Rutgers Rutgers/Syracuse Syracuse Men's College Basketball recap on ESPN

After an injured thigh hampered his play during two straight losses, Brown was fully recovered Saturday night and it showed. He had 28 points and seven steals, both career highs, and DeShaun Williams had eight points and a career-best 11 assists as the Orangemen beat Rutgers 68-54.

"It's nice to seeing Damone being able to move," Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim said. "Obviously, it's a huge factor for us when he plays like that."

Syracuse (16-3, 5-2 Big East) had not lost three straight games in five years and built a double-digit lead over Rutgers (8-11, 0-8) early in the second half to make sure it didn't happen again.

"Right now, I feel pretty good. I feel like I'm 100 percent," said Brown, who was 11-for-14 from the floor. "But I think in order for us to win, everybody has to be going 100 percent and playing on the same page."

Williams certainly was. After hitting just 3 of 15 shots in a loss at Notre Dame on Tuesday, the sophomore guard decided it was better to pass than shoot on this night. He took only seven shots.

"I just want to prove to myself basically what I can do," said Williams, who hit a pair of 3s, the only ones of the game for Syracuse. "I've got a lot of ways I can create. Tonight, they had a lot of gaps in their zone, and the coaches told me to get in there."

The Orangemen, who blew a 15-point lead before holding on to beat the Scarlet Knights 64-63 three weeks ago, got two steals in the first minute of the second half and converted both into baskets for a 36-25 lead.

Brown, who had just 12 points in losses at Seton Hall and Notre Dame, started it, converting his own steal with a court-long rush and dunk. Preston Shumpert followed with another of Syracuse's 14 steals and fed Williams for a 3-pointer. It was one of only four outside shots Syracuse converted in the game as it pounded the paint all night.

"We had a nice run to get ourselves back in the game, and you just can't start the half like that," said Rutgers coach Kevin Bannon, whose Scarlet Knights started the season 8-3. "It's a five-point gift. You can't win a game that way. I think their heads are down a little bit right now. There's a lot of inconsistency, and that's a big concern for us. We were doing the right things to put ourselves in position to win, but clearly we've lost the fire."

After Shumpert converted three free throws to give Syracuse a 46-35 lead with 13:14 to go, Kareem Wright came right back for Rutgers with a three-point play, pumping his fists and yelling as his carom shot went in.

But the Scarlet Knights never were able to cut into the lead with a sustained run and never got closer the rest of the game.

"I don't think we played our game," said Jeff Greer, who led Rutgers with 13 points. "It was a whole different game (than the previous one against Syracuse). We didn't come out with the energy we needed to win."

Eugene Dabney added 10 points for Rutgers. Todd Billet, the team's leading scorer with a 17-point average, had only eight after going scoreless the previous game against West Virginia, and Rashod Kent had only five points and five rebounds in 19 minutes of play, well below his season averages.

"When you have a night when Rashod and Todd can't get a shot, it's no secret we're going to struggle," Bannon said. "That's really been the story with us. We need to get some scoring done inside or else it's going to be a tough night. Their defense had a lot to do with that tonight."

The Orangemen's tough zone kept the Scarlet Knights at bay early on. Midway through the first half, Rutgers was 1-for-9 shooting and trailed 14-5. But, after missing their first three 3-pointers, the Scarlet Knights hit 5 of 6 -- three by Greer and two by Renardo Brown -- to take a 23-22 lead with 4:42 left. It was their last lead of the game.

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AUDIO/VIDEO
video
Syracuse's Damone Brown steals the ball then gets the layup.
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Syracuse's Damone Brown receives the ball down low then throws down the jam.
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Rutgers finally gets the ball into the low post for the Kareem Wright hoop.
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