 "Photo: Matt Moss/Staff Photographer")
HARTFORD, Conn. - Fortunately for the Rutgers women's basketball team, it was just one big scare. The Scarlet Knights were saved by the second half.
Rutgers shot only 7-of-22 from the field in the first half of last night's semifinal game against Villanova in the Big East Tournament, burying themselves in a 31-20 hole going into halftime.
The Knights were manhandled in the first 20 minutes by Villanova's merciless three-point shooting, and for a while it began to seem like Rutgers - No. 1 seed and all - were going to make a surprising early exit from the tournament.
But whatever head coach C. Vivian Stringer said to her team in the locker room did the trick, as RU opened the second half like a team possessed.
"In the first half, we didn't play our style of basketball," senior guard Cappie Pondexter said. "We talked about the little things and what we could do. The good thing about this situation was that we were in it before. We were down 15, 16 against LSU and Texas. We knew what it took. We came out in the second half and played our style."
The style the All-American was referring to is her team's exhaustingly fast pace and athleticism that drains opposing teams. Last night it gave the Knights the edge they needed to overcome the 11-point deficit and fight their way back against a tough Villanova squad.
Rutgers elevated both sides of its game by leaps and bounds in the second half.
The Knights shot 52 percent from the field and repeatedly forced Wildcat turnovers - a far cry from the sloppy beginning. They used the press to establish a 21-4 run at one point in the second that carried them back within reach.
"Our only hope was to keep the game half court," Villanova head coach Harry Perretta said. "You saw in the first half it was kept half-court and what happened."
The Knights could have crumbled at any time during the disheartening first half, but as they've done all season, they rose to the challenge when their backs were against the wall.
"We knew we could get it back," Stringer said. "One thing about Rutgers is that we're about hope. We are hope city."
Freshman Phenom
Matee Ajavon proved again why she's the Big East's Freshman of the Year, opening the game with RU's first eight points.
The rookie finished with a team-leading 16 points, three assists, and five steals.
Her defensive prowess forced a turnover that she followed up with an assist to Michelle Campbell that finally gave the Knights the lead with 11:46 to play in the contest.
From Downtown
It was three-point shooting that allowed the Wildcats to build the lead they did in the first half.
They connected on 7 of 12 three-pointers in that period, with 21 of their 31 points coming from beyond the arc.
Forward Jackie Adamshick was 3-for-3 herself from behind the line in the first half, but even she wasn't comfortable with the lead against a team like Rutgers.
"We knew going into halftime that there was no way they weren't going to make a run at us," Adamshick said. "We knew they were going to come out and pressure us."
Rutgers-Haters
The Hartford Civic Center could at times be mistaken for Villanova's home court, with hundreds of deafening Connecticut fans cheering for the Wildcats to topple the No. 1 seed.
"The UConn fans were great," 'Nova guard Betsy McManus said. "It was great to have all those people behind us."
Another Milestone
Last night's win marked the 200th time Stringer has led Rutgers to victory in her career.
She has posted a 200-109 record in her 10 seasons on the Banks.
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