Rutgers women's basketball falls in shorthanded matchup to Michigan State
Despite a strong start amid a shorthanded lineup, the Rutgers women's basketball team could not end its long losing streak, as it reached 12 games in an 82-64 loss at home to Michigan State. The Scarlet Knights (6-17, 0-10) kept it close for the majority of the first half but could not close out against the Spartans, (16-5, 6-4) one of the stronger offensive teams in the Big Ten.
Destiny Adams once again led the way for Rutgers, scoring 28 points and grabbing 10 rebounds despite plenty of defensive pressure from Michigan State, particularly in the second half. Adams was one of three Scarlet Knights in double figures, joined by Kassondra Brown and Jillian Huerter, who scored 12 and 10 points, respectively.
Five different Spartans scored in double figures, led by Julia Ayrault's 19 points. Ayrault, Michigan State's second-leading scorer, overcame a slow start due to three first-half fouls and scored 15 of her 19 points in the second half.
Rutgers once again was shorthanded, this time in an unexpected fashion. Guards Kaylene Smikle and Awa Sidibe once again did not play - Sidibe has missed the entire season and Smikle has not played since the December 30th loss at Northwestern - but the Scarlet Knights' guard room took another hit just before tipoff. Mya Petticord was seen in street clothes and a walking boot during pregame warm-ups, and ultimately did not play. Head coach Coquese Washington said there was not much time to adjust to Petticord's absence.
"We didn't find out until shortly before tip-off that Mya wouldn't be able to go," she said. "It was kind of on the fly that we had to work through. Having Lisa play a lot of point and not being able to switch off when we needed to, and Jill had to be thrown into playing some point."
Even in a losing effort, Adams continues to thrive as the team's top offensive option. She scored in double figures for the eighth consecutive game and notched her fourth double-double of the year. Washington noted that Adams' confidence has gone way up and has been adjusting very well to the extra attention she gets from defenses.
The Scarlet Knights were able to keep up with the Spartans for much of the first half, responding to an opening 13-2 run to draw within a point by the end of the first quarter. Both teams shot just under 60% from the floor as Adams and Brown scored all 18 Rutgers points in the opening period.
Though the Spartans began to pull away in the second quarter, thanks to a blistering 71% clip from the floor, Rutgers was still able to hang around at halftime, trailing 42-35. Much of the reason was due to the difference from the free throw line, as Michigan State went into the locker room shooting an ugly 1-for-8 from the charity stripe, while the Scarlet Knights converted on seven of their eight first-half attempts.
As it has many times during the year, the wheels began to fall off in the second half. Rutgers got outscored 25-11 as the seven-player rotation fell behind due to turnovers and fatigue as the game went on. 10 of the Scarlet Knights' 23 turnovers came in the third quarter alone, and the Spartans converted for 23 points off turnovers for the game.
One positive from the game was the third quarter play for Huerter. She scored seven points in the period and looked comfortable with the ball in her hands and looking for her own shot.
"I thought Jill did a good job of being more aggressive and looking and hunting for her shots, and we need her to do that," Washington said.
The razor-thin depth among the Scarlet Knights' guards also gave Huerter and Lisa Thompson a valuable learning experience, as they have been dealing with all year long.
"You don't get to mess up and come out," Washington said. "You don't get to sit down and watch. You just gotta play yourself through it, and that's the lessons that both of them are learning and the education that they're getting, they'll be better for it the more they get thrown into the fire like that."
Another positive was the ball movement on offense, as the Scarlet Knights dished out 19 assists, tied for the third-best mark of the season. They were led by a season-high seven assists from Antonia Bates.
"That's the one thing that Antonia is pretty good at, is keeping the ball movement moving and being a facilitator," Washington said. "Finding people and getting her teammates good looks. We're gonna have to keep relying on her to do that until we get Mya back."
Next up, Rutgers travels to Nebraska to take on the Cornhuskers. The Scarlet Knights won last year's matchup in a low-scoring 57-45 affair at Jersey Mike's Arena, and will look to get back in the win column for the first time in almost two months. As the calendar flips to February, time is running out to get some wins in another stacked Big Ten Conference, but the month does offer some manageable opportunities.
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