Rutgers visits Virginia Tech in ACC/Big Ten Challenge

The Rutgers women’s basketball team is going up against Virginia Tech on Nov. 28 at the Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, Va.  

The Scarlet Knights (5-2) are coming into Virginia having dropped two tough games at the Vancouver Showcase over Thanksgiving weekend. 

Rutgers fell to Drake in the tournament's first game and came up short against Gonzaga in the second. While the Knights put up a good fight against both teams, they only came away with one win against East Tennessee State last Saturday.

Freshman guard Zipporah Broughton made an appearance against the Buccaneers after missing time due to an injury. She had 3 points and played 15 minutes in Rutgers' 68-44 win over East Tennessee State.

Graduate student guard Sierra Calhoun made her first appearance as a Knight in Vancouver. Calhoun was 3-3 from the free-throw line and had a season-high 7 points against the Buccaneers. 

Senior center Victoria Harris also had a successful night in Rutgers' win. She led the team with 10 total rebounds and shot 3-4 from the field.

The Knights' upcoming opponent, the Hokies (7-0), are undefeated in seven games played.

Forward Regan Magarity posted 15 rebounds against Richmond and 16 against Villanova for Virginia Tech. She is a key defensive player for the Hokies. Offensively, she made it to 1,000 points last season, an impressive feat as a junior.

Graduate student guard Charise Wilson had 17 points on 7-8 shooting from the field. She also had a 75-percent 3-point percentage. 

“To get a win at a tournament is a positive thing,” Wilson said. “We’re just gonna have positive energy come home, learn and regroup. I decided I needed to produce more on the team. When shots are falling, Coach Stringer said 'just let them go,' and I just shot confidently.”

Fifth-year senior forward Stasha Carey had a .571 field goal percentage against East Tennessee State. 

Rutgers is capable of handing the Hokies their first loss of the season, even though it can be one of the more challenging games it has on the schedule.

Against Gonzaga, the Knights ended the game shooting a 31.3-percent field goal percentage. They improved significantly against the Buccaneers, ending the game with a 57.4 percentage from the field.

Playing a tough team can influence how a team will perform. Rutgers should go into this game with a positive mindset against a dominating team like Virginia Tech, and going into the Big Ten conference schedule.

Communication is key for the Knights to win this coming game on the road. In the past, communication has been an issue in games they have won. Head coach C. Vivian Stringer has touched on how they need to come together and work as a team. 

Currently, Rutgers is 1-2 at neutral site games and has yet to play at a designated away game. The Knights face a difficult task when playing the Hokies, who have an eight-game win streak

“We just have to learn to play with each other more,” Wilson said. “We’re a new team. We just learned a lot from this tournament. We’re gonna do better. Less turnovers. We won but we’re upset about it.”