Rutgers was able to bounce back from its loss to Seton Hall with an 81-57 win over Wake Forest at Jersey Mike’s Arena.
The message seemed to be clear for Rutgers going into this one: get to the paint early and often. Not only did the Scarlet Knights finish the game with 44 points in the paint, but they shot 58 percent from the field as well. Rutgers also played stout defense all game long as it forced 22 turnovers and turned them into 13 points.
Despite Wake Forest finishing the game shooting 40 percent from the field and 11-26 from three, Rutgers had an answer every time to secure the 24-point victory. Rutgers also had five players record double-figures as Cam Spencer scored 15 points while Cliff Omoruyi had 14, Caleb McConnell tallied 13, and Paul Mulcahy and Aundre Hyatt netted 10.
The Scarlet Knights played a great first half defensively as they forced 12 turnovers and turned them into 16 points. However, Wake Forest was able to end the half on a 7-0 run to make it a 43-33 game at halftime and went into the break shooting 55 percent from the field and 6-9 from three.
Rutgers also showed improvement offensively in the opening 20 minutes as it not only matched its point total against Seton Hall, but shot 59 percent from the field and had 24 points in the paint. The only blemish the Scarlet Knights had however was the fact it turned the ball over nine times which Wake Forest turned into eight points.
McConnell led the way for Rutgers in the first half with 10 points on 4-7 shooting while Hyatt added eight points and four rebounds.
Wake Forest had three players record double-figures as Damari Monsato scored 22 points while Cameron Hildreth tallied 13. ACC leading scorer Tyree Appleby finished with 10 points on 3-5 shooting and sank both of his three-point attempts.
RHoops Play of the Day: Paul Mulcahy provides a behind-the-back pass to Caleb McConnell that he slams home for an easy deuce to put Rutgers up 29-20.
Rutgers will return to action on Friday when it takes on Bucknell at Jersey Mike's Arena at 5 p.m. (ET).
--------------------------------------------------------------
• Subscribe to our YouTube Channel
