PISCATAWAY, N.J. - Despite a tale of two halves, the Rutgers women's basketball team held control of a first half lead and broke away from Princeton in the second stanza, roaring to a handy 70-50 victory on Wednesday night at the RAC. It marked the sixth-straight win for RU and third straight over a New Jersey foe to improve to a record of 11-2 overall.
Redshirt senior guard
Tyler Scaife registered her fourth consecutive 20+ scoring performance and eighth of the year with 24 points. Scaife's performance included a 4-of-5 effort from 3-point range, helping guide her to third on Rutgers all-time scoring list. Senior guard
Jazlynd Rollins also contributed double-digits with 12 points in the win.
Three Tigers finished with double-digit scoring led by Syndey Jordan and Abby Meyers with 11 points each. Bella Alarie rounded out the double-figure scorers with 10 points in the loss.
After Scaife sunk a 3-pointer 12 seconds into the contest, the teams entered a back-and-forth physical battle on the court. The teams traded points and the lead early on, but RU established a 12-8 edge midway through the first quarter and never let go. Scaife capped the frame with a layup to set the Scarlet Knight edge at 18-11.
Rutgers improved its advantage to 21-15 at the start of the second quarter, but the teams entered a scoring drought about three minutes in. After nearly five minutes of no scoring for either side, redshirt sophomore guard
Ciani Cryor drove through the paint with a layup at the 3:31 mark for a 23-15 edge.
However, this once again ignited the battle of trading points, as Princeton knocked in two 3-pointers. Scaife added a 3-pointer of her own to close the first half and give RU a 30-21 lead headed into the locker room at halftime.
Rutgers opened the third quarter with a 7-4 run, leading by double-digits twice in the span, for a 37-27 lead by the 5:18 mark. Although Princeton tacked on a 3-pointer from Meyers, Rutgers countered with six-straight points for a 43-30 advantage.
The Tigers shots from downtown were sinking to keep up with the Scarlet Knights, as a Meyer 3-pointer brought Princeton within single digits. However, Rutgers pulled away on the scoreboard as a
Nigia Greene 3-pointer closed the third frame with RU ahead 50-36, its largest at that point of the night.
The Scarlet Knights continued a 12-0 run into the fourth quarter, establishing a 59-36 edge midway through the frame. The Tigers' Jordan attempted to knock off the Scarlet Knights' momentum with a bucket from beyond the arc, but RU went on to reset its largest advantage of the night at 63-39 with 5:12 to go in the game.
RU would go on to cruise to a final margin of 70-50, marking its third consecutive game with a 20+ point margin of victory.
Up next, Rutgers wraps up its nonconference slate with Houston on Saturday. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. ET at the RAC with Lou Brogno and Jared Smith on the call BTN Plus video stream and Ralph Bednarcyzk and
Mark Peterson calling all the action on the Rutgers IMG Radio Network.
KNIGHT NOTES
- With the win, Rutgers head coach Stringer improved her career record to 988-392 and is 12 wins away from 1,000 career victories.
- Tyler Scaife's game-high 24 points propelled the redshirt senior into third place on the Rutgers all-time scoring leader list past former teammate Kahleah Copper (2012-16). She now has 1,884 career points and needs 116 points to become the third Scarlet Knight to collect 2,000 career points and 328 more to move into second place on the all-time list past Cappie Pondexter (2002-2006).
- Ciani Cryor notched nine assists, surpassing her previous high of six, most recently performed against Western Michigan in the Gulf Coast Showcase on Nov. 20, 2017. Last time a Scarlet Knight had 10 assists was Khadaizha Sanders against Seton Hall last season on Dec. 13, 2016.
- Rutgers shot over 50% from the field in the last three games averaging 51.6 (95-of-184) over that span. Additionally, the Scarlet Knights connected from over 40% from beyond the arc hitting at a 47.6 percent (20-of-42) clip in the last three outings.
- The Scarlet Knights made it 3-for-3 against the New Jersey schools on the schedule. Over the span of the three victories over Seton Hall, Fairleigh Dickinson and Princeton, Rutgers averaged 80.3 points while outscoring the Garden State rivals by 37 points. RU also averaged 19.3 assists and 15.3 steals per game in the three wins.
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