Steve Pikiell's Scarlet Knights host the Saint Peter’s Peacocks in men's basketball, Monday, Nov. 11, 2024, at Jersey Mike's Arena on the Busch Campus of Rutgers University.

Dylan Harper scored 24 points and hit a go-ahead layup with 3:49 to play to lead No. 24 Rutgers to a much-harder-than expected 75-65 victory over New Jersey foe Saint Peter's on Monday night. The Scarlet Knights (2-0) had to overcame a five-point halftime deficit and twice had to rally in the final minutes after the Peacocks (0-3) wiped out a nine-point deficit and took one-point leads,

Early in the second half, which opened with Saint Peter’s ahead 42-37, it was Derkack who woke everyone up. After a Peacocks turnover he launched a spectacular skip pass to breaking teammate Jeremiah Williams for a transition layup.

Freshman guard Dylan Harper's 24 points led No. 24 Rutgers to a tightly contested 75-65 win over Saint Peter's on Monday night in Piscataway, N.J. Lathan Sommerville scored 14 points

No. 25 Rutgers will aim for another strong showing when it hosts Saint Peter's on Monday night in Piscataway, N.J. The Scarlet Knights (1-0) started the season with a 75-52

That is one of the main takeaways for Rutgers after it survived a scare from Saint Peter’s in a nail-biting 75-65 victory at Jersey Mike’s Arena. The No. 24 Scarlet Knights (2-0) had to fight tooth-and-nail to defeat the Peacocks (0-3) — who battled Seton Hall and UMass Lowell down to the wire last week and nearly derailed Rutgers’ dream season before it got off the ground — and they are better off for it.

Rutgers faced an early-season test against a well-coached and tough Saint Peter’s squad that was in search of a signature victory in-state. Trailing with just over four minutes left in the contest, 24th-ranked Rutgers had to dig deep and show off the qualities of a Steve Pikiell coached team on the defensive end of the floor.