NEWARK, N.J. (January 13, 2018) – The Rutgers University-Newark men's basketball team pulled away from visiting Rowan University in New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) action in The Golden Dome to win 75-55 and snap a three-game skid. The Scarlet Raiders improve to 6-9 (2-7 NJAC) while the Profs fall to 8-8 (4-5 NJAC).

Rutgers-Newark was led by rookie Quincy Rutherford who poured in a career-best 17 points on 7-of-10 (70.0%) shooting. Sophomore Chase Barneys came off the bench to score 15 points including 3-for-6 from 3-point range while senior Erick Loften-Harris and junior Mark Thomas each added 13 points to round out the double-digit scorers. Freshman Jordan Herrin pulled down a team-best nine boards and Loften-Harris led his side with four assists.

In the first half, the Profs got off to a quick start behind strong shooting and opened up an early 14-6 advantage. Following a timeout, the Scarlet Raiders came out firing and completely flipped the script scoring the next 13 points to take their first lead since 2-0. Four different players scored in the run led by Rutherford with a pair of driving lay-ins. Newark would extend its advantage to 25-19 on a jump-hook from rookie Dante Ralph with 5:35 on the clock.

The Profs did not let the home team pull away and had its deficit down to one before going on a 7 -0 spurt that gave them the lead back at 31-28 with 39 seconds remaining. The Scarlet Raiders were able to respond as Loften-Harris hit a contested lay-up to make it a 31-30 game at the break.

R-N picked up momentum in the early minutes of the second half, going on an 11-0 surge to make a 32-30 deficit into a 41-32 advantage, its largest lead of the contest and forcing Rowan to take a timeout. Rutherford poured in six points during that stretch and Loften-Harris capped the run with a pull-up fastbreak jumper just inside the free throw line.

At the 11:18 mark, the Profs made it a six-point game but a pair of trifectas from Barneys and Herrin had the Scarlet Raiders ahead by double-figures. With 5:45 to go, Barneys drained another shot from downtown in transition to establish the home side's largest lead of the night at 61-45 and capping a 15-5 run. Rowan responded briefly with a 3-pointer of its own but R-N continued to expand its advantage, embarking on a 9-1 spurt that made it 70-49 with 2:37 remaining. The Scarlet Raiders would eventually close out the game with a 75-55 victory.

Newark shot lights out in the second half, hitting on 59.3% (16-27) of its attempts from the field and 50.0% (4-8) from beyond the arc while holding Rowan to just 23.3% (7-30) from the field and 15.0% (3-20) from downtown.

Rutgers-Newark returns to the hardwood at NJCU on Wednesday with an 8 p.m. tip-off.