Tariq Francis scores 20 points in his Rutgers debut and the Scarlet Knights beat Rider 81-53

PISCATAWAY, N.J. (AP) — Tariq Francis scored 20 points in his Rutgers debut, Dylan Grant added 17 points and the Scarlet Knights used a big second half to beat Rider 81-53 on Wednesday night.

Jamichael Davis added 15 points and Darren Buchanan Jr., who redshirted his first season at Virginia Tech last year, scored 11 off the bench for Rutgers (1-0). Emmanuel Ogbole grabbed 10 rebounds. Francis, who averaged 17 points in 54 career games at NJIT, was 6 of 10 from the field with four of Rutgers' 10 3-pointers.

Davis, Ogbole, Grant and Bryce Dortch are the only returning scholarship players for Rutgers.

Caleb Smith had 14 points and 10 rebounds to lead Rider (0-2), which dropped its opener Monday night at Virginia. Zion Cruz, the leading returning scorer for Rider at 10.1 points per game, added 11. Rider has just two of its top eight scorers from last season.

Cruz was the first player for Rider to reach double-figure scoring when he made a basket with 8:33 remaining in the second half. The Broncs missed their first 11 3-pointers of the second half.

Rutgers opens the season with five straight home games at Jersey Mike’s Arena, including a Monday contest against Maine. The Scarlet Knights will first hit the road around Thanksgiving to face No. 18 Tennessee and Notre Dame in Las Vegas.

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