No. 24 Rutgers Basketball managed to hold off a feisty Saint Peter’s team at home on Monday night. The Scarlet Knights (2-0) were able to take the lead for stretches over the Peacocks (0-3), but got key stops late after Zach Martini played the final four minutes at center.
Rutgers was led once again by Dylan Harper, who scored a game-high 24 points in his second game. He was counted on as Rutgers often struggled to get consistent good looks in the half-court offense.
Saint Peter's was led by Marcus Randolph, who battled Harper all night and finished with 22 points.
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The Peacocks kept up pace with the Scarlet Knights throughout the first half, even taking a seven-point lead in the waning minutes. Rutgers fought back to cut the lead to five, but it still trailed going into the break.
Randolph had 16 points in the first half, working mostly in the lane and setting up paint opportunities.
Harper once again was the main factor in the first, putting up nine points to lead the team. Saint Peter’s did everything they could to take Harper out of primary ballhandling duties, so instead he found his offense driving to the rim off the catch.
The center position was once again a precarious one throughout the game, though it was a more solid performance in this game. Lathan Sommerville scored eight points and grabbed three rebounds, while Emmanuel Ogbole in the game finished with three points and four rebounds in 10 minutes.
In the second half however, Rutgers amped up the pressure on defense and manufactured better offense at the rim. The Scarlet Knights outscored the Peacocks 38-23 in the half and limited them to just 26.7% from the floor.
Rutgers got multiple scoring runs to eventually pull away, including starting the half on a 9-1 run and later holding Saint Peter’s scoreless for nearly four and a half minutes.
Despite the runs and strong stretches of defense, the Peacocks continued to play a relentless offensive attack hunting shots at the rim and from the perimeter.
It eventually turned into a back-and-forth affair over the final minutes, as the teams traded buckets and stops going towards the final buzzer.
A key move by Steve Pikiell that served as the turning point was the insertion of Zach Martini at center, as he was pivotal in moving alongside Saint Peters' bigs in the pick-and-roll action. While Sommerville had a solid game, he just was not able to keep up on defense in the key moments before Martini came in at center at the 3:49 mark.
Rutgers ended the game on an 11-0 run after Saint Peter's took the lead prior to Martini coming in at center, and forced the Peacocks to miss their final eight shots.
RHOOPS PLAY OF THE DAY
Lathan Sommerville gets the block on one end and PJ Hayes converts from deep on the other.
UP NEXT
Rutgers will be back in action on Friday night as they host Monmouth at Jersey Mike's Arena. The game will tip off at 6:30 pm and will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network.
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