Rutgers overwhelms Robert Morris 85-42 in tournament opener

3/22/2008 2:35 PM

By LUKE MEREDITH
AP Sports Writer

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) -Rutgers got the fresh start it was looking for, thanks in part to an overmatched opponent.

Kia Vaughn led four players in double figures with 22 points and second-seeded Rutgers routed 15th-seeded Robert Morris 85-42 on Saturday in the first round of the Greensboro Regional.

The Scarlet Knights, who stumbled into the NCAA tournament on a two-game losing streak, will play seventh-seeded Iowa State in the second round Monday night. The Cyclones held off Georgia Tech, 58-55, in Saturday's opener in Des Moines.

Rutgers (25-6) put Robert Morris on its heels early, opening the game with a 15-2 run. The Colonials (23-10) made a brief surge by hitting six of their next eight shots, but Rutgers closed out the first half with a 30-12 spurt that squashed any notions of a comeback.

The lone bright spot for Robert Morris came when Logan tied the Division I record for 3s in a season, 126, set by Alabama State's Lisa McMullen in 1991. But Logan was just 3-of-15 from the field and 2-of-9 from 3-point range.

Brittany Ray hit a pair of 3s to make it 35-16, and Vaughn hit a jumper in the paint to push the Scarlet Knights ahead by 23 late in the first half. Ray then put the exclamation point on a dominant first half by Rutgers, hitting a 3 just before the buzzer to give the Scarlet Knights a 48-21 lead.

Rutgers shot 21-of-34 from the field in the opening half and held Sade Logan, the Colonials leading scorer, to just two points. Kendra Williams had 11 to lead Robert Morris, which saw its winning streak snapped at 17 games.

Epiphanny Prince scored 21 points, shooting 4-of-4 from 3-point range, Ray had 14 and Rashidat Junaid added 13 for Rutgers.

The Colonials got within 51-31 early in the second half, but Rutgers reeled off 10 straight points to go back up by 30.

Robert Morris's dribble-drive motion offense - a guard-oriented attack made popular by the Memphis men's team - was no match for Rutgers' superior size and athleticism. The Colonials shot 12-of-60 from the floor, including 4-of-33 in the second half, and scored a season-low for points.