BOX SCORE (.html)
BOX SCORE (.pdf)
NEWARK, N.J. J.R. Inman drilled a desperation three-pointer as time expired to lift Rutgers to a 64-61 victory over the Seton Hall men’s basketball team. The Scarlet Knights (11-20, 3-15) trailed by as many as 11 points at halftime, but fought back to even the season series between the schools. The Pirates end the regular season with an overall record of 17-14 and 7-11 in conference play, as they head into the BIG EAST Championship as the 11th seed.
Rutgers, who shot just 26.1 percent in the first half, came out firing in the second, starting the period on a 20-3 run to take a 43-38 lead with 13:12 on the clock. A Larry Davis (Middle Village, N.Y.) three-point play pulled Seton Hall within one, but Mike Coburn answered with a runner in the lane to make it 47-44 with 10:15 remaining in regulation.
After trading baskets over the next several minutes, Jeremy Hazell (Harlem, N.Y.) hit a trifecta from the wing to tie the score, 54-54, with 2:59 left. A Eugene Harvey (Brooklyn, N.Y.) free-throw put the Pirates up one, but Coburn found a wide-open Jaron Griffin in the corner from beyond-the-arc giving Rutgers a 60-58 edge with 1:41 to go.
Despite missing a crucial free-throw and turning the ball over twice down the stretch, Seton Hall was still down just two with 12 seconds to go. With Rutgers inbounding the ball under their own basket, Hazell deflected the inbound pass to force a jump ball with the arrow pointing in the Pirates’ direction.
On Seton Hall’s last possession, senior Brian Laing (Bronx, N.Y.) missed a jumper, but Jamar Nutter (Bloomfield, N.J.) was there for the follow, tying the game 61-61 with just three seconds remaining. The Scarlet Knights quickly got the ball to Inman after the score, and he fired the game-winning shot from about 25 feet on the wing.
Hazell finished with a game-high 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting. Laing posted 16 points and 10 rebounds for his sixth double-double of the season. Nutter scored eight points, dished out seven assists, and grabbed six rebounds.
Seton Hall started the game on a 16-4 run and went up by a game-high 17 after a dunk by Laing with 3:08 to go in the first period. Rutgers scored the last six points of the half to go into the locker room down, 34-23.
The Pirates shot just 31.4 percent from the floor, while Rutgers connected on 38.9 percent on the strength of 15-of-31 shooting in the second half. The Scarlet Knights committed 22 turnovers for the game, but only six came after the break.
Seton Hall will play the No. 6 seed, Marquette, at 9:00 p.m. at the BIG EAST Championship on Wednesday, March 9.
