Rutgers didn’t just beat NJIT on Tuesday night at Jersey Mike’s Arena. It spent 40 minutes stretching the gap, leaning on size, depth and a steady stream of clean looks to roll to a 101-64 win and move to 2-0 on the season.
The Scarlet Knights shook off an early NJIT burst from long range and quickly took control once their offense started finding the rim. Brandon Stores Jr. and David Bolden opened the game with threes to give the Highlanders a 6-2 edge, but Rutgers answered by attacking inside. Lino Mark got rolling with three straight layups, including a reverse finish, and the tone was set from there.
NJIT kept hanging around for a while. Bolden and Matheo Colfi traded baskets, Colfi converted an and-one, and Darren Buchanan Jr. and Jamichael Davis helped trim the margin.
But Rutgers kept finding answers. Francis got loose for a breakaway layup, then Diego Garavaglia, the Italian freshman, drilled an open three from the left wing to give Rutgers its first lead.
Francis followed with a sidestep triple, and the Scarlet Knights were suddenly up 21-15 on a 9-0 run.
The Highlanders made a few more pushes in the first half, but Rutgers’ defense started to take over. Davis jumped a passing lane when NJIT tried to set up an alley-oop, and John Kelly slammed the door with a vicious block on Christian Gurdak.
Rutgers also kept cashing in on the other end, with Mark, Francis and Gurdak all helping the lead grow. By halftime, the Scarlet Knights were in firm control at 46-26.
The second half was more of the same. Rutgers kept pounding the paint, with Gurdak adding two early baskets and Francis knocking down a pair of threes. Jones stayed hot from deep as well, giving the Scarlet Knights another perimeter threat to go with the damage they were doing inside.
NJIT never made a real run, and Rutgers kept widening the margin even after the game was decided. The Scarlet Knights crossed the 100-point mark for the first time since their 110-101 (3OT) loss to Illinois in 2016, and this time they did it in regulation. Kaden Powers made his season debut after the sixteen-minute mark, and Max Fradkin closed things out with the final two points.
Rutgers had four starters in double figures, led by Lino Mark and Tariq Francis with 17 points apiece. Francis went 3-for-4 from deep against his former team, while Mark added eight rebounds and kept beating NJIT to the basket.
Christian Gurdak finished with 12 points and four boards, Darren Buchanan Jr. posted 10 points, five rebounds, three assists and a steal, and Darin Smith Jr. scored nine. Off the bench, Will Sydnor added 10 points in just seven minutes.
Jamichael Davis chipped in eight points and three steals, while Mervedi Miteo contributed five rebounds and two blocks. Rasheed Jones hit both of his three-point attempts, continuing what Rutgers hopes is a real answer on the perimeter.
NJIT shot just 32% from the field and 4-for-26 from three after its early start. David Bolden led the Highlanders with 18 points, and he was the only NJIT player to finish in double figures. Rutgers, meanwhile, shot 52% from the floor, hit 8 of 21 from beyond the arc and went 31-for-41 at the line.
Rutgers gets one more tune-up before heading to Las Vegas, with Bryant coming to Jersey Mike’s Arena on Friday, November 13th. Tip-off is set for 6 PM, and the game will stream on Big Ten Plus.
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