Smith Jr., Frazier power Central Connecticut past Rutgers 67-54
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PISCATAWAY, N.J. (AP) — Darin Smith Jr. scored 21 points, Max Frazier powered his way to a 14-point, 13-rebound double-double, and Central Connecticut controlled the second half to hand Rutgers its first loss of the season, 67–54, on Friday night.
The Blue Devils (3–2) turned a 32–28 halftime lead into a wire-to-wire statement behind toughness on the glass and timely shot-making. Frazier set the tone immediately after the break with a dunk, and James Jones followed with a right-wing 3-pointer to push the margin to nine. A Melo Sanchez corner 3 stretched it to 42–31 after a 10-3 burst to open the second half.
Rutgers (4–1) clawed back on a Denis Badalau 3 and a pair of free throws, trimming it to 45–41 with 13:19 left. Sanchez drilled another 3, Smith buried a deep jumper and Jay Rodgers added a long-range make and midrange bucket to rebuild a 10-point cushion.
Central Connecticut’s defense carried the game home, holding Rutgers to 36% shooting and just five 3s while forcing 10 second-half misses at the rim. Smith closed the door with a layup at 1:57, and Frazier’s dunk at 1:01 sealed the most complete performance of the year for the Blue Devils.
Tariq Francis led Rutgers with 19 points, while Badalau totaled 11 points and seven boards.
The Blue Devils dominated the glass 41–37, committed only seven turnovers and shot 9 of 21 from deep.
___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball