WAYNE, N.J. (February 3, 2018) – The Rutgers University-Newark women's basketball team rallied in the second half but came up just short at New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) foe William Paterson University, dropping an 84-80 decision. The Scarlet Raiders fall to 8-13 (4-11 NJAC) while the Pioneers improve to 12-10 (7-8 NJAC).

Rutgers-Newark was led by a fantastic performance from sophomore Chase Barneys who poured in a career-best and game-high 27 points. He had a tremendous afternoon from beyond the arc, knocking down 7-for-10 (70.0%) and shooting 9-of-14 overall from the field. Junior Mark Thomas joined him in double-figures with 18 points and added a team-best five rebounds. Classmate Tyler Ofray contributed 15 points including going 11-for-12 from the charity stripe. Senior Erick Loften-Harris rounded out the double-digit scorers with 10 while dishing out a game-best seven assists and snatching a team-high four steals.  

In the early going, the two sides competed in a see-saw battle that featured seven lead changes and four ties. Four different Scarlet Raiders scored in the opening stretch as the visitors claimed a 12-10 edge on a Thomas jumper. Still, the Pioneers responded with a 9-0 run that gave them the lead for good in the first half. While R-N was able to get within three following a trifecta from Barneys and a traditional three-point play by Loften-Harris, the home team continued to widen its advantage and took a 47-35 lead into the break.

The Scarlet Raiders began the second period strong, netting seven of the first eight points to quickly close the gap to 48-43. Trailing 51-45, Newark then rallied all the way back and claimed its first lead since early in the opening stanza. A 12-2 surge featuring a pair of Barneys trifectas and baskets from Loften-Harris, Thomas, and Ofray suddenly had the visitors in front 57-53 with 13:08 on the clock.

William Paterson would not back down however, as the home side reeled off seven consecutive points to immediately reclaim its advantage and force R-N to take a timeout at the 10:46 mark, trailing 60-57.

Down 63-59, the Scarlet Raiders went on a mini-run as Thomas knocked down a pair of freebies, then Barneys scored a tough lay-in on a fastbreak, before Loften-Harris drained two free throws to get R-N back in front by a slim 65-63 margin.

It was the Pioneers turn to respond and they came up with nine consecutive points, capped by a huge 3-pointer with 6:46 remaining to take a 72-65 lead. Still, the Raiders would not go away as Loften-Harris found Barneys who drilled a trey from the right wing to make it 74-70.

The game would go down to the wire as the teams traded buckets and free throws. Trailing 80-76, a Loften-Harris free throw cut it to three but WPU got a basket on the other end to extend its lead to five. On the very next possession, Barneys came off a screen for a catch-and-shoot opportunity and he delivered once again, this time from the left wing, to make it 82-80 with 1:15 to play.

The Scarlet Raiders got the stop they needed on the other end, but a tough Thomas pull-up in the lane went begging and the Pioneers hit a pair of free throws to create an 84-80 advantage with 21 ticks remaining. That would wind up being the final tally as a flurry of late 3-pointers would not go down as the visitors came up short.

Rutgers-Newark returns to action on Wednesday at 8 p.m. when they host Stockton in an NJAC matchup in The Golden Dome.