NEWARK, NJ – Freshman Jared Tactuk (Wayne, NJ/Wayne Valley) paced the Scarlet Raiders in a 57-51 victory over New Jersey Athletic Conference rival New Jersey City, netting 14 points to go along with five rebounds, three steals and three assists.
NCAA Box Score & Play-By-Play
Senior Bimpe Fageyinbo (Morris Plains, NJ/Parsippany Hills) hauled in a career-high 13 rebounds and added nine points, while junior center Courtney Vacca (Wayne, NJ/Wayne Hills) added 13 boards, seven points and three blocks. Senior Youngor Kehleay (Eatontown, NJ/Monmouth Regional) netted 13 points in the win, helping the Scarlet Raiders snap a four-game losing skid.
After a Kehleay triple at the 16:14 mark cut the Raiders' deficit to one early in the first half, New Jersey City mounted a 12-4 run over the next seven minutes to take a 20-11 advantage.
Vacca would end the Rutgers-Newark dry spell converting on a three-point play following a steal at 10:18, cutting the lead to six. The Scarlet Raiders would continue to push forward over the next nine minutes of action, going on a 16-1 run of their own to take a 27-21 lead.
With a stifling Rutgers-Newark defense holding New Jersey City scoreless for over six minutes following a Shayla Daniels free-throw at 7:45, junior guard Carolina Garcia helped to momentarily quell the Gothic Knights' drought with a pair of free throws at 1:41.
Garcia would later connect on a triple just before the end of the half, ending a 10 minute NJCU field goal drought to cut the Scarlet Raider lead to one entering the break.
Freshman guard LaQuintah Edrington would help the Gothic Knights regain the lead just over a minute into the second half with a layup at 18:46.
Unfazed, Tactuk would put the Scarlet Raiders back on top on Rutgers-Newark's ensuing possession with a jumper from the left elbow.
After a Garcia free-throw knotted the game at 29, Tactuk found a wide-open Shatanay McCaskill (Paterson, NJ/Passaic County Tech) who connected on a jumper from the left corner to give Rutgers-Newark a 31-29 advantage.
Freshman guard Ebony Cunningham helped the Gothic Knights' regain the lead in the see-saw affair, before a Vacca layup put the Scarlet Raiders back in front 33-32.
After a Garcia trey tied the game at 35 following a Fageyinbo layup off a baseline drive, the Scarlet Raiders opened up a six point lead thanks to an 8-2 run over the next four minutes of play.
Back-to-back trips to the charity stripe by Edrington and freshman guard Lashawn Overton would slice the Scarlet Raider lead in half to three, but Kehleay would go coast to coast following a missed free throw to push the Rutgers-Newark advantage back up to five with just over five minutes to play.
Kehleay, who scored six of the squad's final 12 points, would strike again minutes later with a steal and a layup with just under two and a half minutes remaining to put the Scarlet Raiders up eight.
Cunningham would pull the Gothic Knights within three with just 20 seconds remaining, but Tactuk would go three-for-four from the free-throw line over the contest's final moments sealing the victory.
Cunningham led all New Jersey City scorers with 18 points to go along with a team-high 13 rebounds, while Garcia added 13 points, four assists and three steals.
The Scarlet Raiders held the Gothic Knights to just 28.8% shooting while holding a decisive 50-33 rebounding edge.
Rutgers-Newark will look to make it two in a row in the competitive NJAC when it travels to Richard Stockton on Saturday, January 31.
