Give Scarlet Knights Back Their Fame!

Rather you are for or against Imus, the simple fact is, as someone once said, “A Joke Isn't A Joke When It Hurts Someone”. I say enough about Imus, let us give the Scarlet Knights back their moment of fame! For all those who have posted about Imus or not , let us equally post for the Rutgers University Women's Basketball Team! Let us bring back their moment, the moment they as a team worked hard to earn!

(“The Rutgers University women's basketball team started their season with four losses and two wins. Despite a rocky start, they overcame adversity on the court and made it to the NCAA championship game. Although they lost to Tennessee in the finals, the underdogs were proud of how they came together as a team.

Their moment of glory didn't last long. On April 4, 2007, the morning after Tennessee walked away with the national title, radio talk show host Don Imus” remarks... Oprah)

And now lets hear it for the Scarlet Knights! :

“For the Scarlet Knights (27-8), it will be their first ever appearance in the national championship game.”

“[CLEVELAND, Ohio – All-America forward Candace Parker scored 17 points and guard Shannon Bobbitt added 13 as Tennessee dashed Rutgers' national title hopes with a 59-46 win over the Scarlet Knights in the NCAA Women's Basketball championship game at the Quicken Loans Arena.

The victory gave the Lady Vols (34-3) their seventh NCAA Women's Basketball Championship all-time, and ended the championship dream of the Scarlet Knights (27-9), who were appearing in their first-ever championship contest. The loss snapped an eight-game win streak for Rutgers, which won three straight to claim the BIG EAST Tournament championship last month, and added five more victories in the NCAA Tournament, including a win over Arizona State for the Greensboro Regional title.

"What can I say? Tennessee played great. I think we played hard, we tried to play hard a little bit too late," said Rutgers head coach C. Vivian Stringer.

While Rutgers was able to hold the Lady Vols' to 15 points below their season average, Tennessee had a decided rebounding average, 42-34, including 24 offensive boards. The Lady Vols scored 22 second chance points.

"Tennessee was big and all those other things, but they killed us on the boards, and it was a matter of (us)blocking out. We have played against other big people, and blocking out is an effort thing that anybody and everybody can do," Stringer added. "When you look at a team as big as them, then you have to do it, and we just didn't."

Sophomore center Kia Vaughn led Rutgers with 20 points, but was the only Scarlet Knight to score in double figures. Juniors Essence Carson and Matee Ajavon, who sparked the Scarlet Knights' NCAA semifinal win over LSU by combining for 31 points, each scored eight points.

"We just didn't rebound well, and they beat us to every loose ball," said sophomore forward Heather Zurich. "We didn't hit good shots. You know, the shots aren't always going to fall, but we could have done more. We could have done more on the defensive side of it. We just didn't play with the heart today that we had all season."

The Lady Vols outscored the Scarlet Knights 17-6 in the final 9:26 of the first half, snapping a 12-12 tie and taking a 29-18 lead at halftime. Alberta Auguste came off the bench to spark Tennessee in the first half, scoring eight of her 10 points in the initial stanza.

Rutgers was able to climb back to within seven points in the second half when Vaughn hit a short jumper to cut the Lady Vols' lead to 35-28 with 13:34 remaining, but Tennessee outscored the Scarlet Knights 11-3 over the next 4:40 to extend its lead to 46-30.

Rutgers once again trimmed the lead to single digits when it pulled to within 50-42 with 2:35 left, but Tennessee hit 9-of-10 free throws down the stretch to secure the victory.

"Losing is very hard for us," said freshman guard Ephiphanny Prince. "We just wanted to come out and play hard, but they played harder than us."

Parker was named the Most Outstanding Player in the Final Four, and was joined on the All-Tournament team by Vaughn and Ajavon. Parker's teammates Bobbitt, and Nicky Anosike, were also named to the All-Tournament team. Bobbitt hit 4-of-8 from three-point range, while Anosike helped the Lady Vols control the glass with 16 rebounds.

Despite the loss, Scarlet Knights still enjoyed one of their top seasons in history. The Scarlet Knights rebounded from a 2-4 start to win 25 of their last 30 games, including the BIG EAST tourney title and the NCAA Greensboro Region championship.

"I think that just so much credit has to be given to these young ladies, who came from nothing to do so much, and basically stun everybody," Stringer added. "I think they did a wonderful job and I'm really proud because they gave me a lot of confidence … this was no doubt the most rewarding year that I have had."]”Scarlet Knights News

The Official Website of Rutgers Women's Basketball

Vaughn Named All-Met Women’s Basketball Division I Player of the Year:

“[EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Sophomore center Kia Vaughn (Bronx, N.Y.) was named the All-Met Division I Women's College Basketball Player of the Year by the National Invitation Tournament and the Met Basketball Writers Association. Vaughn received the award at the annual banquet held on Tuesday night at the Giants Stadium Club.]” Full-story