Thursday, March 11
Indianapolis, Ind.
9 PM ET
Rutgers University
vs
Iowa
No. 19/23 Women's Basketball Set for B1G Tourney Quarterfinals
Mar 10 | Women's Basketball
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - No. 19/23 Rutgers women's basketball (14-3, 10-3) is the No. 3 seed with a double-bye in the Big Ten Tournament and will play the winner of No. 6 Iowa and No. 11 Purdue in the quarterfinals on Thursday, March 11 at approximately 9 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 2 and streaming on the Fox Sports App. The tournament is being held at Bankers Life Fieldhouse with limited fan attendance.
RU enters the postseason with momentum, riding a nine-game winning streak - its longest in conference play since the 2004-05 squad won its 24th-straight Big East game by going 16-0 that season. The defense recently held opponents to less than 60 points in seven consecutive games, the longest streak of its kind in conference play since the 2006-07 National Championship runner-up season.
With head coach C. Vivian Stringer's patented defense ranked first in the Big Ten with 56.2 points allowed per game, the offense is producing with historic voracity. The Scarlet Knights recently scored 70 or more points in five consecutive games for the first time in Big Ten play (since 2014), and the first time in any conference since the 1997-98 squad scored 70-plus in seven-straight in the Big East. At 76.4 points per game, this team is on pace to be Coach Stringer's highest scoring offense since taking over the Scarlet Knights in 1995.
3 SEED: Rutgers finished third in the Big Ten with a 10-3 record (14-3 overall), tying its highest finish since joining the conference before the 2014-15 season (also finished third in 2017-18). The Scarlet Knights will be playing in their sixth Big Ten quarterfinal in seven seasons.
RUTGERS RANKED: Rutgers women's basketball moved up in the Associated Press Poll on Monday with a No. 19 national ranking. Following a five-week hiatus, Rutgers has won nine consecutive games in the Big Ten by an average margin of 16.3 points, including ranked wins over then-No.21/20 Northwestern and then-No. 22/20 Ohio State.
CLOUD NINE: Rutgers is on its longest Big Ten winning streak since joining the conference. RU opened the 2018-19 Big Ten season with seven wins in a row. The Scarlet Knights have their first nine-game conference winning streak since the perfect 16-0 Big East season of 2005-06, which was an actual 24-game Big East streak going back to '04-05.
NET WORKING: Rutgers is listed at No. 11 in the NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET) rankings, which replace RPI as a guide for selecting at-large bids for the NCAA Tournament. The NET rankings take into account Adjusted Net Efficiency (offensive vs. defensive points per possession weighted on quality of opponent) and Team Value Index (results-oriented). Rutgers is ranked fourth in the NCAA with 111.8 points per offensive possessions, and fifth in the NCAA with a 28.8 average point margin per 100 possessions.
ARELLA RISING: Redshirt senior guard Arella Guirantes is on six national watch lists: The Senior CLASS Award, the Wooden Award for Most Outstanding Player, the Naismith Trophy and Wade Trophy for National Player of the Year, a Top 5 finalist for the Meyers Shooting Guard Award, and the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Award.
Only Player to rank Top 5 in Big Ten in these four categories: scoring, assists, blocks & steals
Triple-double on Dec. 23 vs. Manhattan (6th in RU history) with 17 points, 10 rebounds & 11 assists
Three 30+ point performances vs. No. 9 Maryland, Iowa & Purdue
SHINE ON: True freshman Diamond Johnson, the No. 6 overall recruit in the nation according to ESPN, is one of 10 named to the Nancy Lieberman Award Watch List semifinalists for the country's top point guard. The Neumann Goretti product earned Rutgers' first ever Big Ten Freshman of the Week honor on Dec. 21. Johnson scored in double-figures in 15 of her first 17 games. Rutgers is 6-0 when Diamond scores 20 or more points this season.
Ranks 10th in the NCAA with a .464 three-point shooting percentage.
THOU SHALL STEAL: Rutgers ranks fifth in the country with 12.7 steals per game and is eighth in the nation in turnover margin at 7.0. Four Scarlet Knights make up the Top 7 in the Big Ten in steals per game with Tekia Mack (8th in the nation - 3.2), Arella Guirantes (2.1), Diamond Johnson (2.1) and Mael Gilles (2.0).
THAT'S OFFENSIVE: Rutgers has scored 80 or more points in three Big Ten games this season. Before this year, Rutgers has had a total of three 80+ games since joining the conference in 2014-15. RU had a five-game streak of scoring 70+ in conference games, the first time since 1997-98 in the Big East. RU earlier scored 80+ in five consecutive games for the first time since the 1990-91 season.
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.
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.
• Versus Penn State, Rutgers held its seventh Big Ten foe in a row under 60 points. That is the longest streak in league play since the 2006-07 National Championship runner-up squad in the Big East.
• With 12 blocked shots against Ohio State, RU tied its program record for blocks in a Big Ten game - the most since 2016.
• Rutgers has held its last four opponents an average of 20.3 points under their season scoring averages.
• Tyia Singleton set three career highs in the Ohio State victory with 18 points, 13 rebounds and six blocked shots. It was her first career double-double.
• Currently graded .780 from the charity stripe, RU is strongly challenging its single-season free throw percentage record of .734 ('80-81).
• RU has outscored opponents in the paint in 16 of 17 games this season.
• RU is 11-0 with a lead at halftime.
• The Scarlet Knights have outscored opponents by an average of 13.7 in points off turnovers (25.4 - 11.6).
• Arella Guirantes has five career 30+ point games, all against Big Ten opponents.
• 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.
• 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.
• Rutgers is 6-0 when Diamond Johnson scores 20 or more points in a game.
• With Diamond Johnson at 18.0 points per game, a look at the Top 5 freshman scoring averages in team history:
Follow Rutgers women's basketball on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
RU enters the postseason with momentum, riding a nine-game winning streak - its longest in conference play since the 2004-05 squad won its 24th-straight Big East game by going 16-0 that season. The defense recently held opponents to less than 60 points in seven consecutive games, the longest streak of its kind in conference play since the 2006-07 National Championship runner-up season.
With head coach C. Vivian Stringer's patented defense ranked first in the Big Ten with 56.2 points allowed per game, the offense is producing with historic voracity. The Scarlet Knights recently scored 70 or more points in five consecutive games for the first time in Big Ten play (since 2014), and the first time in any conference since the 1997-98 squad scored 70-plus in seven-straight in the Big East. At 76.4 points per game, this team is on pace to be Coach Stringer's highest scoring offense since taking over the Scarlet Knights in 1995.
| ON THE AIR |
- Watch on Fox Sports 2 (TV) / Fox Sports App (Streaming)
- Listen on WCTC 1450 AM (Play-by-play: Ralph Bednarczyk; Analyst: Mark Peterson)
- Listen on WRSU 88.7 FM Tuesday (Play-by-play: Jake Schmied & Ronnie Wielenta)
| THE BRACKET |
| KNIGHT NOTES |
RUTGERS RANKED: Rutgers women's basketball moved up in the Associated Press Poll on Monday with a No. 19 national ranking. Following a five-week hiatus, Rutgers has won nine consecutive games in the Big Ten by an average margin of 16.3 points, including ranked wins over then-No.21/20 Northwestern and then-No. 22/20 Ohio State.
CLOUD NINE: Rutgers is on its longest Big Ten winning streak since joining the conference. RU opened the 2018-19 Big Ten season with seven wins in a row. The Scarlet Knights have their first nine-game conference winning streak since the perfect 16-0 Big East season of 2005-06, which was an actual 24-game Big East streak going back to '04-05.
NET WORKING: Rutgers is listed at No. 11 in the NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET) rankings, which replace RPI as a guide for selecting at-large bids for the NCAA Tournament. The NET rankings take into account Adjusted Net Efficiency (offensive vs. defensive points per possession weighted on quality of opponent) and Team Value Index (results-oriented). Rutgers is ranked fourth in the NCAA with 111.8 points per offensive possessions, and fifth in the NCAA with a 28.8 average point margin per 100 possessions.
ARELLA RISING: Redshirt senior guard Arella Guirantes is on six national watch lists: The Senior CLASS Award, the Wooden Award for Most Outstanding Player, the Naismith Trophy and Wade Trophy for National Player of the Year, a Top 5 finalist for the Meyers Shooting Guard Award, and the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Award.
Only Player to rank Top 5 in Big Ten in these four categories: scoring, assists, blocks & steals
Triple-double on Dec. 23 vs. Manhattan (6th in RU history) with 17 points, 10 rebounds & 11 assists
Three 30+ point performances vs. No. 9 Maryland, Iowa & Purdue
SHINE ON: True freshman Diamond Johnson, the No. 6 overall recruit in the nation according to ESPN, is one of 10 named to the Nancy Lieberman Award Watch List semifinalists for the country's top point guard. The Neumann Goretti product earned Rutgers' first ever Big Ten Freshman of the Week honor on Dec. 21. Johnson scored in double-figures in 15 of her first 17 games. Rutgers is 6-0 when Diamond scores 20 or more points this season.
Ranks 10th in the NCAA with a .464 three-point shooting percentage.
THOU SHALL STEAL: Rutgers ranks fifth in the country with 12.7 steals per game and is eighth in the nation in turnover margin at 7.0. Four Scarlet Knights make up the Top 7 in the Big Ten in steals per game with Tekia Mack (8th in the nation - 3.2), Arella Guirantes (2.1), Diamond Johnson (2.1) and Mael Gilles (2.0).
THAT'S OFFENSIVE: Rutgers has scored 80 or more points in three Big Ten games this season. Before this year, Rutgers has had a total of three 80+ games since joining the conference in 2014-15. RU had a five-game streak of scoring 70+ in conference games, the first time since 1997-98 in the Big East. RU earlier scored 80+ in five consecutive games for the first time since the 1990-91 season.
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.
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 |
• With 12 blocked shots against Ohio State, RU tied its program record for blocks in a Big Ten game - the most since 2016.
• Rutgers has held its last four opponents an average of 20.3 points under their season scoring averages.
• Tyia Singleton set three career highs in the Ohio State victory with 18 points, 13 rebounds and six blocked shots. It was her first career double-double.
• Currently graded .780 from the charity stripe, RU is strongly challenging its single-season free throw percentage record of .734 ('80-81).
• RU has outscored opponents in the paint in 16 of 17 games this season.
• RU is 11-0 with a lead at halftime.
• The Scarlet Knights have outscored opponents by an average of 13.7 in points off turnovers (25.4 - 11.6).
• Arella Guirantes has five career 30+ point games, all against Big Ten opponents.
• 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.
• 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.
• Rutgers is 6-0 when Diamond Johnson scores 20 or more points in a game.
• With Diamond Johnson at 18.0 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
Follow Rutgers women's basketball on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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