NEWARK, N.J. (February 6, 2016) - Junior guard
Maria Simmons scored a game-high 25 points, but the Rutgers University-Newark women's basketball team suffered a 61-51 New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) defeat at the hands of William Paterson University Saturday night in The Golden Dome Arena.
Saturday's game was played in support of the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation and Hedda Sivertsson who the Scarlet Raiders adopted back on January 12. All proceeds from the game will be donated to the wonderful cause and Sivertsson served as the Scarlet Raiders' honorary coach. In addition to the ladies wearing #TeamHedda t-shirts, the youngster took part in a halftime contest and was with the team in the locker room and on the floor throughout the day.
The Scarlet Raiders fall to 3-12 in the conference and 7-15 overall, while the Pioneers improve to 13-9 overall and 9-6 in the NJAC.
After pouring in a career-high 31 in a win at Kean University Wednesday night, Simmons dropped in 25 on just 15 attempts from the field, adding six rebounds, three assists and two steals to her line. The veteran Scarlet Raider has now scored in double figures in every game but one this season, and has eclipsed 20 points 10 times.
Senior guard
Arianna Williams had 11 points, seven rebounds and five steals, and junior guard
Shala Glenn finished with eight points, six boards and a steal, while sophomore guard
Nicole Skelly had seven points, four rebounds and three steals.
The Scarlet Raiders shot 28.8 percent (19-for-66) from the field, 13.3 percent (2-for-15) from deep and 57.9 percent (11-for-19) from the line.
William Paterson had four players in double figures, with sophomore guard Jackie Rodriguez scoring 15 points and grabbing seven rebounds. Senior forward Alex Milne had 11 points and 11 rebounds for a double-double as the Pioneers shot 43.1 percent (22-for-51) from the field, 40 percent (4-for-10) from three and 76.5 percent (13-for-17) at the line. The Pioneers ended with a 49-32 margin on the glass and assisted on 17-of-22 baskets.
After a first quarter in which WPU outscored the Scarlet Raiders 19-8, Rutgers-Newark chipped away and got within eight at the half after seeing the deficit climb all the way up to 15. Glenn hit back-to-back jumpers to get the lead down to eight (31-23) with a shade less than two minutes to play in the half, and two Williams free throws trimmed the lead to six before a Paterson bucket made it 33-25 at the break.
Down nine (40-31) with 3:29 to go in the third quarter, Rutgers-Newark put a scare into the favored Pioneers, ripping off six-straight points to get within three (40-37) with 2:01 left in the period. A Williams three put an exclamation point on the rally, but Paterson scored the final pair of the stanza to take a 42-37 edge to the fourth.
The Pioneers quickly pushed the lead to 10 points early in the fourth, and the Scarlet Raiders chipped away to get within seven (50-43) with 4:26 on the clock. However, two-straight buckets for the Pioneers pushed the lead back into double figures, and the hosts could get no closer than seven the rest of the way.
Rutgers-Newark will return to the hardwood Wednesday night when it visits Rutgers University-Camden in an NJAC battle.
