GLASSBORO, N.J. (Jan. 16, 2019) – The Rowan University women's basketball team exploded for a 31-13 second-quarter run and used a career-high 20 points from senior guard Nicole Byrne as it defeated Rutgers University-Camden, 81-62, in a New Jersey Athletic Conference game here Wednesday night.
 
Rowan improves to 10-7 overall and 8-2 in the NJAC, while taking a 54-17 lead over Rutgers-Camden in the all-time series.
 
The Scarlet Raptors fall to 10-7 overall and 5-5 in the conference after watching their four-game winning streak come to an end.
 
Behind nine points from freshman guard Wykira Johnson-Kelly, the Scarlet Raptors took a 19-15 lead after one quarter, aided by a nine-point run that turned a 10-8 deficit into a 17-10 lead. Johnson-Kelly had four points during that run.
 
Rowan, however, went on a 31-13 run in the second-quarter as Byrne scored 14 points in the 10-minute session, far surpassing her previous career game high of nine. By halftime, Byrne had 17 points and junior guard Dominique Peters had 14, including 10 in the second half. They accounted for all but seven points in the quarter as Rowan grabbed a 46-32 lead at the break. The Profs led by as many as 15 points (46-31) in the first half.
 
Junior guard Fatimah Williams and Johnson-Kelly had 11 points apiece for Rutgers-Camden in the opening half, while adding six and five rebounds, respectively.
 
Rowan increased its lead to 69-50 by the end of the third quarter, including a 23-point lead (64-41) along the way. They matched that 23-point margin twice in the fourth quarter (73-50 and 81-58).
 
Byrne finished with a career-high 20 points for the Profs, shooting 7-for-11 from the floor, including 5-for-9 from three-point range. Peters added 16 points, while sophomore guard Alexis Kriley scored 12. Senior guard Olivia Rulon added 10 points, while freshman center Ayanna Johnson collected a game-high 15 rebounds to help the Profs hold a 56-42 advantage off the boards.
 
Johnson-Kelly, pictured above, notched her third career double-double while leading the Scarlet Raptors with 20 points and 13 rebounds. Her 13 boards set a new career high, passing the 11 she had against Kean University on Dec. 8. Her 20 points were two shy of her career high set against Stockton University Nov. 28.
 
Sophomore guard Shane Holmes collected 13 pints and tied her career high of four steals, while Williams finished with 12 points. Senior guard Gabby Greene also had four steals as she hiked her career total to 211, moving into fifth place on the all-time program list. She passed Karla Robinson, who had 208 steals from 1990-94.
 
Rowan shot 30-for-70 from the floor (42.9 percent), while Rutgers-Camden was 22-for-73 (30.1). The Profs were 10-for-26 (38.5) from three-point range, compared to the Scarlet Raptors' 5-for-21 (23.8).
 
Rutgers-Camden returns to NJAC action Saturday with a 1 p.m. game at William Paterson University.