Ace Bailey makes his feelings known on Dylan Harper's game-winning buzzer-beater vs Seton Hall
Ace Bailey lauded Dylan Harper after the latter scored the game-winning buzzer-beater in Rutgers Scarlet Knights' 66-63 win over the Seton Hall Pirates on Saturday at Jersey Mike's Arena. Harper came up clutch for the Scarlet Knights, who saw their four-point lead vanish in the final minute after their star players missed four free throws in succession.
Harper calmly took the inbounds pass with 6.4 seconds left to set up Rutgers' final possession in regulation. He raced past the Seton Hall defense in a hurry before launching a deep 3-pointer in front of the Rutgers bench. The Scarlet Knights players immediately surrounded Harper to celebrate after his go-ahead trey found the bottom of the net.
Bailey couldn't hide his delight as he told reporters in the postgame press conference about Rutgers' final play. He explained that the play was designed for Harper to take the Scarlet Knights' final shot and his role was to get the rebound in case of a miss.
"It’s Dylan. He’s like ‘Hey, everybody spread the floor out.’ Worked out. He shot the ball, everybody else with the crash. He made it. He made it," Bailey said. (Timestamp 2:05)
Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey lead Rutgers to seventh win
There was no need for Ace Bailey to get the offensive board, with Dylan Harper knocked down his fourth 3-pointer of the game as time expired. Harper once again led the Scarlet Knights in scoring with 24 points. He shot 8 of 13 from the field and 4 of 7 from the free-throw line against Seton Hall.
Harper has been a vital cog for the Scarlet Knights this season, averaging 23.5 points per contest to lead all freshman scorers in the nation. He has scored at least 30 points in two of Rutgers' 11 games.
Bailey also contributed in the win over Seton Hall, scoring 21 points on 9 of 15 shooting and grabbing seven rebounds in 38 minutes of action. However, he struggled with his free-throw shooting, missing seven of his eight attempts at the charity stripe.
With the victory, the Scarlet Knights improved their record to 7-4. They preserved their unbeaten slate at home, winning their first six games at Jersey Mike's Arena. The Pirates have lost three of their last four games to drop to 5-6.