1/14/2024 basketball Edit

Rutgers women's hoops falls to Penn State despite Destiny Adams' career day

Alec Crouthamel • TheKnightReport

Staff Writer

Beat writer for women's basketball here at TKR, as well as covering all other things Scarlet Knights. Also working as a broadcaster with WRSU student radio and hoping to do more in the future!

When Rutgers wing Destiny Adams entered the transfer portal after spending two years at the University of North Carolina and committed to the Scarlet Knights, she cited coming home and wanting a change. So far, the Manchester, New Jersey native's homecoming has been a success.

Adams set a new career high with 33 points on 13-for-21 shooting from the floor, as well as 7-for-11 from the free throw line, and grabbing nine rebounds. In what was Kaylene Smikle's fourth consecutive absence due to a medical issue, Adams has taken over on offense and has become the Scarlet Knights' go-to scorer in the post.

Unfortunately, the career effort was not enough as Rutgers fell 94-80 at home for their eighth consecutive loss as they fell to 0-6 in the Big Ten. Illinois, previously the other winless team in conference play, defeated Northwestern 93-52 to leave Rutgers as the only Big Ten team without a conference win two weeks into the new year.

NOT A RIVALS SUBSCRIBER? JOIN TODAY AND GET 30 DAYS FREE!

While Adams and the rest of Rutgers' offense played pretty well to the tune of 53% shooting from the floor, the defense could not keep up with the Lady Lions' high-octane attack. They made 12 of their 20 three-point attempts and had offensive contributions from all over the floor.

Virginia Tech transfer Ashley Owusu, playing in her first game since February 26th as a member of the Hokies due to injury, led the way in her Penn State debut with 18 points, five rebounds, and five assists. The 2021 Ann Meyers Drysdale Award winner at Maryland controlled the offense in the second half and will likely be a key contributor down the stretch for the Lady Lions.

Makenna Marisa, Penn State's leading scorer, also helped light up the scoreboard with 17 points and three treys of her own. Guards Taylor Valladay and Alli Campbell also notched double-digit points with 17 and 11, respectively.

Another big part of the reason for the Lady Lions' offensive dominance was creating opportunities from the defensive side. They forced 24 Rutgers turnovers and scored 33 points off of those giveaways, compared to 13 points off 11 Penn State turnovers for the Scarlet Knights. Much like last year's matchup in State College where the Lady Lions forced over 30 turnovers, the ball security proved to be one of the major differences in the game. Penn State showed much of the same full-court pressure that they utilized in past matchups to get the Scarlet Knights' young rotation of guards off-kilter.

"We gotta get old fast," assistant coach John Hampton said. "We gotta get more experienced. I think each game our kids are going to grow, and when you play more games you just get game savvy."

The Lady Lions' gameplan day in and day out is to force turnovers and shoot three-pointers, and they were able to do those two things to propel them to a victory.

Once Rutgers was able to get past the pressure, their half-court offense looked much stronger. They scored 42 points in the paint and made 14 of their 18 free throw attempts, much of it led by the trio of Adams, Kassondra Brown, and Chyna Cornwell.

Brown, who started for the first time this season, scored in double-figures for the seventh time in her last nine games with 13 points, six rebounds, and a season-high four assists. Cornwell scored 8 points and grabbed nine rebounds off the bench, where Hampton said she can be even more of a spark. Lisa Thompson was the only other Scarlet Knight in double-figures with 11 points.

Even with Penn State's high-level efficiency shooting the ball, Rutgers still controlled the game on the boards, outrebounding the Lady Lions 38-22.

Though the Lady Lions are not as strong of a defensive team as many in the Big Ten, the Scarlet Knights can use the strong performance - particularly in the second half - to gain some more cohesiveness and structure to put points on the board. An inside-outside gameplan spearheaded by Thompson, Brown, and Adams gives the offense a chance to have capable shotmakers from the perimeter and in the post to keep up with stronger opponents.

Rutgers travels to Champaign on Wednesday to face off against the Fighting Illini for a battle of two teams in the Big Ten's basement. Illinois, who qualified for the NCAA Tournament in head coach Shauna Green's first season, are looking to get their season back on track after their first conference win over the Wildcats.