NEWARK, NJ – Tournament MVP Courtney Vacca had game highs of 19 points and 14 rebounds to carry Rutgers-Newark to a 50-45 win over FDU-Florham in the championship game of the John K. Adams Tip-Off Classic in The Golden Dome.

JOHN K. ADAMS TIP-OFF CLASSIC
Medgar Evers 59, City Tech 43
Rutgers-Newark 50, FDU-Florham 45 

The 5-foot-11 senior forward battled inside against a much taller Devils' front line to net her career high in points and equal her career best in rebounds while junior guard Martyna Ruminska tallied a dozen points to join Vacca on the All-Classic Team.

Senior forward Danielle Michlovsky paced FDU-Florham with 16 points, nine rebounds and three assists while senior guard Courtney Young added nine points, five rebounds and a game-high five assists. Both players were named to the All-Classic squad.

Freshman guard Kristen Venning had 3-point jumper and a free throw during the decisive 10-0 Rutgers-Newark run which gave the Raiders a 49-41 lead with just 22 seconds left. Venning finished with 11 points, seven rebounds and three assists.

Michlovsky ignited a 10-0 run with three straight baskets as the Devils turned an 8-point deficit into a 41-39 lead with 3:42 left. The Raiders went nearly five minutes without a point before answering with the knockout rally.

Vacca netted 13 points and pulled down six rebounds in the opening half as Rutgers-Newark constructed a 23-18 lead after a slow start by each team. FDU-Florham led 7-6 after nine minutes, but Vacca drained a 3-point jumper and added two free throws before McCaskill scored a fastbreak basket with 9:36 left in the period to give the Raiders a 6-point edge.

Young started and ended a 7-0 run with jumpers sandwiched around a 3-free throw string by junior forward Shealyn Taggart put the Devils up 14-13 with 6:18 left before the break. But, Vacca scored five straight points followed by three free throws by Ruminska at 2:37 to give Rutgers-Newark its biggest lead of the period at 21-14.

In the consolation game, all-tournament center Tiffany Thompson worked inside for 22 points and 18 rebounds to lead three double-double performances by Medgar Evers in a 59-43 win over City Tech. Senior forward Shakimba Pierre also had 18 rebounds with 11 points, four steals and four assists for the Cougars (1-1) while freshman forward Jaide Lewis posted 14 rebounds, 11 points, three steals and three assists. Freshman guard Alyssa Mason collected seven of MEC's 20 steals.

Freshman guard Daquana Miller poured in all of her team-high 15 points in the second half to pace City Tech (0-2). Miller also added five steals and four assists while junior forward Kimberly Battle notched a team-high 12 rebounds to go along with nine rebounds and three steals.

ALL-CLASSIC TEAM
MVP: Courtney Vacca – Rutgers-Newark
Martyna Ruminska – Rutgers-Newark
Danielle Michlovsky – FDU-Florham
Courtney Young – FDU-Florham
Tiffany Thompson – Medgar Evers