ROSEMONT, Ill. -- Although Rutgers is 3-0 for the first time in eight years, Steve Pikiell isnt ready to make any declarations about his team just yet.Weve got a long ways to go, the first-year coach said. Im happy weve got to a good start, but it doesnt mean a whole heck of a lot to me, honestly.Were just trying to get these guys in the mode of defending and rebounding. It helps you win basketball games.Corey Sanders had 15 points, Mike Williams added 14 and nine rebounds and the Scarlet Knights used the defense-and-rebounding formula for a 66-59 victory over DePaul in the Gavitt Tip-Off Games on Thursday night.Deshawn Freeman added nine points and nine rebounds as the Scarlet Knight built a 46-27 rebounding edge.Eli Cain had 24 points on 8-for-13 shooting to lead DePaul.Billy Garrett had just five points for the Blue Demons (1-1) on 1-for-11 shooting before fouling out with more than eight minutes remaining.I can get a little bit concerned because its the second game in a row where hes got in foul trouble and hasnt shot the ball well, DePaul coach Dave Leitao said.You cant be talked about as one of the top seven, eight or nine best players in the (Big East) and not play well. Thats something we have to figure out.DePaul freshman Devin Gage suffered a right shoulder injury when he fell hard to the court with just under 12 minutes left. He did not return.Rutgers took control with a 12-2 run for a 31-22 lead. The Scarlet Knights had a 33-26 halftime advantage.Both teams shot poorly in the first half, but the difference for Rutgers was an 11-0 edge in second-chance points and a 29-8 first-half rebounding advantage.The Scarlet Knights continued to expand the lead at the beginning of the second half and took a 54-32 advantage (their biggest of the game) on a basket by Shaquille Doorson with 10:39 to play.I thought our guys were kind of locked in and did a really good job defensively, Pikiell said. Weve become a much improved defensive team and were a good rebounding team.DePaul made a furious late rally using pressure to pull within six points in the final minute, but dug too deep a hole.I think the beginning of the second half killed us, Cain said. We really couldnt get anything good on the offensive end.BIG PICTURERutgers: Although the Scarlet Knights are unbeaten, its way too early to tell whether the program is on the rebound. So far, the competition has been underwhelming (Molloy, Drexel and DePaul) and there was plenty not to like about this performance. Still, the defense and rebounding provide a good foundation to build upon.DePaul: The Blue Demons dont have a lot of offensive firepower to begin with, so scoring is especially difficult when Garrett has a poor shooting night. The lack of a post presence put all the pressure to provide offense on Cain, who had 21 points in the opener against Robert Morris.OLD FRIENDSPikiell and Leitao both were assistants under former Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun. Pikiell also played for Calhoun at UConn.Dave Leitao is like my hero, Pikiell said. He was my coach at UConn, I worked with him, he was mentor and I know what a great coach he is.UP NEXTRutgers looks to stay unbeaten when it hosts Niagara on Sunday.DePaul plays the second of three straight home games Sunday against Milwaukee. DeMarcus Ware Youth Jersey . -- About a third of the way through the regular season, the Washington Wizards are at . Phillip Lindsay Womens Jersey . Nigeria beat surprise package Ethiopia 2-0 in the second leg of their playoff for a comfortable 4-1 aggregate victory. Victor Moses converted a 20th-minute penalty after an Ethiopian handball, and Victor Obinna made certain of Nigerias place in Brazil with his powerful free kick in the 82nd at UJ Esuene Stadium. http://www.broncosrookiestore.com/Broncos-Terrell-Davis-Jersey/ . After Gasquet beat fifth-seeded Ivan Dodig of Croatia 7-5, 6-3, Tsonga followed up with a 6-7 (3), 6-2, 6-2 win against sixth-seeded Edouard Roger-Vasselin in an all-French match. John Elway Womens Jersey . General manager Jarmo Kekalainen told Aaron Portzline of The Columbus Dispatch on Friday that he wants to see Gaboriks contributions go beyond the scoresheet before considering a long-term deal for the soon-to-be unrestricted free agent. Drew Lock Youth Jersey . Louis Blues teammates who would also be participating in the Olympics, Alex Pietrangelo felt right at home, no different in some ways to the travel experience of any old road trip – save for the length of the journey, that is. KINGSTON, R.I. -- After coasting through its first two games, No. 21 Rhode Island finally played a team that wasnt out of contention by halftime.Jared Terrell scored 18 points and E.C. Matthews added 17 as the Rams staved off upset-minded Brown on Wednesday night in Round Two of the Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off.This is the first time we got challenged since weve been on the court, Rams coach Dan Hurley said. Its the first time we were in something tight where we had to make some plays.Some mind-boggling things went on. We got out-hustled. I think we were a little full of ourselves today and this was the perfect opponent for us to get upset. Can this be a positive for us? Yes.Steven Spieth paced the Bears (1-2) with 21 points while Brandon Anderson added 16. Hassan Martin added 12 points for the Rams (3-0).We knew we would be challenged and that if we took care of the ball we would have had a chance, Brown coach Mike Martin said. In a game like this, every possession is critical and we had a few empty chances in the second half.After trailing 36-21 in the first half, Brown pulled within 41-33 at intermission as Spieth scored six points in the last 27 seconds.Obviously Im happy to survive the game, Hurley said. My hats off to Mike and his team. He had his guys really ready to play.They were really scrappy. I thought Spieth was the best player on the court. On our end Im disappointed because we had several chances in the first half to extend it and get away like we did in our first two games.Even though Rhode Island shot 57.7 percent from the field in the second half, the fact Brown switched from man-to-man to a zone defense still gave the Rams trouble.At one point Brown trailed 58-53 before Martin and Matthews ignited a rally that enabled Rhode Island to pull away.Great teams at that point get separation, Hurley said of his teams first-half play. I have much respect for the way their guys shhowed up and competed.ddddddddddddBIG PICTUREBrown: The Bears tied for last last season in the Ivy League. But they may have delivered a message that this scenario wont be repeated after they upset Niagara 77-67 in their home opener on Nov. 13 and played Rhode Island tough on Wednesday.Rhode Island: Season-opening routs of Dartmouth and Marist enabled the Rams to move up two spots in the Top 25 poll, to No. 21. Logic dictates their road will become more difficult to traverse as the season progresses.POLL IMPLICATIONS: At the least the Rams didnt hurt their standings in the poll but how much this hard-fought victory will enable them to move up is debatable.HIGHLIGHT REEL: Martin continues to guard his teams basket like it contains the crown jewels as he blocked six shots which gave him a total of 262. That number ranks second among all active NCAA Division I players.TURNING POINT: The Bears had sliced their deficit from 15 points to 58-55 with 10:39 left in regulation. But Martin blunted that rally by sandwiching a dunk and a tip-in around a free throw by Matthews.FRESHMAN STANDOUT: Browns Anderson, who had only scored three points in his first two games, finished with 16 points and four rebounds with four steals.UP NEXTBrown should be favored when it faces Marist on Saturday in the Springfield Bracket of the Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off at the Mohegan Sun Arena. The Red Foxes opened their season with a 94-49 loss to No. 1 Duke and a 107-65 defeat by Rhode Island.Rhode Island will face its most challenging, early season opponent on Saturday when it plays No. 24 Cincinnati in the Naismith Bracket of the Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off at the Mohegan Sun Arena. The Bearcats have won their first two games, outscoring Albany and Brown by an average score of 79-53. ' ' '