Twelve months later, the Scarlet Knights got their revenge.
Playing for the first time since the controversial finish in their Big East tournament matchup last season at Madison Square Garden; Rutgers (14-17, 6-12) got a tip-in emphatically slammed home by Dane Miller with 9.3 seconds left, (10 points, 10 rebounds) and drained two free throws on their ensuing possession to escape with a 61-58 victory over St. John’s (13-18, 6-12) in the regular season finale for both teams.
The Red Storm had two chances to win after Rutgers took the lead; but D’Angelo Harrison (17 points) missed a three-pointer with two seconds left that would have given St. John’s the lead, and narrowly missed a half-court heave that rimmed out as the buzzer sounded. With the win, Rutgers secured the No. 11 seed and a Tuesday night meeting with Villanova in the Big East tournament. St. John’s falls into the No. 12 hole with the loss; and will face Pittsburgh for the second time in seven days on Tuesday afternoon at 2pm, the fourth consecutive year that the Red Storm are playing in that time slot.
As St. John’s recovers and prepares for a rematch with Jamie Dixon and the Panthers, we leave you with lasting impressions from a rock fight in New Jersey.
Lasting Impressions
– Although the two teams each managed 42 rebounds, Rutgers attacked the lane more than St. John’s. “They absolutely beat us from pillar to post off the glass,” said assistant coach Mike Dunlap.
– Much to the credit of their all-freshman lineup, St. John’s played most of the second half with seemingly the whole team in foul trouble. In fact, Amir Garrett was the only Red Storm player who did not accumulate at least three personal fouls. “We were able to keep our guys in the game,” said Dunlap. “They were hanging on four (fouls) forever and a day.”
– Amir Garrett picked up nine rebounds last night, and the disparity between offense and defense was very impressive. Six of Garrett’s nine rebounds came on the offensive glass; and all of those half-dozen boards were picked up in a first half that could be best described as the basketball version of Friday evening traffic on the New Jersey Turnpike, with whistles stopping play nearly every other minute.
– Finally, Dane Miller picks up game ball honors. Not only did Miller provide Rutgers with the game-winning basket, but he also fought his way to a double-double to provide a positive end to what has been a junior campaign filled with maddening inconsistencies for a player once considered among the Big East’s rising stars. “It was a beautiful thing of execution,” said Rutgers coach Mike Rice when asked about the winning play after the game. “Something good happened finally. It’s a fitting moment, especially after how he (Miller) has played the last four weeks of the season.”
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