BC women left at a standstill

PISCATAWAY, N.J. -- The Rutgers women's basketball team went through a range of emotions last night. The players were both smiling and teary-eyed when the seniors were honored in a pregame ceremony, and they got a little giddy during a delay in the second half, doing the wave on the bench, then getting up to run wind sprints.

But the ninth-ranked Scarlet Knights (21-5, 12-2 Big East) were absolutely beaming after defeating Boston College, 54-36, before 4,478 at the Louis Brown Athletic Center. It was the team's sixth win in a row, and it is undefeated (13-0) at home.

No. 24 BC, which went to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament last year, has been nationally ranked all season. But the Eagles haven't been able to beat another nationally ranked team in seven tries.

Rutgers point guard Cappie Pondexter was the game's high scorer with 14 points, and teammate Chelsea Newton added 12. No Eagle scored in double figures, and BC (17-8, 8-6) committed 25 turnovers. Freshman Shamika Jackson came off the bench to score a team-high 8 points.

"We tried to take Cappie out in the first half, and throw her a little bit off her rhythm," said BC coach Cathy Inglese, noting that Pondexter scored 27 points when the teams met earlier this season. "I think we did throw them off a little bit in the first half, but she moves real good without the ball and gets some good looks."

Inglese said BC, which trailed at halftime, 25-15, had good practices the previous two days.

"I think we just got frustrated, and that's the biggest thing I'm disappointed in," she said. "We missed four inside shots in the first half, and you just can't be doing that against Rutgers.

"I just think we got really frustrated and that carried over to the second half." Rutgers made just 8 of 26 shots (30.8 percent) in the first half, while BC was only slightly better, making 7 of 22 for 31.8 percent. BC committed 12 turnovers, and Rutgers capitalized, scoring 14 points off the miscues.

The Eagles' last lead was at 11-10, when Clare Droesch hit a jumper, but the Scarlet Knights soon took control. They scored the final 8 points of the half for the 10-point lead, and it was the 17th time this season they held an opponent under 20 points in a half.

Two minutes went by in the second half with neither team scoring. Then came the only dramatics of the night: The shot clock quit working.

As the teams huddled, dancers and cheerleaders tried to entertain the crowd, but fans grew restless as the delay reached 18 minutes. That's when the Rutgers players did the wave, and the crowd cheered when a new shot clock was brought in.

When play resumed, Rutgers went on an 11-2 run to take a 34-17 lead with 14:01 left.

The undefeated season at home means a lot, Pondexter said.

"We dedicated ourselves and embedded in our hearts that we wouldn't lose at home," she said. "And to have that goal be accomplished is a great thing."