A snapshot emerged from the clutter of a 44-33 Rutgers victory Saturday: Late in the second half, Cincinnati forward Val Schuster held the ball near midcourt. Scarlet Knight senior Brittany Ray popped the rock loose and charged forward.
Sophomore Chelsey Lee skipped a pass in front of her. Way in front, in fact. Two points wasted. Ray screamed toward the RAC bleachers. Lee averted her eyes from the mess.
“We blew a lot of layups,” head coach C. Vivian Stringer said.
A second snapshot: Moments later, Bearcats guard Shareese Ulis drove inside. Ray stripped her clean and prepared to race up court. But their feet tangled, she fell to the ground and scrambled for the basketball. The officials called her for a walk.
“We just didn’t execute very well,” said Ray, who led all scorers with 13.
The effort was there. But the execution was fleeting Saturday. The Scarlet Knights (11-7, 3-1 Big East) were not perfect on an afternoon when a victory was a necessity after a frustrating loss in Syracuse on Wednesday.
But they looked better than the middling Bearcats (8-8, 1-3).
The Scarlet Knights have another week of practice before they play again, more time to fix the same problems that have surrounded the squad since November: imprecise shooting, ill-advised shot selection, a dearth of communication and an inability to steady themselves late.
“I’m looking down the road and I’m saying ‘This is unacceptable’,” Stringer said. “These are things you can’t do if you’re going to win the tighter games.”
Those flaws mattered little against a Cincinnati team that shot 25 percent from the floor and 2-for-15 from deep. Boasting a healthy size advantage, the Scarlet Knights’ offense flowed through 6-4 senior Rashidat Junaid, who scored in double-figures for the third-straight game. Junaid scraped together 11 points and seven boards.
That took some pressure off Ray, who needs rest at this point in the year.
Ray averages more than 35 minutes a game. Her legs have weakened. She spent the latter part of a Friday practice riding a station bicycle rather than pounding the hardwood.
“Brittany is just not up to form just yet,” Stringer said. “I think she will need some more days.”
So points had to come from other sources.
After two weak starts, freshman Erica Wheeler was benched Saturday. But she ignited the offense late in the first half with a pair of dribble drives and a step-back 3 to give the team a nine-point lead the break.
Wheeler faded in the second half and could not add to her eight points. By then, the offense looked inside. Junaid delivered — crucial, considering the team’s tenuous NCAA Tournament hopes.
Andy McCullough may be reached at amccullough@starledger.com