PISCATAWAY, N.J. — The Rutgers women's basketball team (8-13, 2-7 B1G) couldn't pullout the comeback win, falling to Michigan State on the road on Sunday, 85-63.
Kaylene Smikle led the Scarlet Knights in scoring for the 13th time this season, netting 27 points. Kai Carter (11) and Chyna Cornwell (10) also joined her in double figures.
With 11 points against Michigan State, Carter reached the 1,000 point milestone. She hit a pair of free throws in the fourth quarter to seal the achievement. She is the only active Scarlet Knight to hit 1,000 career points.
How it Happened
- Michigan State got out to a quick 6-0 lead, forcing Rutgers to use its first timeout at the 8:30 mark. Out of the stop, the Spartans continued to pile it on with a three-pointer, making the score 9-0.
- Smikle got Rutgers on the board with a pair of free throws with 6:33 left in the first. MSU answered however, with two shots from the charity stripe and a layup to stay ahead, 13-2.
- Erica Lafayette hit a three-pointer to give her team some momentum and cut the deficit, 13-5.
- Michigan State added four more points before Cornwell found the basket for the Scarlet Knights to put the game within 10 points.
- The Spartans did not let up however, going on an 8-0 run to end the first period and widen the gap, 27-10.
- The two teams started off the second quarter trading baskets. Carter and Smikle strung together a two-possession run to cut the lead, 31-16. MSU followed with two consecutive scores of their own to keep the 35-16 advantage at the 7:22 media timeout.
- Out of the stop, Rutgers went on another five-point run, as Lafayette hit her second three of the day.
- Michigan State responded with 11 unanswered points to extend its lead, 46-21. Smikle broke up the spurt as she was sent to the line three times in the final two minutes, going 5-for-6 from the line.
- The Spartans added one more bucket before the end of the opening half to keep the 48-26 advantage.
- Smikle came out hot in the second half, scoring six consecutive points in less than a minute to cut the lead, 48-32, and force Michigan State to use its first timeout of the day.
- Following the stop, the teams once again traded points until RU broke away for a six-point run to put the score within 11 points, 52-41, coming back from a 25-point deficit. MSU netted their first points in over two minutes just before the 4:30 media timeout.
- Out of the break, Michigan State went on a 9-0 stretch of its own, over a two-minute span to regain the 58-41 edge.
- Antonia Bates put an end to the run with a shot from the charity stripe, but the Spartans still took the 63-44 lead into the fourth quarter. Michigan State got things going in the third with an old fashioned three-point play, but Smikle answered with four straight points.
- The Spartans responded with four points of their own, but Smikle was not done, as she hit back-to-back three's to cut the difference.
- In the following three minutes, the two teams were evenly matched as MSU outscored Rutgers 10-7. Carter netted seven points in the fourth, including the shots from the line that put her over 1,000 career points.
- The opposition kept it going to end the game, scoring seven points in a row before the Scarlet Knights found the final bucket at the 1:09 mark, to come out with the 85-63 victory.
Knights Notes
- Carter's 11 points marks her fifth double-digit outing of the campaign and her third in the last five contests.
- With 27 points against the Spartans, Smikle has now reached 20+ points 10 times this season and is the only Scarlet Knight to pass the 20-point milestone, hitting the mark in the last five of the last six outings. The contest also marks her 17th double-digit performance of the season.
- With two three-pointers on Sunday, Smikle leads the team with 38 shots from deep. She has hit at least one three in all but two games this season and two or more shots on 10 occasions.
- Smikle collected three steals for the second consecutive game, marking the eighth time she has recorded three or more grabs. She paces the team with 31 steals through 21 outings.
- Sidibe, Bates and Smikle led the squad with three assists each. Sidibe leads the team in the statistic with 70 helpers.
- Cornwell and Brown added five rebounds apiece to lead the team off the glass.
- The Scarlet Knights earned more second chance points, 17-4, and bench points, 20-12, than the Wolverines.
Next Up
Rutgers will return to Jersey Mike's Arena on Thursday, Jan. 26 to welcome Penn State for a 7 p.m. game. The contest will be streamed on B1G+.
Follow Along
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