SECOND ROUND WNIT: WBB vs. Virginia
Mar 18 | Women's Basketball
PISCATAWAY, N.J. --- The postseason continues for the Rutgers women's basketball team as the Scarlet Knights host Virginia at the RAC in the Second Round of the WNIT. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m.
| WNIT SECOND ROUND: Rutgers (19-14, 8-10 Big Ten) vs. Virginia (17-15, 6-10 ACC) | |
| Date | Sunday, March 20 |
| Time | 2:00 p.m. EST |
| Location | The RAC | Piscataway, N.J. |
| Video | BTN Plus |
| Radio | Rutgers IMG Radio Network - WCTC 1450 AM (Ralph Bednarczyk & Mark Peterson) WRSU 88.7 FM (Ryan Moran & Gabe Sustick) |
| Live Stats | |
| Game Notes | Rutgers | Virginia |
| Conference Game Notes | Big Ten | ACC |
| Statistics | Rutgers | Virginia |
| Tickets | ScarletKnights.com/Tickets |
ON TO THE SECOND ROUND
The Rutgers women's basketball team advanced to the second round of WNIT action following a thrilling 57-55 first round victory over former Big East rival Georgetown. Second Team All-Big Ten honoree Kahleah Copper netted the game-winning bucket with two seconds remaining to extend RU's postseason.
Copper finished the game just shy of a double-double with 21 points and nine rebounds. Classmate Rachel Hollivay, meanwhile, put away a season-high 22 points, her first 20+ scoring effort of the 2015-16 season.
The Scarlet Knights are making their second WNIT appearance having won the 2014 title in their only other appearance in the tournament.
RU is led by Copper and Tyler Scaife. Copper, the 2014 WNIT MVP, leads the team at 17.6 points per game along with a team-leading 8.1 rebounds per game. Scaife, who used a coast-to-coast layup to help the Scarlet Knights to the 2014 WNIT title in a 56-54 victory over UTEP, is adding in 17.4 points per game.
Rutgers also features Honorable Mention All-Big Ten and Big Ten All-Defensive Team honoree Rachel Hollivay. Hollivay is averaging 7.8 points per game and is the Scarlet Knights' all-time leading shot blocker.
ABOUT VIRGINIA
Virginia comes to the RAC with a 17-15 overall record and having played to a 6-10 mark in the ACC. The Cavaliers finished ninth in the conference and were edged out by Duke in the second round of the ACC Tournament.
Leading scorer Mikayla Venson left the UVA program prior to the WNIT Tournament. She had been averaging a team-leading 15.1 points per game.
Faith Randolph is UVA's other double figure scorer at 13.1 points to go along with 4.8 rebounds per game.
On the boards, the Cavaliers are led by Lauren Moses at 6.9 rebounds per game.
Like the Scarlet Knights, the Cavalier's first round WNIT contest came down to the final moments. Virginia overcame a nine-point fourth quarter deficit as Randolph hit the game-tying jumper with 39 seconds left and sealed the victory with a pair of free throws with 1.8 seconds remaining.
LAST TIME VS. VIRGINIA
The Rutgers women's basketball team handed Virginia its first loss of the 2015-16 season at the Paradise Jam on November 27 with a 60-48 victory over the Cavaliers.
The Scarlet Knights ended the game with three in double figures by Kahleah Copper with 21 points and eight rebounds, while classmate Ariel Butts and sophomore Shrita Parker both added in then career-highs in scoring. Parker came off the bench for 11 points, while Butts contributed 10 points and hauled in eight rebounds in the victory.
The Cavaliers were led by Lauren Moses with 18 points, while Mikayla Venson had 10 points in the loss.
It was a game of runs in the opening quarter with Rutgers racing out to an 8-2 lead and extending its advantage to 10-5 with 4:55 on the clock. The Cavaliers responded with their own run, scoring six unanswered points to take its first lead of the game. The lead, however, was short lived. Butts drove to the basket and despite the foul, the ball rolled around the rim and in to put Rutgers back on top, 14-11.
The Cavaliers regained the lead with five unanswered points, but Rachel Hollivay sunk two free throws with 10 seconds to go in the first quarter to send the game into the second quarter tied at 16-16.
A Lauren Moses jumper moments into the second quarter would give Virginia its last lead of the game. Despite a five-minute scoring drought that would allow Virginia to knot the score at 21-21 with 3:48 left until the half, Rutgers remained in control. The Scarlet Knights ended the drought fueled by a deep three from Parker from the top left of the arc and entered the half up, 29-27.
Virginia came out the locker room to outscore RU, 6-4, to open third quarter action and tie the game at 33-33, but the Cavaliers came no closer the rest of the contest. The Scarlet Knights punched back with a 7-0 run capped by Copper draining the ball from long range to put Rutgers ahead, 40-33, with 2:38 left in the third quarter.
The Cavaliers dropped in free throws to start off the fourth quarter and cut its deficit down to two, 42-40, with 8:39 remaining, but a 13-2 run, including seven unanswered points by Rutgers, put the game away. The Scarlet Knights took a double figure advantage with 4:51 left at 53-42 and went on to lead by as many as 13.
WNIT HISTORY
Rutgers is 7-0 in the WNIT to date having won the 2014 title.
The Scarlet Knights opened the 2014 tournament run with three-straight home victories including a 65-61 first round win over Delaware, a 63-52 victory over Harvard in the second round and a double overtime 91-79 win over Seton Hall in the third round.
The quarterfinals saw RU emerge with a 55-50 win at Bowling Green, a team that had won 16 of its last 17 contests before meeting the Scarlet Knights.
In the semifinals, Rutgers defeated USF, 62-52, in Tampa before heading off to the WNIT Championship game.
The Scarlet Knights collected the title in a 56-54 win over UTEP in front of sold out crowd of 12,222 at the Don Haskins Center. Tyler Scaife went coast-to-coast for the game-winning bucket with 2.1 seconds remaining in the contest.
DEJA VU
The Scarlet Knights aren't strangers to winning in dramatic fashion both this season and in the WNIT.
Thursday's first round WNIT victory marked the second time this season RU has emerged victorious with a last second bucket.
Back on Feb. 10, Rutgers eeked out a 61-59 win over Northwestern with junior Tyler Scaife putting away the game-winning layup with two seconds remaining. Briyona Canty drained a three-pointer to tie the game, 59-59, with 11 seconds on the clock. On the following Northwestern possession, Rutgers' all-time blocks leader senior Rachel Hollivay knocked away the potential go ahead bucket by Nia Coffey. Classmate Kahleah Copper came up with the rebound to set up a layup from Scaife to hand RU the win.
Scaife also had another notable game-winner coming in the championship game of the 2014 WNIT. She went coast-to-coast against UTEP with 2.1 seconds left for the game-winning score.
SHINING COPPER
In the last 11 games, Kahleah Copper has averaged 20.6 points per game, including 20 or more points in nine games during the span. She had reached the 20+ point mark in the final three contests of the regular season.
In addition to scoring, Copper has also been racking up assists. In three of the last four contests, the senior Scarlet Knight has handed out a season-high five helpers. Copper, who is averaging 1.6 assists per game on the season, has averaged. 4.3 assists in the last four games
GOING INSIDE
RU netted 30 points in the paint against Georgetown in the WNIT First Round marking the 12th time this season the Scarlet Knights have scored 30 or more points inside.
In the last five contests, Rutgers has averaged 33.2 points in the paint.
CRACKING THE TOP TEN
With her 17 points in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament against Nebraska, Kahleah Copper became the fourth Scarlet Knight to net over 1,800 career points and with her 25 points against Ohio State in the Big Ten quarterfinals became Rutgers' third all-time leading scorer.
Copper surpassed Regina Howard (1983-87) for the third position on the all-time scoring leaders list and currently has 1,832 career points. Only Cappie Pondexter (2002-06) and Sue Wick (1984-88) had scored more points in their careers "On The Banks".
Teammate Tyler Scaife also continues to move up the scoring leaders list. Scaife cracked the top 10 on the scoring leaders list against Michigan on Feb. 28 in the regular season finale with a team-leading 23 points. Scaife passed WNBA All-Star and 2015 All-WNBA Second Team member Epiphany Prince (2006-09).
Scaife currently has 1,598 career points and needs 25 more points to move up against into ninth past Matee Ajavon (2004-08).
HELPING HAND
Redshirt senior guard Briyona Canty has registered 16 games with five or more assists this season and is currently averaging 4.8 assists per game. She is sixth in the Big Ten.
Canty had a career-high 12 assist performance against Purdue on Feb. 25 in the Scarlet Knights' regular season road game. The 12 helpers were the most by a Scarlet Knights since Matee Ajavon handed out 13 assists against TCU on March 21, 2006.
It marked the fourth time in her career she has handed out double digits assists.
This season, Canty had 10 assists in RU's Big Ten opening win over the Golden Gophers.
Last season, she also had two double figure assist games in RU's 63-52 second round Big Ten Tournament win over Indiana as well as RU's victory over Northeastern on Nov. 18, 2013.
Canty handed out six assists in helping Rutgers snap a four-game skid in a 66-56 win over Nebraska on Jan. 30. It gave her 100 assists on the year, marking the third straight season she has captured 100 or more assists. She dished out 117 total assists last season.
BLOCK PARTY
On Feb. 21 against #6 Maryland, senior Rachel Hollivay recorded three blocks to become the first Scarlet Knight in history to have multiple seasons with 100 or more blocks.
To date, Hollivay currently has 111 in the 2015-16 season and 331 in her career. She currently ranks fourth among all Division I players in the category.
Hollivay had a season-high eight rejections against No. 25/22 Michigan State on Feb. 18 and against Penn State on Feb. 7, she had five blocks to become the first Rutgers women's basketball player with 300 career blocks.
Her feat was on the heels of collecting five blocks on Feb. 4 at Minnesota, to become RU women's basketball's all-time career shot blocks leader surpassing legend and former WNBA standout Sue Wicks (1984-88).
She also ranks third all-time among all Rutgers basketball student-athletes in career blocked shots. Only Hamady Ndiaye (2006-10) (358) and Roy Hinson (1979-83) (355) on the men's side have more career blocks.
Hollivay ended her sophomore season with 127 rejections which ranks her third (men or women) in blocks in a single season. Only Hamady Ndiaye (2009-10) and Roy Hinson (1982-83) on the men's side have blocked more shots in a single season, swatting away 145 and 144, respectively.
20/20 COURT VISION
Six times this season a Scarlet Knight duo have put away 20 or more points in a game. Five times it has been the tandem of Kahleah Copper and Tyler Scaife, while most recently it was Copper and Rachel Hollivay accomplishing the feat in the first round WNIT victory over Georgetown.
Hollivay had a season-high 22 points in the postseason win over the Hoyas, while Copper dropped in 21 points.
Scaife and Copper led Rutgers with 20+ point outings at the Big Ten Tournament with Scaife leading Rutgers with 26 points closely followed by Copper's 25 in the quarterfinal loss to Ohio State.
Two games featuring Scaife and Copper with 20 or more points have come down to the wire with overtime against Purdue on Feb. 25 and the thrilling victory over Northwestern on Feb. 10 with Scaife notching the game-winning basket in the final seconds.
On Feb. 25 against the Boilermakers, Scaife collected 23 points followed by Copper's 22 points. Nine of Scaife's team-high 23 points came in the third quarter as RU overcame a nine-point halftime deficit to take a 45-42 advantage into the fourth quarter. In the fourth quarter, Copper put away nine of her 22 points on the evening.
Against the Wildcats on Feb. 10, Tyler Scaife led RU with 24 points, her 11th game of the season with 20 or more points while Kahleah Copper dropped in 20 points, her eighth game this season with 20 or more points.
Rutgers also had two 20-point performers in the season opener against St. Joseph's Nov. 13. In that contest, Copper had a then-career-high 30 points, while Scaife also netted 24 points in the victory.
UP NEXT
The winner of Sunday's game will advance to the third round of WNIT play facing the winner of Villanova-Hofstra. The third round will be played March 23, 24 or 25 with date, time and location to be determinded after second round play.
Follow Rutgers women's basketball on Facebook (www.facebook.com/RutgersWBB), Twitter (www.twitter.com/RutgersWBB) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/RutgersWBB) for all of the latest news and updates. Fans also receive timely information, including special offers and giveaways throughout the year on both social media outlets along with www.ScarletKnights.com.
-RU-
