Rutgers Basketball is looking to get back in the win column today as they welcome Penn State to town for another Big Ten Conference game.
Before tipoff happens later today, let's look at some of the numbers behind this year's Nittany Lions team.
OFFENSE....
After a spectacular season last year which included a tournament win for the first time in 22 years Penn State is back to playing mediocre basketball. They’ve started out with a lackluster record of 9-11 and are just above Michigan for last in the Big Ten. New coach Mike Rhoades has struggled in his transition to power 5 basketball during their disappointing season.
Penn State’s offense has been middle of the road so far this year. Despite their struggles they still average 76.3 points per game which is good for top 100 in the country. They also put up 61.4 field goal attempts a game which ranks 58th in the nation. Other than that they struggle in most offensive categories including ranking 249th in assists a game with 11.9 and ranking 308th in rebounds a game with 32.9.
The Nittany Lions run an eight man rotation so they also don’t have much depth coming off their bench. They only have two players who play over 30 minutes a game and that is both their leading scorers. Penn State's bench production is a product of their record, they struggle to score consistently when their starting five isn’t in.
Leading the way offensively for Penn State is Sophomore guard Kanye Clary who leads the team with 18.4 points per game. Fellow guard member Ace Baldwin Jr. is second on the team in scoring with 13.2 points per game and he leads the team with 4.9 assists. Senior big man Qudus Wahab averages 9.3 points per game and leads the team with 7.9 rebounds per game. Finally, juniors Nick Kern Jr. and D’Marco Dunn finish off the starting five averaging a respectable 8.1 and 6.7 points per game.
DEFENSE...
As bad as some of the offensive numbers look for the Nittany Lions their defensive numbers are a lot worse. They give up a putrid 74.8 points per game on defense which ranks as good as 229th in the nation. They also allow their opponent to shoot 46% from the field which ranks 290th.
Penn State also allows 38.5 rebounds per game which ranks at 316 in the country. This high number of rebounds allowed is most likely due to the fact that they play four guards in their starting lineup. Opposing teams seem to bully them on the boards.
The key for Rutgers to win this game is to out aggressive Penn State. As long as the Scarlet Knights stick to their tough defensive gameplan they should give the Nittany Lions trouble all night.
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