Game 6: Women's Hoops vs. Manhattan

Wednesday, December 23

Piscataway, N.J.

12 PM ET

Rutgers University

Manhattan

Dec 22 | Women's Basketball

Game Notes Watch on Big Ten Network+Live Stats Listen on WCTC Listen on WRSU

PISCATAWAY, N.J. - Rutgers women's basketball welcomes Manhattan in a non-conference tilt on Wednesday, Dec. 23 at 12 p.m. at the RAC.

The Scarlet Knights improved to 4-1 with a 99-30 victory over Sacred Heart on Sunday, marking Rutgers' first time scoring 80 or more points in three consecutive games since 1993-94, two seasons before C. Vivian Stringer took over as head coach. In the win, five players scored in double-figures, including 25 from Arella Guirantes and 21 from Diamond Johnson, the reigning Big Ten Player and Freshman of the Week, respectively.

ON THE AIR

Watch on Big Ten Network+ (Play-by-play: Lou Brogno, Color Analyst: Dom Savino)
Listen on WCTC 1450 AM (Play-by-play: Ralph Bednarczyk, Color Analyst: Mark Peterson)
Listen on WRSU 88.7 FM (Play-by-play: Raj Shah and Dylan McCoy)

FAN INFORMATION

Due to COVID-19 safety protocols, there will be no men's and women's basketball general admission single game or season ticket sales to home games at this time.
Visit shop.fancutouts.com/products/rutgers-university to purchase a fan cutout(s) for all winter sports at the RAC with proceeds benefiting the R Fund student-athlete scholarship campaign.

THE SCOUT

The Jaspers are 3-2 with a 3-1 start to conference play in the MAAC. In their last victory on Friday, Manhattan topped Quinnipiac on a buzzer-beater from Emily LaPointe in overtime, snapping an eight-game overtime losing streak for the Jaspers dating back to 2011.
Before a setback against Quinnipiac in the second game of a weekend doubleheader, Manhattan started 3-0 in the MAAC for the first time since 2007-08.
Senior Courtney Warley is 25th nationally with a MAAC-leading 10.6 rebounds per game, while also pacing the Jaspers and ranking among the MAAC leaders with 13.0 points per game (t-7th), 2.8 steals per game (3rd) and 1.2 blocks per game (t-5th). She has paced Manhattan on the glass in all five games, and registered her second double-double (17 points, 11 rebounds) in Friday's victory.
Junior Dee Dee Davis is the lone Jasper to notch double-digits in points in all five games.

HEAD-TO-HEAD

KNIGHT NOTES

BIG TEN SWEEP: Arella Guirantes is the reigning espnW National Player of the Week and Big Ten Player of the Week after averaging 27.7 points, 8.7 rebounds and 6.0 assists in three games. It was her third career Big Ten weekly honor as Rutgers swept the awards for the first time with Diamond Johnson taking Freshman of the Week accolades. It was RU's first Freshman of the Week from a league since Tyler Scaife won three-straight in the American in 2013-14.

WATCH OUT: Redshirt senior guard Arella Guirantes, the returning Big Ten scoring champion, was selected the Big Ten Coaches Preseason Co-Player of the Year and was unanimously voted to the Preseason All-Big Ten Team by the coaches and media. She is on four national watch lists: the Wooden Award for Most Outstanding Player, the Naismith Trophy and Wade Trophy for National Player of the Year, and the Meyers Award for the top shooting guard.
RANKS: 15th in national scoring (24.2ppg), Top 10 in Big Ten in scoring, 3pt shooting, assists, blocks & steals

SHINE ON: True freshman Diamond Johnson, the No. 6 overall recruit in the nation according to ESPN, is one of 20 named to the Nancy Lieberman watch list for the country's best point guard. The Neumann Goretti product earned Rutgers' first ever Big Ten Freshman of the Week honor on Monday with 16.7 points and 4.7 rebounds per game during a 2-1 week. Johnson has scored in double-figures in all five of her games, including 21 vs. SHU.

THOU SHALL STEAL: Rutgers leads the country with 16.4 steals per game and sixth in the nation in turnover margin at 9.8 through four games. RU's 22 steals at Wisconsin were its most in a game since 23 against FDU in 2017 and the most in a conference game since 22 against Penn State in 2015.

THAT'S OFFENSIVE: Rutgers has scored 80 or more points in three consecutive games for the first time in the C. Vivian Stringer era "On the Banks" - the first time since the 1993-94 season. The Scarlet Knights rank seventh in the nation in scoring margin through five games at +32.6, scoring 86.4 points per game (15th in the nation).

F.A.M.I.L.Y.: In a complete team victory over Hampton on Friday (94-45), all 10 players who checked into the game scored at least one basket. RU passed out 25 assists, its most in a game in three years. RU has had at least four players score in double-figures in four consecutive games.

TRAPEZOID OF TERROR: Since the 2002-03 season, the Scarlet Knights have gone 222-51 (.814) at the RAC. RU is 43-8 (.850) over the last three+ seasons at home, including 13-2 and 14-2 marks in 18-19 and 19-20, respectively.

WELCOME TO THE B1G: Rutgers is one of the youngest teams in the nation with eight newcomers and 71 percent of the roster starting the season with two years experience or less in Division I. RU is one of just 32 teams across the nation with 10 or more players on the roster with two years experience or less.

IN THE POLLS: Rutgers began the season receiving votes in both national polls: 1 point in the AP media poll and 7 points in the coaches poll. RU is up to 6 points this week in the AP and 19 points in the coaches poll.

FUTURE IS NOW: C. Vivian Stringer and her staff have secured the No. 8 nationally ranked recruiting class for 2020 according to ESPN, led by the signing of No. 6 ranked prospect Diamond Johnson out of Neumann Goretti in Philadelphia, one of four recruits ranked in the Top 55 - Sakima Walker (#21), Chyna Cornwell (#48) and Liz Martino (#53). Blue Star Basketball ranks the class No. 5 in the nation.

#TRENDING

In the Sacred Heart win, RU fell one point shy of recording just the fourth 100-point game during C. Vivian Stringer's tenure at Rutgers.
RU's 32 forced turnovers vs. SHU were the most in a game since forcing 38 against Penn State in 2014-15.
Rutgers allowed just a .167 shooting percentage (4-28) by SHU, its lowest allowed in a game since Iona managed .167 (7-42) in 2011.
RU had two 20-point scorers vs. SHU (Guirantes 25, Johnson 21) for the first time since the 2019-20 season opener at South Alabama (Guirantes 27, Mack 21).
Rutgers' 25 assists vs. Hampton were the most in a game since 25 vs. FDU on Dec. 20, 2017.
Zippy Broughton's points-assists double-double against Hampton (10pts, 10ast) was Rutgers' first since Ciani Cryor (12pts, 11ast) vs. Maryland on Dec. 31, 2018. It was Rutgers' best individual assists performance since Cryor's 10 at Indiana on Feb. 18, 2019.
RU's 87 points against Maryland were the most scored on the Terps since 88 in 1978.
RU's 87 points against Maryland were Rutgers' most in a Big Ten game since joining the conference in 2014-15 ... and most in a conference game since 90 vs. Seton Hall in the Big East in 2013.
Arella Guirantes now has three career 30+ point games, all against Big Ten opponents.
Guirantes' 30+point double-double vs. Maryland was Rutgers' first since Kahleah Copper had 30 and 10 against St. Joseph's on Nov. 13, 2015.
With Diamond Johnson at 16.4 points per game, a look at the Top 5 freshman scoring averages in team history:
- 1. Cappie Pondexter (02-03) - 18.3ppg
- 2. Patti Sikorski (76-77) - 15.8ppg
- T3. Kathy Glutz (76-77) - 15.5ppg
- T3. June Olkowski (78-79) - 15.5ppg
- 5. Sue Wicks (84-85) - 14.9 ppg