Steve Worthy scored eight straight points to help build an 18-point second-half lead and Rutgers needed the cushion to hold off James Madison in posting a 73-69 victory Friday night in the final game of the NIT opening round.
Rutgers (16-14) will also get a second-round home game on Monday when it entertains Manhattan (24-8) at 7:30 p.m. EST. The Jaspers defeated Wisconsin Green Bay 67-65 on Thursday.Worthy led Rutgers with 21, and Daryl Smith had 15. William Davis had 20 for James Madison (21-11), which is now winless in four NIT appearances.
Rutgers appeared to have the game put away early in the second half when Worthy hit two 3-pointers and a driving layup in a 9-0 run that gave the Scarlet Knights of the Atlantic 10 Conference a 51-33 lead with 15:29 to play.
The margin was still 18 points after Worthy hit two free throws with 9:07 to go. But the Dukes of the Colonial Athletic Association never quit and over the next nine minutes whittled the lead, eventually drawing within 71-69 on a layup by Bryan Edwards with 10 seconds to play.
Worthy was fouled shortly after the inbounds pass and iced the game by hitting two free throws with five seconds to play.
The Scarlet Knights were somewhat lucky to get into the tournament after an up and down year that included wins over Princeton, UNLV and Delaware, all NCAA tournament teams.
The key for Rutgers all year has been shooting. When it shot well, it could play with anyone. Against James Madison, Rutgers shot very well, hitting almost 55 percent in the opening half in building a 40-31 lead.
Rutgers grabbed a 15-4 lead in the opening minutes by hitting seven of its first nine shots.