Box Score

UNION, NJ – Rutgers-Newark's upset bid fell just short on the final night of the regular season as Kean University escaped with a 73-64 New Jersey Athletic Conference victory in the Harwood Arena.

Junior forward Jade Howard dominated inside with her 11th double-double of the season to help the underdog Scarlet Raiders (10-15, NJAC 6-12) stay within striking distance of the Cougars (14-11, NJAC 11-7) until the final seconds.

Howard netted 11 of her 21 points and pulled down seven of her 14 rebounds while making all three of her steals in the second period as Rutgers-Newark would not fold against NJAC tournament bound Kean.

A rebound basket by Howard with 2:37 left cut the Raiders' deficit to 67-64, but the Cougars blanked the Raiders over the final minutes to preserve the victory.

Freshman guard Jamie Cejour-Mobley hit three 3-point jumpers on her way to 15 points for Rutgers-Newark while sophomore guard Arianna Williams totaled 14 points, five rebounds, three assists and four steals in the Raiders' season finale.

Senior forward Jasmine Daniels came up with a team-high four assists, three rebounds, a blocked shot and a steal in her final game in Scarlet & Black while freshman center Jasmine Lombard tallied seven rebounds and six points in just 14 minutes off the bench.  Sophomore center Sharee Gordon chipped in five points and four rebounds.

Senior center Simone Smith netted a game-high 22 points while adding nine rebounds and three steals on Kean's Senior Night.  Junior guard AnnaRose Pierre notched 17 points, nine rebounds, four steals and a pair of assists for the Cougars while sophomore forward Jasmine Davis posted a double-double with 11 points, a dozen rebounds, three assists and three steals.

In a game which featured seven ties and 14 lead changes, the Raiders fought to a 35-35 deadlock at the half when Cejour-Mobley knocked down her third trey with just five seconds left.  There were three ties and 10 lead changes in the opening 20 minutes.

Kean went up 57-47 on a layup by Pierre with 10:24 left, but the Raiders reeled them back in when Howard ignited a 7-0 run with four points before Williams capped the spurt with a 3-point jumper with 7:19 remaining to trim the Rutgers-Newark deficit to three points.

The Raiders got within three twice more before the Cougars finished the scoring with a field goal and a pair of free throws by Pierre and a set of charity tosses by Smith.

The loss ended a frustrating season for Rutgers-Newark which snapped a streak of three consecutive years with at least 19 wins.