Cam Spencer scored all 18 of his points in the first half and freshman Derek Simpson put up 14 points as host Rutgers defeated Central Connecticut 83-49 on Saturday in Piscataway, N.J.

Rutgers (5-1) shot 53.7 percent and dominated the boards 41-27. Mawot Mag posted a season-high 11 points and a team-high eight rebounds, while Clifford Omoruyi added 11 points and six boards.

Central Connecticut (0-7) remained one of eight remaining winless teams in Division I. Kellen Amos led the Blue Devils with 15 points and shot 1 of 10 from 3-point range.

Caleb McConnell made his season debut for Rutgers after recovering from a left knee injury. Last season’s Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year came off the bench and had four points, four rebounds, three assists and one block.

It was an 11-11 game early on after Central Connecticut made layups on consecutive possessions to tie it up. Rutgers answered with a 12-0 run featuring two of Spencer’s 3-pointers, along with a tough layup in transition by Simpson.

At the end of a long passing sequence, Spencer knocked down his fourth 3-pointer of the game with 16 seconds before halftime. That gave Rutgers its first 20-point lead of the game, and the Scarlet Knights hit the locker room ahead 44-24.

Spencer shot 6 for 7 in the half, including 4 for 5 from distance. Rutgers shot 61.5 percent (16 of 26) in the half and turned 12 Central Connecticut turnovers into 16 points.

Amos hit two layups to launch a 9-0 run for the Blue Devils early in the second half, trimming their deficit to 46-35 and prompting Rutgers coach Steve Pikiell to call a timeout.

The Scarlet Knights scored 21 of the next 25 points, including a 13-0 stretch fueled by six points from Omoruyi and Mag’s open 3-pointer.

Simpson pulled off a personal 8-0 run to make it 78-44. He buried 3-pointers on consecutive possessions, then was on the receiving end of a fast-break pass and punctuated the game with a dunk.

Freshman Antwone Woolfolk added a career-high nine points on 4-for-4 shooting for Rutgers, which went on to lead by as many as 37.

–Field Level Media