BIMINI, The Bahamas (Nov. 30, 2019) – Rutgers women's basketball (6-1) won a gritty defensive battle, 46-43, against Georgia Tech (5-1) to claim the Junkanoo Jam championship on Saturday afternoon at Gateway Christian Academy in the Bahamas.
The Scarlet Knights overcame deficits in both games of the Junkanoo Jam title run, erasing Georgia Tech's six-point lead in the second quarter of the championship game. Rutgers overcame its 1-of-14 mark from three-point range by limiting the Yellow Jackets to similar futility from long range at 1-of-10 and 32 percent shooting overall from the field.
"This kind of win demonstrates what kind of poise this team has," said head coach
C. Vivian Stringer. "Nerves got the better of us sometimes with the quick turnaround, but we never gave up and figured out what we needed to do. We got our stops and came up big on some offensive rebounds late in the game. I thought all of our coaches did an amazing job. We stayed up quite late and had this team prepared. There's no question that we were ready for this game."
Rutgers wins its first Thanksgiving Week tournament since 2015, when it claimed the Paradise Jam in the Virgin Islands. Rutgers wins its second Junkanoo Jam title in as many tries, having won the tournament in 2005 behind Tournament MVP and future WNBA superstar Cappie Pondexter.
This year's Junkanoo Jam MVP was Rutgers redshirt junior guard
Arella Guirantes, who notched a double-double of 19 points and 11 rebounds.
"She's a warrior," Stringer said of the MVP. "She's going to get it one way or the other. She's either going to attack you or make the pass that's necessary. Most importantly, she's the one who says that we're not going to drop down.
Junior wing
Tekia Mack was named to the All-Tournament Team after scoring 10 in the title game with five rebounds, following her 20-point, five-rebound performance in the first round win over Vanderbilt.
- Guirantes netted her 19 points via 7-of-14 shooting and five free throws. She added 11 rebound for her second double-double of the season, three assists, two steals and a block.
- Mack joined Guirantes in double-figures with 10 points on 4-of-8 shooting with five boards and two steals.
- Junior forward Mael Gilles grabbed nine rebounds in the win, including two game-changing offensive boards late in the game.
- Senior center Jordan Wallace scored six of her eight points in the second half comeback.
- With both teams ranked in the Top 10 nationally in field goal percentage defense, Rutgers outshot Georgia Tech, .353 to .320.
After getting beat out on the offensive glass in the last two games, Rutgers reversed its fortune in the fourth quarter in the Junkanoo Jam. Three offensive rebounds gave Rutgers possession in a tight game down the stretch, with two by Gilles allowing the Scarlet Knights to maintain its late lead. With 30 seconds left, Wallace came up with the clinching defensive rebound to send graduate student guard
Khadaizha Sanders to the line to ice the championship.
- Guirantes sparked Rutgers' early offense by finishing a three-point play, part of seven first-quarter points for the Bellport, New York native. The Scarlet Knights cooled off to end the first going scoreless for the final 2:11 as the Jackets snuck ahead, 13-11.
- Guirantes' smooth inside feed to Mack led to the hoop and harm to start the second. Mack misfired on the freebie, then Rutgers went scoreless for more than two minutes while hampered by a 1-of-9 stretch shooting from the field. Freshman center Maori Davenport ended the drought with a strong layup despite the foul to cut Tech's lead to 19-16.
- Mack drew Rutgers' third 'and-one' of the game with 1:17 left in the half, but missed another free throw as Rutgers went into the break 2-of-8 from the charity stripe and down 26-20 on the scoreboard.
- Guirantes led an 11-4 charge midway through the third quarter with another eight points on 4-of-5 shooting to give Rutgers its first lead since early in the first quarter at 31-30.
- The Yellow Jackets took the lead back as Rutgers went scoreless for more than six minutes into the fourth. Senior center Jordan Wallace got RU back on the board following a pair of nice post moves to tie the game at 35-35.
- Mack and Gilles grabbed offensive boards on consecutive possessions at the 4:35 mark, then Wallace blocked a Yellow Jacket layup attempt at 2:16 as Rutgers' gritty play took over the end of the game.
- Clinging to a one-point lead with 49 seconds left, Guirantes muscled through the baseline defense to draw a foul and knocked down 1-of-2 from the line. Gilles grabbed another monumental offensive rebound after Guirantes' miss to keep the ball in Rutgers' hands. Guirantes drew another foul and hit both free throws this time for a 45-41 edge.
- RU starts the season 6-1 for the first time since 2014-15.
- Rutgers held Georgia Tech 33 points under its scoring averaging during its 5-0 start to the season. The Scarlet Knights have held all six opponents this season under its scoring average, and 37 of its last 39.
- Rutgers' nationally ranked No. 7 defense held GT to 43 points, under its 48.7 points against average this year.
- Rutgers beat Georgia Tech for the first time and ties up the all-time series 1-1.
- The Scarlet Knights beat Georgia Tech's No. 1 nationally ranked defense (40.4 points allowed per game).
- Coach Stringer rolled out the starting lineup of Gilles, Guirantes, Mack, Sanders and Wallace for the seventh straight time to start the season.
- Guirantes and Mack have scored in double-figures in all seven games this season.
Rutgers returns to New Jersey to host Virginia in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge on Thursday, Dec. 5 at 6 p.m. at the RAC, airing live on Big Ten Network.
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