RUTGERS-NEWARK UPSETS WOMEN'S HOOPS, 71-64

NEWARK, NJ (2/3/07) - Rutgers-Newark sophomore guard Youngor Kehleay (Eatontown, N.J.) had 17 points and junior guard Nerlande Nicolas (Maplewood, N.J.) notched 15 as the Scarlet Raiders held off Kean University for a 71-64 New Jersey Athletic Conference women's basketball victory in The Golden Dome on Saturday evening.

Kean sophomore guard Melissa Beyruti (Union City, N.J.) scored a game-high 21 points on the strength of five three-pointers, however the Cougars fell for the second time in the last three games.

Kean put together a 13-0 run to trim a 16-point Raider lead to just 57-54 with 4:50 remaining, as freshman forward Jan Bush (Willow Grove, Pa.) had seven points and Beyruti chipped in with four. A Beyruti trey put the Cougars within striking distance with 1:26 left at 62-59, however a clutch 3-point jumper by Rutgers-Newark junior guard Sabrina Sanchez (Keasbey, N.J.) keyed a decisive 9-0 in the final minute for the Scarlet Raiders, turning the fragile 3-point edge into a comfortable 71-59 bulge with 21 ticks left.

The win put the Raiders (15-6, NJAC 8-2) into a first-place tie in the NJAC's North Division with William Paterson, which lost at Richard Stockton, 62-57, this afternoon in Pomona. The Cougars (18-3, NJAC 8-2) slipped into a first-place tie with Stockton in the South Division. Each squad is guaranteed one of six slots in the upcoming NJAC Championship Tournament with three league contests left on the slate. Montclair State has locked up the third slot in the North Division, leaving only the final slot in the South Division to be filled.

After Sanchez's 3-pointer with 54 seconds left, Kehleay sandwiched two pairs of free throw around a pair of charity tosses by junior forward Eni Fageyinbo (Morris Plains, N.J.) to give the Raiders plenty of breathing room. Fageyinbo hauled down a team-high seven rebounds and scored six points.

In the game, Beyruti also posted a game-high five assists while Bush worked inside for a game-high nine rebounds and 10 points. Sophomore guard Ebony Jackson (Newark, N.J.) had nine points, four rebounds and three assists for Kean.

Bush had seven points and Beyruti added four, as Kean put together a 13-0 run to trim a 16-point Raider lead to just 57-54 with 4:50 remaining. A Beyruti trey put the Cougars within striking distance with 1:26 left at 62-59 to set the stage for the Raiders' finishing rally.Kehleay and Nicolas had 10 points apiece as the Raiders forged a 39-32 halftime lead. Beyruti, who kept the Cougars in the fray by hitting four of six 3-pointers in the opening 20 minutes, gave Kean a 7-6 lead at 15:38 before Rutgers-Newark went on an 18-3 run. Scarlet Raider freshman reserve center Courtney Vacca (Wayne, N.J.) capped the run with an inside basket at 8:32 left in the period to make it 24-10. Jackson, who twice trimmed the Raider lead to five in the final minutes of the half, drove the length of the floor following a Rutgers-Newark turnover with 5.5 seconds left to hit a layup and complete a 3-point play with nine tenths of the second on a clock to make the difference seven points at intermission.

The Cougars host Baruch on Monday, February 5, at 7 p.m. in a non-conference clash.