No. 24 Rutgers men's basketball explode against Monmouth in Ace Bailey debut, 3rd straight win
The collegiate debut of freshman forward Ace Bailey certainly did not disappoint.
The Rutgers men’s basketball team won its third straight game at Jersey Mike’s Arena on Livingston campus on Friday night, dispatching Monmouth 98-81.
The Scarlet Knights (3-0, 0-0) put up their most points under head coach Steve Pikiell and most in a game since 2015 against a feisty Hawks (0-3, 0-0) team led by Abdi Bashir Jr.’s career-high 38-point performance, who shot 10 of 17 from beyond the arc.
No. 24 Rutgers opened up the in-state matchup with a bang. Bailey’s first collegiate point came via a three-pointer in the opening possession, lighting up Jersey Mike’s Arena. Fellow freshman guard Dylan Harper added to the Knights’ lead in the following drive, extending the team to an early 5-0 advantage.
Monmouth proved to be a worthy competitor, though, in the opening minutes of the first half. Several threes, two from Bashir Jr., carried the Hawks in the contest's opening six minutes.
But Rutgers quickly regained its dominance, taking a healthy lead over Monmouth with timely buckets from sophomore guard Jamichael Davis, fifth-year guard and forward PJ Hayes IV and freshman center Lathan Sommerville.
The Knights drew nine fouls off of Monmouth, taking advantage of the free-throw opportunities as they shot 9 of 12 from the charity stripe.
Graduate student center Zach Martini put on a show in the first half, leading the team with 11 points and a perfect 3 for 3 from down.
The clear-cut highlight play of the first half came on an inbound. Minutes before halftime, Martini threw up the alley-oop pass to Bailey for the dunk, again sending the home crowd on their feet.
Rutgers led 47-30 at halftime, but the Hawks would put up a fight in the second half.
Bashir Jr. continued his lights-out performance in the final 20 minutes, shooting 6 of 9 from three in what was already a career day for the guard from Nebraska.
The Knights pushed the pace offensively, with Harper scoring 15 points and the rest of the team getting involved. Bailey - who did not play the final 6 minutes of the second half - finished with 17 points in his first collegiate game.
“(Bailey) gives us another dimension on the court,” Pikiell said. “I like this team, I like this team a lot, we gotta get better and obviously he’s a big part of that.”
Harper - who totaled 20 points against Monmouth - has now scored at least 20 points in all three games this season.
Rutgers will end its four-game homestand against Merrimack on Wednesday night. The game will tip off at 6 p.m. and broadcast on Peacock and 88.7 WRSU-FM.
“I knew it was a dangerous game. I watch (Monmouth) enough, they shoot a ton of threes.” Pikiell said. “But, a good team win and everyone contributed.”
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