ECAC CONSOLATION Rutgers 86 Siena 74
After suffering a humiliating loss to Florida in the Jimmy V Classic and then a shocking upset to Hofstra in the ECAC Holiday Festival semifinals, Rutgers desperately needed a win before opening its Big East schedule on Jan. 5 at Syracuse.
So even though playing in last night’s consolation game of the Festival isn’t what the Scarlet Knights had in mind, they couldn’t afford to lay another egg. Rutgers came up with a strong effort to beat Siena 86-74 at the Garden. Hofstra and Fordham met for the championship in the second game.
The Scarlet Knights (8-4) got 24 points from Dahntay Jones and 21 from point guard Todd Billet to overwhelm the Saints (7-3). Siena entered the game averaging 89.6 points but Rutgers held the Saints to 26.9 percent shooting on 3’s and posted a 44-33 edge on the boards.
The game held special redemption for Billet, who got schooled by Hofstra’s Speedy Claxton in the final minutes of Monday night’s 65-59 loss. The freshman responded by hitting 5-of-9 shots, including 4-of-6 from behind the arc, and dishing off for nine assists.
Siena was led by Marcus Faison’s 21 points, but Rutgers put four starters in double figures. In addition to Billet and Jones, Jeff Greer of the Bronx had 11 points while Rashod Kent added 18 points and 10 rebounds.