Rutgers Women’s Basketball Comeback Effort Falls Just Short Against Auburn

The Rutgers women’s basketball team returned to Jersey Mike’s Arena this week. The Scarlet Knights sit at 4-2 after a tight 51–46 loss at Auburn on November 20. It's a game that showed both their grit and the glaring offensive challenges they need to clean up quickly. Auburn, now 6-0, used timely runs to hold Rutgers off, handing the Knights their first real setback of the year.

Rutgers Women's Basketball Returning Home

Rutgers now settles back into a very home-heavy early schedule. That includes 10 home games across the first two months. They opened the season with five home contests before the Auburn trip and will play four more at Jersey Mike’s Arena before a December 10 visit to Princeton. They host Lafayette on December 20 and then move into Big Ten play with their December 28 matchup at Michigan State. It mirrors last year’s early stretch, when Rutgers opened 8-3.

Fought hard till the end @Prudential #GoRU | #RUWBB | #NextLevel pic.twitter.com/TKUwI3KSDa
— Rutgers W.Basketball (@RutgersWBB) November 21, 2025

The Knights finally return home on Monday, November 24. It's when they host Siena at 7 p.m. in a game that doubles as Knightflix Movie Night. Fans can watch on B1G+ or tune in on Fox Sports Radio.

The conversation, however, remains centered on what went wrong at Auburn. The five-point defeat was defined by long offensive droughts and a comeback that fell just short. Both teams started slowly, but Auburn’s Khady Leye struck first with 6 early points.

Rutgers countered behind sophomore guard and forward Zachara Perkins. She scored 9 in the early push. Graduate student guard Kaylah Ivey hit a deep, contested three over former Knight Mya Petticord, helping Rutgers secure a 2-point edge after one quarter.

The second quarter flipped the momentum completely. Rutgers opened the frame with a small run, only to go silent for 8 minutes and 20 seconds from the field. Their only points came at the free-throw line. Auburn used the drought to erase the deficit and tie the game by halftime.

The Fight, the Drought, and the Final Seconds

A disastrous third quarter made the comeback even harder. Auburn stormed out with an 8–0 run, building a 16-point lead as Rutgers continued to struggle from the field. The Knights finally broke a 13-minute field-goal drought. Especially with a layup from junior forward Nene Ndiaye at the 1:39 mark. That single bucket ignited an 8-0 Rutgers response, trimming the Tigers’ lead to eight heading into the fourth.

The surge continued. Rutgers opened the final quarter with a 6–0 run, and Ivey’s mid-range jumper cut the deficit to just 3 points with under four minutes left.

But the final minute and a half told a different story. Ivey committed a costly turnover with 1:17 remaining, followed by a missed deep attempt. Petticord delivered the final blow with a layup with 10 seconds left. That pushed Auburn back ahead by five and sealed the result.

Perkins finished with a team-high 15 points, while Ndiaye added 12 points and eight rebounds, showing the level of toughness Rutgers will need in Big Ten play. The contest featured five lead changes and three ties, proof that Rutgers stayed close, close enough to win.

The Knights now look toward Thanksgiving weekend, when they host Northeastern on November 28 and Saint Peter’s on November 30, hoping to regain momentum before conference battles begin.