Men's Hoops Hosts Niagara Sunday at Noon
Nov 19 | Men's Basketball
| Game Four: Niagara (Scarlet Knight Showcase) | |
| Date | Sunday, Nov. 20 |
| Time | 12 p.m. EST |
| Location | The RAC | Piscataway, N.J. |
| TV | Big Ten Network |
| Radio | Rutgers IMG Radio Network - WCTC 1450 AM (Gabe Sustick and Jake Ostrove) |
| Live Stats | |
| Game Notes | Rutgers | Niagara |
| Stats | Rutgers | Niagara |
Rutgers Game Notes 
PISCATAWAY, N.J. - Rutgers (3-0) returns to the friendly confines of the RAC to host Niagara (0-3) in a 12 noon tip-off on Sunday in the Scarlet Knight Showcase. RU will be working to begin the season 4-0 for the first time since 2000-01, when it began its campaign 5-0. Steve Pikiell has the opportunity to become the first Rutgers men's basketball head coach to start his tenure with four straight victories.
Fans that present a ticket from Saturday evening's RU-PSU football game receive free admission. In addition, the first 500 fans will receive free luggage tags and kids 12 and under can shoot free throws on the court post-game. Mutts Gone Nuts, a comedy dog thrill show that promotes the adoption of rescue animals, will perform at halftime.
Sunday's game will be televised live on BTN, with Greg Amsinger calling the action and Bob Wenzel providing the analysis. On the radio, the contest will be broadcast live on the Rutgers IMG Sports Network, WOR 710 AM in New York and WCTC 1450 AM in New Brunswick. Chris Carlin will serve as play-by-play announcer and Joe Boylan will provide commentary. WRSU (88.7 FM) will also broadcast the game.
The contest will mark the second meeting between Rutgers and Niagara. In the initial match-up, the Purple Eagles defeated the Scarlet Knights 73-61 at Madison Square Garden on Dec. 18, 1969 en route to a 22-7 record and a No. 17 final ranking under Frank Layden.
Rutgers out-rebounded DePaul by a 46-27 margin to earn a 66-59 win at Allstate Arena this past Thursday evening in the Gavitt Games. The Scarlet Knights led by as many as 22 points in the victory, which provides RU its first 3-0 start since 2008-09. Corey Sanders paced Rutgers with 15 points, while Mike Williams added 14 points and nine rebounds off the bench. The Blue Demons were limited to 38.9 percent (21-of-54) shooting. Billy Garrett, DePaul's top returning scorer and a preseason All-Big East choice was held to five points on 1-of-11 shooting.
The Scarlet Knights are among the national leaders in several categories, including rebounding margin (4th, 19.7), offensive rebounding (6th, 18.67) and total rebounds (10th, 49.0). Redshirt junior captain Deshawn Freeman is tied for the national lead with a pair of double-doubles.
Niagara, under the leadership of 10th-year head coach Chris Casey, rallied from a 14-point second half deficit to force overtime before falling in the extra session at Hartford, 82-78, as part ESPN's ninth annual College Hoops Tip-Off Marathon. Sunday's game marks the final contest of a three-game road swing for the visitors. Three Purple Eagles are averaging double figures in scoring - Matt Scott (17.3 ppg), Kahlil Dukes (13.3 ppg) and Dominic Robb (10.3). Scott was a Preseason All-Big 4 First Team selection.
