Box Score
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. - Despite a season-high 26 points and eight assists from Myles Mack and 19 points from Kadeem Jack, Rutgers (10-9, 2-4) fell to Minnesota, 89-80, on Saturday afternoon at Williams Arena. The Gophers (12-7, 1-5) were sparked by Andre Hollins, who made seven of 10 attempts from behind the arc to score 31 points.
The Scarlet Knights shot 50.8 percent and established a 39-28 advantage on the boards. Minnesota did damage from long range, however, as the Gophers made 10 three-pointers, while also forcing RU into 19 turnovers. As a result, the home squad benefitted from a 26-6 discrepancy in points-off-turnovers.
The Gophers came out hot to start the game, running out to a 10-2 lead and forcing an early Rutgers timeout. The Scarlet Knights held pace before Minnesota pushed again, extending their lead to 25-12.
A second timeout by the Scarlet Knights energized RU. Rutgers erased that 13-point deficit in a matter of four minutes, responding with a 17-4 run to tie the game at 29-29.
After Rutgers rallied, Minnesota regained their lead. On the Scarlet Knights' final possession of the half, Junior Etou completed a three-point play, and the Gophers took a 42-37 lead into the locker room.
Mack was the sparkplug for the Scarlet Knights in the first half, filling up the score sheet. The senior guard had 13 points, four rebounds, three assists, and two steals in the opening stanza.
After halftime the Gophers started strong again, pushing their lead to double digits at 54-44. The Scarlet Knights cut into the deficit, but again Minnesota had a response, as consecutive threes pushed their advantage to 66-55.
RU responded with an 8-2 run as Jack converted a three-point play, making Minnesota's advantage 68-63. But the Gophers countered to extend that lead to 80-68.
A late push by the Scarlet Knights cut the deficit to 80-74 after a steal by Jack and finish by Bishop Daniels. Minnesota, however, would hold on for the victory.
The Scarlet Knights return home for their next game, as they host Michigan on Tuesday at the RAC. Tipoff is at 6:30 p.m., and the game will be televised live nationally on the Big Ten Network.
Postgame Notes
· The 80 points were the most Rutgers has scored in a game this season.
· Myles Mack had 26 points, eight assists, and six rebounds.
· Mack set a new season high in points and tied his season high in assists.
· It was his fifth game this year and the eighth in his career with at least 20 points.
· Myles Mack passed Anthony Farmer to move into fourth place in Rutgers history in assists (377).
· Myles Mack moved ahead of Rashod Kent for second in Rutgers history in career steals. He now has (190). Head Coach Eddie Jordan is Rutgers' career leader with 220 steals.
· Kadeem Jack had 19 points and five rebounds. It was his tenth time in 17 games reaching double-figure scoring.
· Bishop Daniels reached double figures for the sixth time this season with 13 points.
· Junior Etou collected 10 rebounds. It was the third time this season and fourth time in his career he reached double-digits in rebounding.
· Mike Williams tied his career high with two blocks.
· After the third lifetime meeting between the two schools, Minnesota now leads the all-time series 3-0.
· The Scarlet Knights started Myles Mack, Bishop Daniels, Junior Etou, Kadeem Jack and Greg Lewis for the third straight game and the fifth time this season.
Rutgers Head Coach Eddie Jordan Quotes
Opening statement:
"They did a lot of good things. Obviously for us, the story of the game was 20 turnovers giving them 26 points. I told our team we can't spot a team 26 points and try to win on the road in this conference against a team that's desperate for a win. Richard (Pitino) had his team prepared. They did a lot of good things."
On the Gophers going to Andre Hollins early and often:
"In transition, playing small ball a little bit, breaking it down defensively, running him off of baselines, double screens, sometimes triple screens. Richard had a good scheme today. They executed very well and they made shots."
On Minnesota:
"I told Richard and I told our coaches, they could very well have been 4-1 by now. They were in every game. They've had some bad luck in a couple of them. But for the most part they could very well have been 4-1. They've played so well in every game. I told my team the same thing."
On whether he attributed the Scarlet Knights' turnovers to themselves or to Minnesota's defense:
"We practiced against pressure, thinking that they might pressure us. I thought we did very well against any type of token pressure they gave us. They didn't amp it up. But you've got to give them credit. You can't just come out and say they didn't make us turn the ball over. We turned it over 20 times. So if we turned it over half the times ourselves, they still did a good job turning us over 10. You've got to give them credit. They locked down. They did some good things defensively. They've got quickness on the floor. They got to Myles (Mack) early. They wouldn't let him split pick-and-rolls. They really got to his pick-and-roll, so he couldn't get free. We didn't find lanes for the roll guy. They smothered him enough where he couldn't fill back to the outlet. (Pitino's) defensive scheme forced us to the turnovers we had."
