Geo Baker dazzles again in Rutgers victory over the Buckeyes
Three games ago, Geo Baker scored zero points in 38 minutes in an overtime loss on the road against Northwestern.
Since then, he scored 12 points on 4-for-7 shooting (3-of-6 on 3-pointers) in Rutgers Men's Basketball's win over No. 13 Michigan State, and he also netted a game-high 25 points on Wednesday in the Scarlet Knights' upset victory against No. 16 Ohio State.
Baker went 9-of-14 from the floor including 3-of-7 from long range. He made all four of his free throws as well.
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“That was an old fashioned Geo night, 25 points," Rutgers head coach Steve Pikiell said. "Down the stretch he was confident. The fact that he had zero turnovers is a huge stat. But we had to guard people today too. And when we had to we were able to get it done. Geo had one of those nights, the guys got him the ball. We do a really good job."
Baker's season-high point total helped Rutgers achieve back-to-back wins over ranked teams for the first time since 2008 when Rutgers knocked-off No. 18 Villanova and No. 13 Pittsburgh. Rutgers is now 3-1 this season against ranked foes and 3-0 against ranked Big Ten teams. The Scarlet Knights are 12-2 at Jersey Mike's Arena this season.
“We’re making history, and I’ve said that for five years since I got here. It’s true," Baker said. "Everybody came here to play against Michigan State, Ohio State, and others. None of us really got recruited by those schools, so we have a chip on our shoulders. We just want to win and go down in Rutgers history.”
Rutgers ended the game on a 10-0 run with eight points courtesy of Baker. Ohio State had an eight-point lead with 3:48 to go, but didn't score again. Baker made two foul shots with 3:07 to go. He added another driving layup with 2:33 left, and after a key block by Caleb McConnell, hit a jump shot with 2:03 to go to make it a two point game. Baker assisted on Cliff Omoruyi's game-tying dunk with 1:13 remaining, and then gave Rutgers the lead at 66-64 with two free throws with 18 seconds left.
“I was telling myself that I’m home and nobody can touch me," Baker said. "People can talk, but it’s my basket and I’m at home. I had to make the shots.”
The senior guard got going with a 3-pointer that banked off the backboard to tie the game early at 11-11. He made his next 3-pointer as well in transition. The Derry, N.H. native also had six assists, three rebounds, and two blocks, including the game-sealing one with a second remaining.
“The past couple games it was (Paul Mulcahy's) night, (Ron Harper Jr.'s) been one of the best players I’ve ever played with. Caleb makes plays, and Cliff didn’t miss a shot today. It was just my night tonight and my teammates were finding me. They were telling me to keep it going. I was just trying to make plays so we could win.”
Baker now sits in 11th place on the all-time scoring list at Rutgers. He moved past Roy Hinson last night.
“Someone just told me that. It’s crazy," Baker said. "I didn’t even know. I was 17 points away I think and I had no idea. It’s super special. We’re trying to make history.”
Omoruyi finished with 13 points on the night on 6-fo-6 shooting. Mulcahy also had 12 points. As a team, Rutgers shot 53.2% and was 11-for-14 from the free-throw line.
Last time out, the Scarlet Knights shot a blistering 61.54% against Michigan State. They also shot 52% in the second half against Northwestern a few games ago.
“Geo scoring 25 and Paul scoring 31 the other night help a great deal, but they’re sharing the game and passing the ball and getting downhill to the rim," Pikiell said. "Just attacking more and getting big touches. This team keeps evolving, our spacing is better."
Rutgers continues to climb out of the hole it dug itself with early season struggles and losses to the likes of DePaul, UMass, and Lafayette, which was the killer. The ranked home wins help, but the Scarlet Knights are continuing to learn from those previous contests.
"It’s always a 40-minute fight. We’ve had games where we had bad first halves, and some games where we lost by single digits like two points. It’s the little things," Baker said. "Every play counts. Those losses have helped us get to where we’re. Yeah we should have won some of the games that we lost, but we had to win this one too. It’s a long season and we understand that. We continue to grow.”
Everybody can get caught up in NET Rankings, KenPom ratings, and Bracketology, but the season is a grind and full of opportunity.
“The journey is the fun part," Baker said. "That’s everybody, us, the fans, you just have to take it one game at a time. It’s a long season. Every year you’ll face some kind of adversity, and the best teams find a way through it.”
The Scarlet Knights next gets No. 14 Wisconsin on Saturday in Madison. The gauntlet continues. Rutgers then plays No. 13 Illinois at home before traveling to No. 3 Purdue and Michigan. The Scarlet Knights then face Wisconsin again, a previously ranked Indiana squad on the road, and Penn State at home to round out the regular season.
“We're just trying to take it one game at a time, and now we’re onto the next one," Baker said. “Who we got next, Wisconsin? That’s all I’m looking at. They’re a good team, so we have to get ready for that.”
Follow Chris Nalwasky on Twitter @ChrisNalwasky.
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