CAMDEN, N.J. (Jan. 22, 2020) – The Rutgers University-Camden women's basketball team gave New Jersey Athletic Conference leader Rowan University all it could handle here Wednesday night before the Profs escaped with a 65-61 victory in NJAC action.
 
Rowan, which was effectively ranked No. 26 nationally this week when it received 11 votes toward the WBCA NCAA Division III Top 25 Coaches Poll this week, improved to 15-2 overall and 9-1 in the NJAC. The Profs have won three straight games and 12 of their last 13.
 
Rutgers-Camden fell to 9-8 overall and 2-8 in the NJAC with its third straight loss.
 
Rowan has won four straight games against Rutgers-Camden and leads the all-time series, 56-17.
 
Wednesday's game wasn't anything close to the 82-60 loss the Raptors suffered at Rowan on Nov. 26, as neither team held more than a seven-point lead, the game was tied five times and featured seven lead changes. Rutgers-Camden held a 24-19 lead after one quarter before Rowan bounced back to take a 39-38 advantage into halftime. The Profs were led by 14 first-half points from freshman guard Nicole Mallard, while Rutgers-Camden senior guard Fatimah Williams had 15 points at the break.
 
The lead changed hands four times early in the third quarter, with Rowan finally taking the lead for good, 44-43, on a jumper by junior guard Alexis Kriley midway through the period. The Profs, however, weren't able to pull away and led by only 51-48 entering the fourth quarter.
 
Rowan built its fourth-quarter lead to seven points on four occasions, including 61-54 with 4:07 remaining in the game, but Rutgers-Camden whittled that margin deficit down to 61-60 with 1:02 remaining. That comeback was sparked by three straight field goals from Williams.
 
Mallard made it a 63-60 game with 20 seconds remaining after hitting a pair of foul shots, but a free throw by sophomore forward Breanna Ettrick cut the gap to 63-61 in the final seconds. Kriley finally iced Rowan's win with a pair of foul shots at the finish.
 
Rowan finished with 19 points from Mallard, while Kriley joined junior guard Paige Caldwell and freshman guard Savanna Holt with eight points apiece. Sophomore center Jazlyn Duverglas had nine rebounds for the Profs, including eight in the second half. Rowan held a 53-35 advantage off the boards.
 
Williams finished with a game-high 25 points, hiking her career scoring output to 1,069. Sophomore guard/forward Tamara Johnson added 14 points and tied freshman guard/forward Jalissa Pitts with a team-high eight rebounds.
 
Williams also added five steals for game-high honors. Junior guard Shane Holmes tied Rowan freshman guard/forward Eliana Santana with a game-high three assists apiece.
 
Rowan shot 21-for-58 (36.2 percent) from the floor while Rutgers-Camden went 20-for-59 (33.9).
 
The Scarlet Raptors return to NJAC action Saturday when they host William Paterson University in a 3 p.m. NJAC game.