The Pioneers, who are the top vote-getter in the “Others Receiving Votes” section of the d3hoops.com national Top 25 this week, raised their record to 12-0.
Rutgers-Camden falls to 1-11 with its eighth straight loss.
The Pioneers were sparked by senior center Kris Clarkson (Philadelphia, PA/Overbrook), who collected 28 points and 16 rebounds for his 10th double-double of the season. He had his eighth consecutive double-double by halftime with 12 points and 10 rebounds as Widener built a 46-37 lead by the break.
Widener also received a career-high 30 points from junior guard Essien Ford (Baltimore, MD/Loyola Blakefield), who passed his previous high of 27. Ford went 12-for-19 from the field, including 5-for-9 from three-point range.
Another Pioneer, senior guard Brandon Blakey (Willow Grove, PA/Abington) also set a career high with 10 assists, three more than his previous high.
After the Scarlet Raptors took a 14-11 first-half lead, the Pioneers ran off 13 consecutive points to take the lead for good at 24-14. Clarkson, a 6-foot-7 center who has won four Commonwealth Conference Player of the Week honors so far this season, started the run with consecutive baskets to give Widener the lead for good, 15-14. He had six points in that stretch, while Ford added five.
At halftime, the Pioneers held a 46-37 lead behind 19 points from Ford and 12 from Clarkson. Blakey had six of his assists in the opening 20 minutes.
For Rutgers-Camden, junior guard Dane Nicholson (Pleasantville, NJ/Holy Spirit) had 15 points in the opening half and finished with a team-high 16. Junior forward Drew Bernier (Medford, NJ/Shawnee) had all 11 of his points in the first half to eclipse his previous Rutgers-Camden career high of seven points, accomplished four times.
Freshman guard Wayne Smalls (Camden, NJ/Medical Arts) finished with 12 points for the Scarlet Raptors.
Nicholson’s 16 points lifted him over the 700 career plateau, giving him 703 in his third year with the program.
Widener shot 55.2 percent (37-for-67) from the field, while Rutgers-Camden shot 43.9 (25-for-57). The Pioneers, however, held a 43-23 advantage off the boards led by Clarkson’s 16 rebounds and eight from junior center Terry Smith (York, PA/Spring Grove Area).
The Scarlet Raptors return to action Wednesday at New Jersey City University for an 8 p.m. New Jersey Athletic Conference game.
WIDENER (12-0) Essien Ford 12-19 1-1 30; Kris Clarkson 11-14 6-9 28; Malcolm Thomas 5-13 0-0 11; Terry Smith 3-4 2-2 8; Wyatt Haas 2-4 2-2 6; Ron Michael 2-9 0-0 4; David Douglas 1-2 0-0 2; Matt Sosna 1-1 0-0 2; Nyere Miller 0-0 1-2 1; Daeshawn Branch 0-1 0-0 0; Mike Briscella 0-0 0-0 0; David Clark 0-0 0-0 0; Brooke Tidswell 0-0 0-0 0; Brandon Blakey 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 37-67 12-16 92. RUTGERS-CAMDEN (1-11) Dane Nicholson 6-14 2-4 16; Wayne Smalls 2-8 7-7 12; Drew Bernier 5-8 0-0 11; Antoine Miller 3-7 1-2 7; Amir Fantroyal 3-7 0-0 6; Chris Crenshaw 3-5 0-1 6; Timothy Harris 2-2 0-0 5; Michael Clay 1-6 0-0 2; Khalil Alwan-Bowe 0-0 1-2 1. Totals 25-57 11-16 66. Widener....................... 46 46 - 92 Rutgers-Camden................ 37 29 - 66 3-point goals-Widener 6-15 (Essien Ford 5-9; Malcolm Thomas 1-5; Wyatt Haas 0-1), Rutgers-Camden 5-7 (Dane Nicholson 2-2; Timothy Harris 1-1; Wayne Smalls 1-1; Drew Bernier 1-2; Amir Fantroyal 0-1). Fouled out--Widener-None, Rutgers-Camden-None. Rebounds-Widener 43 (Kris Clarkson 16), Rutgers-Camden 23 (Antoine Miller 4). Assists-Widener 24 (Brandon Blakey 10), Rutgers-Camden 16 (Chris Crenshaw 5). Total fouls-Widener 11, Rutgers-Camden 15. A-80