Geo Baker might have been wearing a black shirt and black pants and not in uniform on the bench injured with a broken left thumb during Rutgers’ 72-61 win against No. 20 Penn State at the RAC on Tuesday, but he still had a major impact.

Baker was a cheerleader of sorts from the sidelines. He was into the game even though he wasn’t actually playing.

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The Scarlet Knights found themselves down by five at halftime after trailing by as many as 10, but they outscored the Nittany Lions 44-28 in the game’s final 20 minutes of action, leading by as much as 14 in the last few minutes. Penn State coach Pat Chambers credited Rutgers’ ability to attack the glass and being physical. Rutgers coach Steve Pikiell said the team played “Rutgers Basketball” as they rebounded, defended, and everyone played a part.

But before all of that, Baker provided an emotional life at halftime as he talked during the team during the break.

“He’s our fearless leader,” said Ron Harper Jr, who finished with a game-high 22 points, of Baker, a captain. “Just because he’s hurt and doesn’t have a jersey on doesn't mean he’s going to take a backseat. He’s still in our ear and he still believes in us. We’re lucky to have Geo.”

Rutgers entered the season with expectations from fans to make the postseason in some capacity for the first time since the 2005-06 season when it made the NIT. Earlier this season, Rutgers already beat the likes of Seton Hall and Wisconsin, two Quadrant 1 wins, but a third was achievable against the Nittany Lions.

However, there was work to do for Rutgers after the break, and the Scarlet Knights got a jolt from Baker according to Myles Johnson, who had 10 points and five rebounds, and Jacob Young, who tallied 13 points.

“Geo definitely gave us a motivational speech. It really helped,” Johnson said.

“(Baker’s) message was basically if we want to be special, if we want this season to be the season everyone is talking about, we have to pull this out and play hard and play together. It was passionate. He’s not going to yell. He knows we can do well. It was more like a coach. He was like another coach. I told him he should wear a suit with a whiteboard.”

Added Young: “He keeps a positive edge. He tells us we can get this team.”

The win propelled Rutgers to a 12-3 overall record and a 3-1 mark within Big Ten Conference.

It is Rutgers’ best start through 15 games since 1975-76. That team went undefeated in the regular season and made the Final Four. The Scarlet Knights are also two games over .500 in conference play since February of 2002 (7-5) and is 3-1 since 1994-95 as a member of the Atlantic 10 Conference when they started 4-1.

The 12-3 start is Pikiell’s best record through 15 games as a head coach and is Rutgers is the country’s lone unranked team to have two double-digit triumphs over teams ranked inside the AP Top 25 so far. That’s the first time Rutgers has done so in program history.

And for good measure, the Scarlet Knights are 11-0 at home.

Even without Baker’s presence on the court in terms of playing, guys are stepping up all over the place in many ways.

“When Geo got hurt - you never want to see anyone get hurt - but we told each other it’s an opportunity for everybody and it’s next man up,” Harper said. “This guy sitting to my left, he’s done a tremendous job. He’s going to keep better and you haven’t seen the real Jacob Young yet.”

“The way we’re playing now, the way we’re playing defense and sharing the game, when Geo comes back it’ll all be that much sweeter.”

Follow Chris Nalwasky on Twitter @ChrisWasky.