Turnovers Hurt Syracuse As #7/8 Rutgers Wins, 60-43

Sunday, February 19

Piscataway, N.J.

2:00 p.m.

Syracuse University

#7/8 Rutgers

Jenny Eckhart led the Orange with 11 points at Rutgers.

Turnovers Hurt Syracuse As #7/8 Rutgers Wins, 60-43

2/19/2006 4:41:45 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

PISCATAWAY, N.J. – #7/8 Rutgers outscored Syracuse 27-6 in points off turnovers to defeat the Orange, 60-43, in BIG EAST action on Feb. 19 at the Louis Brown Athletic Center. 7,398 spectators filled The RAC, which is the largest home crowd Rutgers has had this year and is also the largest amount of people to watch the Orange this season.

The Scarlet Knights capitalized on 16 SU miscues on its way to its 21^st win of the season. Rutgers improved to 21-3 and 13-0 in the conference to maintain its one game lead over Connecticut. Syracuse dropped to 9-15 and 2-11 in the BIG EAST.

Freshman Jenny Eckhart (Libertyville, Ill.) led the way for the Orange with 11 points. Sophomore Vaida Sipaviciute (Kaunas, Lithuania) and junior Tracy Harbut (Lexington, Ky.) both added six points. Sipaviciute became the second player in the last three years to amass at least 400 points in a season. Julie McBride totaled 441 points in 2003-04.

SU (9-15, 2-11) recorded three blocks in the game and has now swatted a total of 103 shots this year. It is the ninth-most blocks for a Syracuse team in a single season.

Sophomore Mary Joe Riley (Inkster, Mich.) saw her first action since she played against Binghamton on Dec. 17. She scored three points in the game.

Rutgers jumped out to an early 11-2 lead in the first four minutes of the game. Cappie Pondexter capped the run with a 3-pointer. The Scarlet Knights kept the steady cushion throughout the first half. Their largest lead of the opening half came at the 7:05 mark when Essence Carson hit a jumper to extend Rutgers’ lead to 25-10. Heading into halftime, the Knights held a 33-20 advantage.

Rutgers scored the first four points of the second half to extend its cushion to 37-20. Eckhart hit a jumper at the 12:34 mark to pull the Orange within 12, 40-28. SU also cut the deficit to 12 points, 43-31, at the midway point of the half, but that was the closest Syracuse would get. The Scarlet Knights scored the next seven points to open its largest lead of the game, 50-31.

All five of Rutgers’ starters scored in double figures. Pondexter scored 13 points, eight off of her season average. Michelle Campbell also scored 13 points to lead the Knights. Kia Vaughn registered 10 points and nine rebounds. Matee Ajavon notched 11 points and Carson chipped in with 10.

Syracuse returns to the Carrier Dome on Wednesday, Feb. 22, when it hosts #8/6 Connecticut. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.