The Rutgers Men’s basketball team is coming off a historic season that saw the program reach the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1991. The run to the second round of the tournament made it even sweeter and if it hadn’t been for late offensive struggles, in their game against Houston, Rutgers may have been a second weekend team. Unfortunately, not all of the players are returning from that historic team, but there are a lot of great players returning that could reach even greater heights.
For this season’s team to take another step forward, there are a few things that will need to happen.
CLIFF OMORUYI NEEDS TO BE THE SOPHOMORE SENSATION
With Myles Johnson transferring, Omoruyi will have a gigantic role to play this season. Instead of splitting time with Johnson, like last season, Omoruyi will now be required to take on heavy minutes and be the primary center for the team.
Despite these increased expectations, there is no reason to believe that Omoruyi will not be able to excel in his new role. Coming out of high school, Omoruyi was a star recruit that was coveted by many major programs. His physical tools were second to none and he possessed many basketball skills that most centers take a long time to acquire. This season, Rutgers will need those skills to shine through and I expect to see a big jump in his overall game, from last season.
GET THE BEST VERSIONS OF GEO BAKER AND RON HARPER JR.
These two will most likely lead the team in points and shots this season. There will be a need for them to become as efficient as possible and show that their shooting and finishing abilities will be there game in and game out. When the team struggled offensively, last season, it was usually related to the struggles from Harper Jr. and Baker. This season, with the loss of Jacob Young, their scoring will be even more relied upon.
PAUL MULCAHY NEEDS TO BECOME A HIGH LEVEL POINT GUARD
If you were to look at Mulcahy, you would not think he is built to play point guard, because of his size and frame, but that is in fact what he naturally is. With the departure of Young, Mulcahy will be able to step into this role in an even bigger way. His primary instincts are to pass first and shoot second, and that could fit well with this team. His toughness and leadership will be put to the test this year, but if he can answer the call, he could be a big time point guard for the Scarlet Knights. I expect to see him as the leader in assists for the team and to be high on the leaderboard for the conference.
ROLE PLAYERS WILL NEED TO STEP UP
For this season to be a success, coach Steve Pikiell will need the depth of this team to be a strength and not a weakness. As of right now, there are a lot of question marks on who else will provide meaningful minutes for the team. The players I would initially look to are Caleb McConnell, Jaden Jones, and Aundre Hyatt, but considering McConnell has had his ups and downs, Jones is playing in his first full season, and Hyatt is a transfer to the team, these are not guarantees. Mawot Mag could also be a player to look at, but after playing sparingly last year, he would have to have made big strides in the offseason. It will be interesting to see which of these players or if any of the other players can step in and provide great minutes for coach Pikiell, this season.
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