Clifford Omoruyi recorded 25 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks and host Rutgers finished the game on a 19-4 run to defeat Long Island, 83-61, on Saturday in Piscataway, N.J.
Aundre Hyatt supplied 12 points and 12 rebounds, and Jamichael Davis also scored 12 points for the Scarlet Knights (7-3). Mawot Mag and Derek Simpson added 10 points apiece.
Tana Kopa led Long Island with 19 points and six rebounds. C.J. Delancy contributed 12 points and Eric Acker had nine points, 10 rebounds and eight assists but also committed eight turnovers.
The Sharks (1-9), who gave up 52 points in the paint, have lost their last five games.
Rutgers had an early 9-0 run to take a 15-4 lead. Simpson had a layup and a dunk off Sharks turnovers during that span.
An Omoruyi putback midway through the half increased the lead to 12 at 20-8. Simpson hit a pair of free throws with 4:35 left to make it 32-17.
A late 10-4 Sharks spurt that included three Acker baskets and two from Delancy cut Rutgers’ lead to nine. Omoruyi’s putback in the final second gave the Scarlet Knights a 41-30 halftime lead. He finished the half with 17 points and seven rebounds.
Kopa made a 3-pointer and three free throws early in the second half to cut Rutgers’ advantage to seven, 45-38.
A 6-0 Scarlet Knights spurt that included two Davis layups nudged the lead to 14 at 55-41. Long Island soon had an 8-1 run, completed by an Acker layup, to cut Rutgers’ lead to 62-55.
That’s as close as the Sharks would get. Mag got the Scarlet Knights’ closing run going with a jumper and a 3-pointer. Omoruyi had a dunk and a layup. Hyatt then scored five points with a putback and a 3-pointer. Mag added another 3-pointer.
–Field Level Media