dig back and he would make the right plays. They had the mojo going. We felt it, they got it going and we couldn't break them out of it."

On Rutgers problems in the second half: "That's what pretty good teams do, they convert and they get the mojo back on their side, but we just couldn't convert in the paint. I thought we had two good looks in the paint and we didn't convert. We have to make shots. If you get stops, you have to make shots."

Saint Peter's head coach John Dunne

Opening statement: "For our group, in particular, they have been playing hard in each game that we've played. We just fell short. Before La Salle, we lost close games and just didn't make shots. We got good looks and kept sharing. The coaches kept stressing the shots would fall and we would get better. I thought we defensively played well with great intensity and our offense followed. We had some drive and kicks and sometimes it just comes down to making shots."

On playing with intensity: "We are a blue-collar team and most nights we are going to give good hustle and intensity. The challenge is to keep that intensity when you're not making shots. That's universal. We weren't scoring at La Salle, but I thought we played a 40-minute game with the intensity. We talked about that and bringing the intensity for 40 minutes whether or not we were making shots. Tonight we made shots and the defensive intensity picked up even more. I am proud of my guys."