Arella Guirantes leads Scarlet Knights to Dominating Victory

Following a stretch of three losses in four games, the Rutgers Scarlet Knights returned to form in a big way on Thursday night at the RAC. Rutgers women’s basketball defeated Penn State, 72-39, in one of its most dominating performances so far this season.

The Scarlet Knights (17-5) were led by star guard Arella Guirantes. Guirantes filled the stat sheet for the Scarlet Knights, tallying 24 points while bringing in 10 rebounds and dishing out four assists.

Guirantes continues the domination she has shown all season long. Entering the game on Thursday, Guirantes had been averaging 19.4 points per game, which ranked 18^th in the nation.

Even outside of Guirantes’ outstanding performance, the Scarlet Knights put up a dominating effort. Jordan Wallace added 12 points and four rebounds, while Khadaizha Sanders tallied 10 points and three assists. With the victory on Thursday, Rutgers improved to 17-2 when three or more players score in double figures.

Outside of their top three, the Scarlet Knights managed to get balanced scoring throughout the entire lineup. Eight of the Rutgers’ nine players recorded a point on Thursday night, totaling 26 points outside of the top three. This group was led by Zipporah Broughton, who scored nine points by herself.

Another area in which the Scarlet Knights were able to dominate was rebounding. In its loss on Sunday, Rutgers struggled to control Minnesota on the glass. However, the Scarlet Knights flipped the script on Thursday, outrebounding the Nittany Lions, 42-19.

The Scarlet Knights ability to control the boards allowed them to tally 20 second-chance points. Penn State only managed to add two points on second-chance opportunities.

With the victory, the Scarlet Knights improved to 10-2 at home and secured their third season sweep of the Nittany Lions since joining the Big Ten. Overall, Rutgers is 28-18 in its 46 meetings with Penn State all-time.

Things won’t get much easier for the Scarlet Knights in the future. Rutgers will travel to College Park for a matchup with 13^th ranked Maryland on Sunday at 12 p.m.