WBB Hosts Illinois Tuesday Night
Feb 16 | Women's Basketball
| Game Twenty-Six: #19/17 Rutgers vs. Illinois | |
| Date | Tuesday, February 17, 2015 |
| Time | 7:00 ET |
| Location | Piscataway, N.J. | The RAC |
| Tickets | Click To Purchase |
| Video | BTN Plus Lou Brogno |
| Radio | Rutgers IMG Radio Network - WCTC (1450 AM) Danny Breslauer and Mark Peterson Rutgers Student Radio - WRSU (88.7 FM) Gabe Sustick and Dominick Savino |
| Game Notes | Rutgers | Illinois |
| Statistics | Rutgers | Illinois |
| Social Media | @RutgersWBB  | Facebook/RutgersWBB  |
| Promotions | Two Dollar Popcorn Alex Alfano Trading Card |
TIP OFF
? The 2014 WNIT Champions, winners in seven of its last eight contests, returned to the win column on Saturday afternoon in a 78-49 victory over Purdue in the annual Play4Kay contest.
? Four different Scarlet Knights reached double figures led by junior Kahleah Copper with a game-high 24 points on 12-of-17 shooting. In the last two games - at No. 5 Maryland and vs. Purdue - Copper has averaged 21.5 points per game.
? Also in double figures on Saturday against the Boilermakers were senior Betnijah Laney with 16, sophomore Tyler Scaife with 14 and junior Rachel Hollivay with 12 points.
? The Scarlet Knights dominated the paint against Purdue and finished with 50 points in the paint to tie their season high in the category. RU also had 50 points inside at Wagner on Nov. 25 in an 81-53 win. It was the 16th game with 30 or more points in the paint and fourth game with 40 or more points inside.
? The Scarlet Knights are currently third in the conference with four games remaining. The contest against the Fighting Illini, the first ever meeting between the two teams, also marks the second-to-last regular season contest at home.
ABOUT ILLINOIS
The Fighting Illini come to the RAC sporting a 13-13 overall mark and 4-10 record in the Big Ten. Illinois most recently snapped a two-game slide with a 66-55 win at home against Illinois on Saturday.
Three Fighting Illini are averaging double figures led by Ivory Crawford at 15.6 points per game along with 5.3 rebounds per game. Second-leading scorer Chatrice White is pouring in 14.5 points per contest along with a team-leading 7.1 rebounds per game. Rounding out the trio of double figure scorers is Kyley Simmons at 10.2 points per game.
Illinois is led by Matt Bollant, who is in his third season at the helm. He helped the Illini reach the quarterfinals of the WNIT during the 2012-13 season. Before coming to Illinois, Bollant spent five seasons at Green Bay where he guided the Phoenix to five-straight Horizon League titles and four straight trips to the NCAA Tournament.
WELCOME BACK TO THE B1G TIME
Rutgers head coach C. Vivian Stringer is no stranger to the league. Stringer was at the helm of the Iowa Hawkeye program from 1983-95 and holds the record for most Big Ten victories in conference history with 179 wins in league play. She won 169 games while at Iowa and 10 at Rutgers.
ALL-TIME B1G WBB WINS
C. Vivian Stringer, IOWA (1983-95), RU (1995-present) - 179
Rene Portland, PSU (1980-07) - 176
Karen Langeland, MSU (1976-00) - 156
Lisa Bluder, IOWA (2000-Present) - 150
Jim Foster, OSU (2002-12) - 136
Don Perrelli, NU (1984-99) - 135
Nancy Darsch, OSU (1985-97) - 134
Lin Dunn, PUR (1987-96) - 120
Pam Borton, MINN (2002-14) - 104
Theresa Grentz, ILL (1995-07) - 101
Sharon Versyp, IND/PUR (2005-Present) - 100
ALL-TIME RUTGERS WINNER
Head coach C. Vivian Stringer won her 400th career victory "On The Banks" at Houston on Feb. 11, 2014. Stringer needs seven more wins to surpass Women's Basketball Hall of Famer Theresa Grentz as RU's all-time winningest women's basketball coach.
All-Time Rutgers WBB Coaching Records (By Wins)
Theresa Grentz - 434-150/ (1977-95) 19 seasons
C. Vivian Stringer - 428-212/(1995-present) 20 seasons
Ellen Johns - 6-5/(1974-75) One season
Dottie McCrea - 5-9/(1975-76) One season
WATCH LIST
Sophomore guard Tyler Scaife has been added to the Dawn Staley and Naismith Mid-Season Watch Lists. The Dawn Staley award is given to the most outstanding collegiate guard in the country and the Naismith Trophy is given annually by the Atlanta Tip-Off Club to the top collegiate player.
Senior Syessence Davis is among the 30 candidates for the Nancy Lieberman Awards, recognizing the top point guard in the country.
GETTING TO THE POINTS
Rutgers is enjoying its highest scoring average under C. Vivian Stringer's 20-year tenure "On the Banks"
Top RU Scoring Averages Under C. Vivian Stringer
1t. 70.0 (35 games) 1998-99 - 29-6 - Elite Eight
1t. 70.0 (25 games) 2014-15 - 19-6 - Current Season
3. 68.7 (32 games) 1997-98 - 22-10 - Sweet 16
4. 67.3 (29 games) 2002-03 - 21-8 - 2nd Round
5. 66.2 (37 games) 2013-14 - WNIT CHAMPIONS
6. 65. 6 (31 games) 2000-01 - 23-8 - 2nd Round
Four or more Scarlet Knights have reached double figures in a game in 10 of RU's 25 contests to date.
TOP 25 OPPONENTS
Rutgers currently stands at 3-5 against the top 25 after the Feb. 10 setback to the Terps in College Park At home more recently, the Scarlet Knights picked up a 46-43 victory over No. 19/18 Nebraska on Feb. 5 in their last home appearance and a 66-61 win over Minnesota on Jan 25, a squad ranked at No. 21 in the Associated Press Poll.
BETNIJAH IS BETTER
Senior forward Betnijah Laney sat out the final nonconference contest at Iona on Dec. 20 after suffering a sprained thumb on her left hand in RU's contest with Tennessee on Dec. 14. Laney suffered a bad sprain on the first play of the game.
Entering the game with the Lady Vols, Laney had been averaging 16.0 points and 14.8 rebounds, however after suffering the thumb injury moments into the Tennessee game, Laney went on to end the contest with four points and five rebounds.
Since her return at Indiana on Dec. 28 to open up conference play, Laney has posted double figure scoring and rebounding in five of her last eight contests. She narrowly missed out on the feat by one point against No. 20 Iowa on Jan. 4 and one rebound at Penn State on Jan 10.
In her 14 games back, all in Big Ten play, the senior Scarlet Knight has averaged 16.7 points and 10.1 boards per game. She has scored 20 or more points in four of the 14 games as well.
BETTING DOUBLE
Senior forward Betnijah Laney has 16 double-double performances this season and is tied for seventh nationally in the category.
Laney's current streak of four straight double-doubles was recently snapped in last Tuesday night's loss at No. 5 Maryland.
She opened the season with eight consecutive double figure scoring and rebounding games. Her streak was halted at Temple on Dec. 10 with 20 points and five rebounds.
Laney's 2014-15 Double-Doubles
St. Joseph's - 10 pts, 13 reb
Northeastern - 14 pts, 13 reb
at LSU - 10 pts, 16 reb
at Wagner - 22 pts, 11 reb
Colgate - 17 pts, 18 reb
Davidson - 19 pts, 12 reb
#6 UNC - 24 pts, 24 reb
at #25 Arkansas - 12 pts, 11 reb
at Indiana - 20 pts, 12 reb
at Ohio State - 23 pts, 12 reb
Michigan - 20 pts, 10 reb
Wisconsin - 12 pts, 11 reb
at Purdue - 18 pts, 14 reb
Penn State - 16 pts, 14 reb
#18/19 Nebraska - 16 pts, 11 reb
at Michigan - 17 pts, 10 reb
Laney has 31 double-doubles in her career.
The senior forward had an incredible game against #6 UNC on Dec. 4 with a career-tying 24 points and career-high 24 rebounds.
The Clayton, Delaware native captured 15 double-doubles last season, the most double figure scoring and rebounding games since Kia Vaughn, currently with the WNBA's Washington Mystics, had 12 double-doubles during the 2006-07 season.
FREE POINTS
Rutgers shot a perfect 13-of-13 from the free throw line on Feb. 10 at No. 5 Maryland. It was RU's best performance from the charity stripe since sinking 10-of-10 at Syracuse on Jan. 6, 2009. Betnijah Laney led the way going 4-of-4 from the line.
SHINING COPPER
When the Scarlet Knights get down, its been Kahleah Copper to the rescue against Purdue and Penn State.
On Jan. 29 in the 76-65 win at Purdue, Copper poured in a game-high 21 points on 8-of-17 shooting (47.1 percent) from the field. After the Boilermakers tied the game at 30-28 with 16:58 to go, Copper rattled off eight straight points to return the lead to Rutgers for good.
On Feb. 1 vs. Penn State, Copper reset her season-high with 25 points, shooting 10-of-19 from the floor (52.6 percent). She scored 17 of her 25 points in the second half. Penn State would tie the contest 48-48 with 8:41 to play, however, Copper added on a free throw to give Rutgers the lead the rest of the way and would score 10 of her game-high 25 points during this final span.
Most recently, Copper has averaged 21.5 points per game in RU's last two games pouring in 19 points at No. 5 Maryland on Feb. 10 and leading the way with 24 points on Feb. 14 against Purdue.
ALL ABOARD
Betnijah Laney's 24 rebounds vs. #6 UNC on Dec. 4 set a Rutgers Athletic Center (RAC) record - men or women. She surpassed the previous record of 21 held by Women's Basketball Hall of Famer and former WNBA All-Star Sue Wicks set back in 1987 against Penn State.
She was two rebounds shy of tying the Rutgers women's basketball single game record. Sandy Tupurins grabbed 26 rebounds against William Paterson on Mar. 1, 1977.
Her 24 rebounds also placed her name among the top 15 all-time at RU in rebounding.
Laney's 24 boards against the Tar Heels is also among the best rebounding performances from around the country this season.
Top RU Rebounding Performances (since 2005)
Betnijah Laney - 24 - North Carolina (12/4/14)
Kia Vaughn - 21 - at Cincinnati (1/22/08)
Monique Oliver - 19 - at Miami (12/5/11)
Betnijah Laney - 18 - Colgate (11/28/14)
Monique Oliver - 17 - Georgetown (12/9/10)
Kia Vaughn - 17 - Georgetown (2/7/09)
Top `14-15 Single Game WBB Rebounding Performances
Mimi Mungedi, Nevada - vs. San Jose St. - 29
Vicky McIntyre, Oral Roberts - vs. Austin Peay - 27
Joy Adams, Iona - vs. Monmouth - 26
Sherae Bonner, Western Carolina - vs. Livingstone - 26
Jillian Alleyne, Oregon - vs. UCLA - 25
Kayla Roberts, Norfolk State - vs. Hampton - 25
Brittni Montgomery, UCF - vs. Iona - 24
Betnijah Laney, Rutgers - vs. North Carolina - 24
Joy Adams, Iona - vs. Monmouth - 24
Temi Fagbenle, Harvard - vs. Temple - 24
Brittany Hodges, Furman - vs. Davidson - 24
Sarah Imovbioh, Virginia - vs. Ohio State - 24
Ruvanna Campbell, Chicago - vs. Oakland - 24
Vicky McIntyre, Oral Roberts - vs. Omhama - 24
All-Time RU Rebounds
1. Sue Wicks (1984-88) - *1357
2. Kia Vaughn (2005-09) - 1079
3. Regina Howard (1983-87) - 1036
4. Vicky Picott (1987-91) - 1029
5. Sandy Tupurins (1976-80) - 944
6. Tanya Hansen (1988-92) - 894
7. Betnijah Laney (2011-present) - 839
8. Kathy Glutz (1976-80) - 835
9. June Olkowski (1978-82) - 780
10. C'ta Mitchelson (1989-93) - 764
CLEANING THE GLASS
Rutgers has won the battle of the boards in 18 of its 25 games to date.
Betnijah Laney, who led RU in rebounding at 8.5 boards per game last season, has not missed a beat and is hauling in 11.2 rebounds per game in 2014-15. She is 13th nationally in defensive rebounds (8.0) and 14th in the country and third in the Big Ten in total rebounds per game (11.3).
Laney had 17 double digit rebounding efforts last season and has posted double figure rebounds in 18 of her 24 appearances this season.
THEIVING KNIGHTS
Syessence Davis had just one point off a free throw in the first meeting with Penn State on Jan. 10, but contributed a school record tying 10 steals along with eight assists and no turnovers. Davis' 10 steals ties the school record along with Denise Kenney, who also had 10 thefts against St. Joseph's on Feb. 16, 1978. Davis also surpassed her previous high of eight captured against Davidson on Nov. 30.
As a team, Rutgers recorded 22 steals against Penn State, one theft shy of the Rutgers single game record. The Scarlet Knights set the record with 23 steals against Temple on Jan. 17, 1987.
Davis is averaging 3.4 steals per game ranking her first in the Big Ten and eighth nationally. Last season, she averaged 2.9 steals, led the American and was ninth nationally in the category.
All-Time RU Steals
1. Tasha Pointer (1997-01) - *292
T-2. Sue Wicks (1984-88) - 287
T-2. Liz Hanson (1992-96) - 287
4. Matee Ajavon (2004-08) - 275
5. Syessence Davis - 273
6. Denise Kenney (1976-79) - 263
7. Epiphanny Prince (2006-09) - 260
8. Vicky Picott (1987-91) - 257
9. Regina Howard (1983-87) - 216
T-10. C'ta Mitchelson (1989-93) - 213
T-10. Cappie Pondexter (2002-06) - 213
NO MESSY ESSY
Syessence Davis leads the Big Ten and ranks fourth nationally in assist/turnover ratio. She has dished the ball out a total of 101 times with only 32 miscues through 24 games.
The senior guard handed out the ball eight times with no turnovers in RU's 71-51 victory at Penn State on Jan. 10
Davis has committed two turnovers or less in 20 of her 25 games this season.
All-Time RU Assists
1. Tasha Pointer (1997-01) - *839
2. Janet Malouf (1985-89) - 718
3. Mary Coyle (1978-82) - 640
4. Matee Ajavon (2004-08) - 556
5. Liz Hanson (1992-96) - 474
6. Cappie Pondexter (2002-06) - 470
7. Khadijah Rushdan (2007-12) - 464
8. Kristen Foley (1982-87) - 455
9. Patty Coyle (1978-82) - 394
10. Syessence Davis - 374
11. Telicher Austin (1985-89) - 371
PROTECTING HOME COURT
The Scarlet Knights have had an outstanding track record of success at home during the previous 12 seasons under head coach C. Vivian Stringer. RU is currently 8-4 at home and went 15-3 in 2013-14. Since the 2002-03 season, the Scarlet Knights have gone 157-24 at the RAC.
The squad's 15 home wins in 2013-14 season tied for the most wins at the RAC under the 20-year tenure of C. Vivian Stringer. The Scarlet Knights also went 15-3 at home in the 1998-99 season.
All four losses this season have come at the hand of top 25 squads.
RU had a streak for three straight home losses - all against nationally ranked foes - but a 81-68 win over Michigan on Jan. 7 snapped the three-game slide at home. RU has not suffered more than three-straight losses at home since the 2001-02 season.
UP NEXT
The Rutgers women's basketball hits the road for its next two games starting with a trip to Michigan State on Sunday, Feb. 22 for a meeting with the Spartans on ESPN2.
