Rutgers rebounds from first loss, fends off Rhode Island on Recess Day
Rutgers may have tipped off extra early at 11 am, but the Scarlet Knights did not look half-asleep early on.
After a bit of an extended break of four days – a larger one after playing three games in six days to open the year – Rutgers held off former Atlantic 10 opponent Rhode Island 68-63, in the program’s Recess Day. Nearly 6,000 attended from local schools across New Jersey.
Kaylah Ivey and Nene Ndiaye led the way for the Scarlet Knights once again, as Ndiaye scored a career-high 24 points even after battling foul trouble, setting a new career-high after scoring 23 last week against Quinnipiac.
Ivey added 13 points, three rebounds, and three assists as the team’s primary ballhandler. Zachara Perkins scored 12 points of her own, stepping up when Ndiaye picked up her fourth foul in the second half. Janae Walker had a career game with 32 minutes played and ten rebounds, to go along with six points.
“The crowd was tremendous,” head coach Coquese Washington said after the game. “Having our Recess Game, and having all those kids from the community coming here and be so incredibly loud and making it a great environment. [I] just thank the community for supporting us and shout out to our marketing team, our ticketing team, our brand advancement team for making this happen, because it was a great environment for women’s basketball and a great environment for our team to play in.”
Flying Eagles
As has been the case for much of the opening two weeks of the season, two former Boston College transfers led the way for the Scarlet Knights.
Ivey took control from the start at point guard, as without guards Lauryn Swann and Faith Blackstone for the third straight game, she put together another high-usage game. Ivey looked much more comfortable with her pull-up game, hitting two threes and getting to the mid-range in the first half.
Ndiaye continued to be a force at the wing, as she was able to get downhill towards the basket, and knocked down two threes herself.
With the injuries in the guard room, Ivey and Ndiaye have come up big in each game, and their chemistry from their time in Chestnut Hill has shown on the court. When the shot clock ran down, the two were able to find and play off of each other to creat looks, even in a possession that looked like it was headed nowhere.
They combined to score 28 of Rutgers’ 40 first-half points, and the duo finished the game with 34 points.
“My teammates, man,” Ndiaye said with a smile. “They have been doing a great job finding me, also, I feel like it’s just them really, so that’s thanks to Coach, she’s done a good job of putting everybody in a good position. And thanks for my teammates too. Every time I was open, they got me the ball, and they have trusted me, and that helped me today.”
Shooting improvements
One of the bigger sticking points from Rutgers’ first three games was the inefficiency shooting the ball, both from the floor and at the foul line.
Those numbers improved with the morning tip-off, as the Scarlet Knights got off to an 8-for-10 start from the free-throw line, and shot 6-for-14 from beyond the arc. Ndiaye and Ivey both hit multiple three-pointers, while Perkins added a crucial make in the fourth quarter to fend off the Rams.
Even in the fourth quarter, after the game had slowed down with defenses battling for the game, the Scarlet Knights got key stops and timely buckets, finishing 14-for-20 from the free throw line, two straight games above 70 percent.
Washington had mentioned during her weekly media availability Tuesday about leaving too many points on the floor, both in terms of field goals and free throws. The efficiency at the line coupled with a 14-for-23 effort on layups showed a marked improvement in that direction.
“A lot of it is just repetition,” said Washington. “It gives you confidence. We’ve shot a lot of free throws, we work a lot on finishing shots out of our offense, and so I think when you get reps at doing what you’re going to do a lot in the game, it gives you confidence. When you get out there for this team with, again, so many players being in new roles, and us learning and developing our on-court chemistry, sometimes the game, you just get a little too hyped up.”
Fending off the runs
The Rams did not go down without a fight. They were able to put together runs at the end of the second, third, and fourth quarters, but each time the Scarlet Knights were able to string together baskets and stops to stay an arm-length ahead.
With two minutes left in the first half, Rhode Island drew to within a possession, but Rutgers clamped down, going on an 8-0 run to close the second quarter, capped off by a buzzer-beating three-pointer by Ivey to get some breathing room with a nine-point lead.
It was much of the same in the final two minutes of the third quarter, as the Rams battled back from a ten-point deficit to get to within 49-45. With Ndiaye saddled with four fouls on the bench, Perkins stepped up, as the Scarlet Knights came out of a timeout with an open layup by Antonia Bates set up by the sophomore wing, then she knocked down a catch-and-shoot three off a ball reversal to put the Scarlet Knights right back up by 10.
“I think that Nene is such a good player,” Perkins added. “So I think her coming out of the game, we knew that we had to step up to still be offensively efficient. I think just stepping up for the team and just knowing that if she’s out of the game, that somebody else has to step up, and it’s always next person up, and I think that we just took that opportunity.”
Even in the fourth quarter, Rhode Island pulled to within two possessions in the final minutes, but a layup by Walker and Ndiaye, added by some clutch free-throw shooting by the two, helped salt the game away.
“It feels amazing being able to contribute to the team,” Walker said. “I mean, that’s really all I can say. It’s just, I know that the time where I was in the gym and running and no one else was, so it feels amazing to be able to contribute.”
Up next
The Scarlet Knights are back in action on Sunday against Fairleigh Dickinson at Jersey Mike’s Arena. The game will tip off at 2 pm, and will be streamed on Big Ten Plus.
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