On Tuesday night, the Rutgers men's basketball fell to Pittsburgh, 71-60, in its first true road game of the season at the Petersen Events Center.
Rutgers got cold in the waning minutes of the first half, but came out fast after the break to take a minor two-point lead. But, Pittsburgh got hot led by as much as 13.
With the loss, Rutgers falls to 6-2 while the Panthers improve to 7-2.
THE GOOD — REBOUNDING/CHOP
THE SKINNY: Rutgers controlled the boards and out-rebounded Pittsburgh, 40-33, including pulling down 16 on the offensive side. Despite trailing by eight at halftime at 35-27, Rutgers used an 10-0 run to knot the score to take a 39-37 lead as it got the ball into the lane and turned up the defense. You can the Scarlet Knights "kept choppin'". However, Pitt would go back ahead with a 13-0 burst. Late in the game, Rutgers, again, showed some fight to cut it down to seven, but Pitt's Eric Hamilton hit a dagger jumper in the paint.
THE BAD — FOULING/TURNOVERS/FORCED SHOTS/3-POINT SHOOTING
THE SKINNY: The Scarlet Knights were call for six fouls in less than eight minutes of play to open the game and Pitt was in the bonus at the 7:45 mark. However, some penalties were picky, including one on Caleb McConnell where he was elbowed in the face yet he was called for an infraction. Rutgers also struggled in the turnover department, racking up a whopping 20 for the game. It had 11 in the first half alone. Pitt was able to score 28 points of those mistakes which went a long way in the Panthers winning the contest. Rutgers shot well very early on, but went cold as the opening half went along as it started chucking up poor shots. The offensive flow went awry. The Scarlet Knights shot just 4-of-23 from behind the arc.
GAME BALL — MYLES JOHNSON
THE SKINNY: When Rutgers was at its best on Tuesday, Johnson was a big part of it. Johnson, at times, was active and a force in the paint, pulling down strong rebounds and scoring second-chance points. He finished with a double-double with 14 points on 7-of-8 shooting and a career-high 14 rebounds. Eight of his 14 boards were on the offensive glass. He didn't commit his first foul until 7:10 left in the game.
PLAY OF THE GAME: Pitt's Xavier Johnson breaks McConnell's ankles with a little under five minutes remaining. Credit to Rutgers, though, as Akwasi Yeboah hit a tough 3-pointer from the left corner moments later. Ron Harper Jr. stole a pass and slammed it home injecting a little life into Rutgers, too, with a few minutes to go.
UP NEXT: Rutgers continues its a tough stretch as it will now travel to East Lansing, MI this Sunday (12/8) to take on No. 11 Michigan State. You can watch it on BTN (Big Ten Network) starting at 7:00 p.m.
