BIMINI, The Bahamas (Nov. 28, 2019) – Rutgers women's basketball (5-1) overcame an 11-point deficit and defeated Vanderbilt (5-2) by a score of 62-56 in the opening round of the Junkanoo Jam at Gateway Christian Academy.
 
The Scarlet Knights survived the Commodore's 43-36 edge in rebounding by holding Vanderbilt to 33 percent shooting from the field. Meanwhile, RU connected on 44 percent of its shots while forcing 20 Vanderbilt turnovers.
 
Junior wing Tekia Mack scored 18 of her 20 points in the second half, including a dagger layup in traffic with 32 seconds left in the game to send Rutgers down the stretch with the lead.
 
"We were running patterns that allowed us to get to the rim," said head coach C. Vivian Stringer. "We learned from our last game at LSU, and didn't have as many fouls. That gave us an opportunity to run the 55 effectively. It was a total team effort with a whole second group coming in to run the 55 and attack the rim effectively."

STAT SHEET

• Rutgers outlasted Vanderbilt in a back-and-forth battle that saw six tie scores and eight lead changes.
• Mack led all scorers with 20 points on 8-of-15 shooting, adding five boards and two steals. She did not commit a single turnover in 34 minutes on the hardwood.
• Redshirt junior guard Arella Guirantes chipped in 18 points, nine rebounds, four assists and two blocks.
• Graduate student guard Khadaizha Sanders hit a half-court shot at the halftime buzzer for three of her 14 points to help shift the momentum into the third quarter. Sanders added three boards, two steals and an assist.

TURNING POINT

Vanderbilt methodically built an 11-point lead in the first quarter. The Scarlet Knights chipped away in the second with a 12-4 run, but it was how that quarter ended that propelled Rutgers toward its second-half surge to victory. Sanders grabbed a rebound under her own hoop with just two seconds left, quickly dribbled to midcourt, and just as she drew it up in practice, sank a half-court shot to cut the Commodore lead to just a single point at the break. Rutgers pushed ahead to outscore Vandy, 35-28, in the second half.

When mom says there's time for one more shot before Thanksgiving dinner.#SCTop10 @ESPNAssignDesk pic.twitter.com/KhDhai8iNf

— Rutgers W.Basketball (@RutgersWBB) November 28, 2019

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Rutgers had 6:02 between points in the first quarter as a 8-0 Commodore run put Rutgers in a 14-4 hole.
• RU's 12-4 run cut an 11-point deficit to three at 23-20 with Sanders' three-pointer sparking the rally and Guirantes scoring three of her five points during the run from the charity stripe.
• Sanders cemented the shift in momentum by grabbing a defensive rebound with two seconds left, enough time to hit a running prayer from the Junkanoo Jam logo at midcourt. Rutgers went to the break down one (28-27) after trailing by 11 (19-8).
• Mack scored six straight points over a 1:13 span in the third quarter to hand Rutgers its first lead since 1:26 into the game. She went on to score 10 straight Rutgers points and 12 in the period.
• Guirantes got hot at the best possible time. From the 7:50 to 6:17 mark in the fourth quarter, she finished a three-point play, scored a lay-in coast-to-coast following a rebound, and forced a turnover on the press. Meanwhile, Mack added a jumper off Guirantes' assist to complete a 9-1 run and set a 53-48 advantage for the stretch run.
• The Commodores kept it close with an 8-4 run, bringing the game to the 1:03 mark with Vandy trailing 57-56. Mack finished a phenomenal second half with a contested layup in traffic with 32 seconds left, then converted two freebies with 23 seconds left to put the game out of reach.

KNIGHT NOTES

• Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer C. Vivian Stringer, who won her 500th game as Rutgers' head
• coach in the season opener on Nov. 5, takes over sole possession of fifth place all-time in NCAA women's basketball victories, and fourth place in Division I with 1,024 career wins.
• Making its first trip to the Bahamas for the Junkanoo Jam since 2005, Rutgers returns to the Junkanoo title game as it did 14 years ago. The Scarlet Knights won the tournament title in '05 with a 66-56 victory over NC State in the championship behind 24 points from future WNBA superstar Cappie Pondexter.
• Holding Vanderbilt 15 points under its scoring average, Rutgers has held all six opponents this season under their scoring averaged and has now accomplished that feat in 36 of its last 38 games.
• The victory marked Rutgers' second comeback for a win after trailing by eight points or more this season.
• Rutgers defeats Vanderbilt for the first time. Vanderbilt won the last two meetings, including their last matchups in 1990 and 1995.
• Coach Stringer rolled out the starting five of Gilles, Guirantes, Mack, Sanders and Wallace for the sixth straight game to start the season. Those five combined for just 29 percent of last season's games started.
• Ranked No. 3 in the nation in field goal percentage defense, Rutgers held Vanderbilt to .333 shooting on Thursday, 12 percent under its season average.
• Mack and Guirantes have scored in double-figures in all six games.
• Rutgers starts 5-1 for the second time in the last three season (2017-18).

UP NEXT

The Scarlet Knights conclude the Junkanoo Jam in the championship game on Saturday, Nov. 30 at 2 p.m. against Georgia Tech.
 

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