Rutgers women's hoops falls to Minnesota despite Adams' record-setting game
In yet another matchup where the Rutgers women's basketball team was shorthanded, particularly at the guard position, it needed a big game from its all-conference player.
Destiny Adams accepted the challenge, and then some. A day after being named an All-Big Ten Second Teamer, she scored 31 points and grabbed a Big Ten Tournament-record 24 rebounds in an attempt to carry the Scarlet Knights (8-24, 2-16) to the finish line. Time and time again, Adams was able to grab a tough rebound or put up a contested bucket despite being the central focus of Minnesota's defensive game plan.
"It's been a life-changing year," she said, after her first season on the Banks since returning to her home state of New Jersey.
Despite the heroic effort, it was not enough to take down the Golden Gophers (16-14, 5-13) in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament in Minneapolis. Minnesota ultimately outlasted Rutgers 77-69 in a battle of teams fighting the injury bug on the first day of the tournament.
Adams was not the only player on the floor with a career performance, however. Golden Gophers sophomore guard Amaya Battle scored a career-high 32 points while also grabbing five rebounds and dishing seven assists without turning the ball over once. Battle, who ranks third in the Big Ten in assists, took on a heavier scoring load and demonized the Scarlet Knights' defense in the midrange, seemingly always finding a good look inside the three-point line despite everything the Rutgers defense threw at her.
"She got in a zone," Scarlet Knights head coach Coquese Washington said. "That midrange jumper, she really couldn't miss. She put the team on her back, especially in the second half. For a stretch there, it was just get the ball to Amaya and get out of her way, and let's see what she can do. I thought she gave her team a lot of confidence and made the big plays, especially late in the fourth quarter when her team needed them."
Both teams fought throughout, throwing haymakers at one another in the form of timely baskets at crucial moments. Minnesota led by as much as 12 in the first half, but Rutgers battled back and eventually took the lead multiple times to try and take over.
Eventually, the Scarlet Knights ran out of gas down the stretch and the Gophers took advantage, holding Rutgers to just one field goal in the final seven minutes of the game. They got it done on offense and defense, shooting 6-for-11 from the floor in the final quarter.
Even in a very high-scoring game, only two other players scored in double-figures aside from Battle and Adams. Both teams had a lot of contributions up and down their roster, as the depth on each squad had thinned due to injury. Rutgers was once again down three rotation guards, while Minnesota was without key starters Mara Braun and Sophie Hart.
Grace Grocholski continued her strong freshman campaign with 12 points, including 7 in the second quarter to help the Gophers build their lead.
Erica Lafayette continued her strong stretch of play with 16 points while hitting four more three-pointers. While it remains to be seen if Lafayette will use the final COVID year of eligibility she has available, she closed out the season as one of Rutgers' most consistent threats from the three-point line when they desperately needed another one.
The Scarlet Knights ended the game having led in many statistical categories, but the main contrast was the turnovers. Rutgers again had issues keeping the ball in possession on offense, turning the ball over 15 times in the first half. They were able to clean it up in the second half, however, only giving the ball away once.
"I thought in the first half we were trying to win the game with one play every time down the floor," Washington said. "We were gambling a little bit too much, trying to make this pass, or trying to make this play. I think that in the second half, we just did a better job of just trying to stay patient and poised on offense, getting the ball to the folks that could make the right plays."
Despite the turnovers, the Scarlet Knights shot the ball extremely well to the tune of 54.5% shooting from the floor in the first half, even getting up to 70% during the second quarter.
Rutgers was also able to find success from the perimeter, an area where they have struggled all season long. They hit on six of their 11 three-point attempts in the opening half, a big reason why they stayed close in the first half. Though they went just 2-for-11 in the second half, the willingness to let it fly from the arc helped open up driving lanes for Adams in the paint.
What was missing for the Scarlet Knights down the stretch in the fourth quarter? A true shot-creator from the perimeter. The absence of Mya Petticord, as well as a hobbled but active Lisa Thompson, once again loomed large. In last month's matchup with Minnesota at Jersey Mike's Arena in February, Petticord lit up the scoreboard to the tune of 21 second-half points, with much of her production coming from her own generated looks from the catch and off the dribble. Thompson played for much of the fourth quarter as another ballhandler next to Antonia Bates to initiate the offense, and admirably played hard to help move the offense forward.
Throughout the game, the Golden Gophers chose to blitz the ballhandler - most of the time being Bates - on the high pick-and-roll sets, which left her in a precarious spot to make a play from deep in the perimeter as the defense switched and recovered. Washington and the staff adjusted to this in the second half by sending two screeners at the top to get into their sets, but it still was not enough to generate consistently good looks from the perimeter.
By the end, the Scarlet Knights just did not have enough to take down a Minnesota team that was looking to get back on track after an ugly end to their regular season. Rutgers' season ends on a disappointing note losing five straight, but with many of the contributors returning including Adams, as well as two highly-touted recruits, there is light at the end of the tunnel for this program.
Stay tuned here at TheKnightReport for any and all offseason news for the Scarlet Knights.
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