In a game where they nearly blew a 17 point lead in the second half, Rutgers was able to hold on and beat Purdue by a final score of 70-63. With the win, the Scarlet Knights remain undefeated at the RAC with a 15-0 record as well as improve to an overall record of 16-5 and 7-3 in conference play. The Scarlet Knights are currently in sole possession of second place in the Big Ten standings.
Here are three thoughts after the game:
KOBE BRYANT TRIBUTE
Prior to the game, the RAC held a moment of silence for Kobe and Gianna Bryant as well as the seven other people in John Altobelli, Keri Altobelli, Alyssa Altobelli, Christina Mauser, Sarah Chester, Payton Chester, and Ara Zobayan who tragically passed away on Jan. 26 in Calabasas, California due to a helicopter crash. In addition, Rutgers paid tribute to Kobe Bryant by sporting warm up jerseys that displayed his face on the front and the numbers 8 and 24 on the back. A couple of Bryant jerseys could be seen in the student section as well and five-time NBA champion and former teammate of Bryant in Ron Harper Sr. could be seen in the crowd cheering on his son Ron Harper Jr. who also wears the same number that the Lakers legend once wore in 24.
“Anytime something like that happens it’s just awful, I have a 13-year-old son and he loves Kobe too,” Rutgers Head Coach Steve Pikiell said in his postgame press conference. “These guys grew up idolizing Kobe Bryant and Ron had a personal connection to him but you know it’s just tough, it makes you appreciate life.”
THE RAC REMAINS UNDEFEATED
In their program-record fifth straight sell-out at the RAC, Rutgers was able to keep their undefeated streak at home alive by putting Purdue into a 17 point hole in the second half that the Boilermakers managed to cut to three but just weren’t able to completely climb out of.
“Since I got here they’ve been great, you walk around campus now and the students have been great they’re all very important,” Pikiell said in regards to the Rutgers community. “In the league every team has a huge home court advantage because they have all venues like that and we now have that.”
With the loss, Purdue drops to an overall record of 11-10 and 4-6 in conference play as well as remains winless on the road for the season.
“It’s difficult to play everywhere in this league,” Purdue Head Coach Matt Pinter said in his postgame press conference. “The guy I played for Gene Keady used to talk about ‘if you expect to win on the road you got to be 10 points better’ and this is definitely a place like that.”
HISTORIC WIN
With the win, Rutgers not only earned their first victory over Purdue since joining the Big Ten, but it marked their first win against the Boilermakers since 1975 as well. In addition, the Scarlet Knights have their most victories in a season since 2005-06 and are now four games over .500 in conference play for the first time since the 1998-99 season when they were members of the Big East.
“It’s a journey, I say to these guys all the time ‘embrace the moment,’” Pikiell said. “I thought Geo had his best practice yesterday that he’s had and I think practice is so important.”
Rutgers will return to action on Saturday when they travel to Madison Square Garden to take on Michigan at 4:30 p.m. (ET) on BTN.
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