Rutgers women's basketball opens season with a win over Monmouth
The Rutgers women's basketball team took home the season opener with a 56-51 win over Monmouth at Jersey Mike's Arena. The Scarlet Knights move to 1-0 on the season and pass their first test of the season against the defending CAA champion.
The night was ruled by the newcomers, as Mya Petticord and Destiny Adams led the way offensively with 17 points and 13 points respectively. Adams was also one of two Scarlet Knights with a double-double as she also grabbed a game-high 17 rebounds. Chyna Cornwell was the other Rutgers player to record a double-double, going for 10 points and 10 rebounds, while also shooting 4-of-7 from the free throw line.
Petticord scored the first six points of the game for the Scarlet Knights, and she finished the opening quarter with eight and three rebounds.
Both of their efforts were needed as the Scarlet Knights weren't exactly firing on all cylinders.
Star sophomore guard Kaylene Smikle struggled, making only two of her ten shot attempts for 5 points. She is still working her way back from an injury in the offseason, so patience was necessary.
Also on the injury front, news broke before the game that senior wing Awa Sidibe would miss the rest of the season with an injury. While head coach Coquese Washington declined to give a timetable for a return, she did say that Sidibe would be out "indefinitely" and that she would return when she feels 100% ready.
For Monmouth, Ariana Vanderhoop was the only Hawk to score in double digits scoring 14 points, powered by an 8-of-10 mark from the free throw line.
Both teams struggled to generate any consistent offense, as the Scarlet Knights shot 31% from the floor and Monmouth shot only 28%. Each team shot 17% from the three-point line. Both teams shot a lot of free throws, with the Hawks converting at an 81% clip as a team while Rutgers only made 16 of their 29 attempts from the line. Washington joked after the game that Petticord "owed her some Starbucks" after the point guard only shot 6-of-11 from the charity stripe.
As for the other Scarlet Knights, the only other two to score in the game were Kassondra Brown, who notched 4 points and five rebounds off the bench, and freshman guard Lisa Thompson who scored 7 points on 3-of-10 shooting from the floor. Even with the inefficient shooting numbers, she had a team-high +17 when on the court.
Antonia Bates did not score but grabbed three rebounds and dished three assists. Erica Lafayette and Jillian Huerter also did not score, but each grabbed two rebounds with a block for Huerter and a steal for Lafayette.
The Scarlet Knights host their second opponent of the season on Thursday when Wagner comes to town.
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