Rutgers Beats Seton Hall 77-72 In OT

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Freshman Jerome Seagears hit a 3-pointer with 13.1 seconds to play in overtime and Rutgers snapped a six-game losing streak with a 77-72 victory over New Jersey-rival Seton Hall on Saturday.

Dane Miller scored a season-high 21 points and Seagears finished with 16 points as the Scarlet Knights (13-16, 5-11 Big East) avenged a loss to the Pirates (19-10, 8-9) earlier in the month.

The Pirates had a chance to tie the game but Jordan Theodore's 3-pointer in the waning seconds went halfway down before spinning out.

Gilvydas Biruta got the rebound and iced the game with two free throws, finishing off a 16-point effort.

Theodore led Seton Hall with 17 points, including two free throws with 12.7 seconds to force the overtime.

Eli Carter added 17 points for Rutgers, which shot 52.7 percent from the field for the game, including 10 of 15 from 3-point range.

Herb Pope finished with 14 points and 12 rebounds before fouling out with 44 seconds to play in his final home game.

The game might have been decided on the foul for an illegal screen. It seemed a little shaky and it happened with the game tied at 72.

Rutgers came up court and Seagears was wide open in the left corner for his go-ahead 3-pointer.

Theodore, who was also playing his final home game in a season in which the Pirates went 13-3 at the Prudential Center, did everything but tie the game with his shot that had many wondering how it came back out of the rim.

Fuguan Edwin added 13 points and seven steals for Seton Hall. Aaron Cosby had 12 points and Patrik Auda added 10.

Theodore hit three free throws in the final 1:05 to tie the game at 65-all. His two free throws with 12.7 seconds left in regulation tied the game; the second one coming after Scarlet Knights coach Mike Rice called a time out to ice him.

Biruta dribbled the ball off his knee on a drive to the basket with 3.1 seconds to go, but Pope's 3-pointer from half court went well over the top of the backboard.

Rutgers built a 55-49 after Carter hit a 3-pointer from right corner with 7:05 to play in the second half, Seton Hall used an 8-2 run to tie the game at 57 with 4:38 to go in regulation when Pope hit the first of two free throws.

The Pirates center had four points in the run, all from the line, while Cosby added a 3-pointer, one of four the freshman made.

After Miller hit two free throws to give Rutgers the lead, Edwin converted a three-point play to put the Pirates ahead 60-59 with 3:50.

The Scarlet Knights built a 65-62 lead on a dunk by Biruta with 1:26 to go but Theodore tied the game and forced the overtime.

Rutgers, which trailed by as many as 10 points late in the first half, used a 17-6 spurt bridging the end of the first half and the start of the second to take a 36-35 lead, its first since the opening minutes.

Seton Hall appeared to take control in the final nine minutes of the first half when they used a 13-1 spurt to open a 29-19 lead. Edwin started the run scoring six of the first eight points and Auda finished it with five straight points.

The Pirates got sloppy with the ball in the final 3:45 of the half and turned the ball over twice in a 7-0 run that helped the Scarlet Knights close to within 32-28 at the half.

The Scarlet Knights eventually wiped out the deficit early in the second half with an 8-0 run that Miller started with a 3-pointer and Biruta ended with a three-point play.