National Basketball Association
Rutgers 77, Hartford 75
When: 1:00 PM ET, Friday, November 25, 2016
Where: Louis Brown Athletic Center, Piscataway, New Jersey
Officials:
# Brandon Cruz, # Brian Dorsey, # Courtney Green
Attendance:
4028
By The Sports Xchange
PISCATAWAY, N.J. -- Seven-foot senior center C.J. Gettys' tip-in with 7.6 seconds left capped a furious comeback and lifted Rutgers to a 77-75 victory over Hartford in the Scarlet Knight Showcase on Friday afternoon at the Louis Brown Athletic Center.
Rutgers trailed 70-57 with five minutes to play, but the Scarlet Knights forced four turnovers and several tough shots to fuel the rally to earn the school's first 6-0 start since 1975.
Junior power forward Deshawn Freeman delivered a career-high 26 points with 10 rebounds for Rutgers (6-0). Freshman forward Issa Thiam and junior guard Nigel Johnson added 11 points apiece while sophomore point guard Corey Sanders, whose steal with three seconds left ensured the win, contributed seven points, 10 assists and six steals.
Hartford (1-5) drilled 10 consecutive field-goal attempts midway through the second half to transform a 41-37 deficit into a 70-57 lead with 5:02 to play. Senior guard Jalen Ross led the Hawks with 19 points while sophomore guard Jason Dunne added 18.
Rutgers tried to seize control during a sluggish first half. Johnson canned a 3-pointer at the 13:48 mark to give the Scarlet Knights a 10-3 lead before hitting another 3-pointer with 9:56 left to make it 16-8.
Hartford responded with an 8-0 run fueled by 3-pointers from Ross and junior forward Jack Hobbs to pull even at 16-16 on the way to a 27-27 tie at halftime.
Rutgers claimed a 41-37 lead on Thiam's 3-pointer with 16:13 to play, but that's when Hartford got hot, converting seven straight field goal and 6 of 7 free throws. Dunne cashed three 3-pointers in a three-minute stretch to highlight the Hawks' 23-10 spree that generated a 60-51 lead with 9:18 to play.
Hartford's field goal streak reached 10 as sophomore guard J.R. Lynch hit back-to-back 3-pointers -- the latter a 27-footer to beat the shot clock -- before driving and kicking to Hobbs for a 3-pointer for a 70-57 lead with five minutes to play.
Rutgers picked up the pace and got the home crowd into it with several quick bursts, capped by Johnson's scoop layup on the break with 47 seconds left to give the Scarlet Knights a 75-73 lead -- their first since early in the second half.
Sophomore forward George Blagojevic's short bank pulled Hartford even with 27 seconds to play, but Rutgers eschewed a timeout and let Sanders create. His drive didn't fall, but Gettys' tip did for the game-winner.
Top Game Performances
| Hartford |
|
Rutgers |
|
Jalen Ross 19 |
Scoring |
DeShawn Freeman 26 |
|
John Carroll 4 |
Assists |
Corey Sanders 10 |
|
Jack Hobbs 7 |
Rebounds |
DeShawn Freeman 10 |
|
Jalen Ross 6 |
Free Throws Made |
DeShawn Freeman 8 |
|
George Blagojevic 2 |
Steals |
Corey Sanders 6 |
|
Jason Dunne 1 |
Blocks |
DeShawn Freeman 2 |
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
| Hartford
|
75 |
48.1 |
12-26 |
11-15 |
16 |
28 |
1 |
9 |
17 |
| Rutgers
|
77 |
45.0 |
6-18 |
17-30 |
18 |
37 |
4 |
10 |
15 |
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