The magic carpet ride continued for Rutgers Basketball as it defeated No. 12 Illinois 70-59 to capture its fourth straight win against an AP-ranked team.
A HISTORIC RUN
They say history is written by the winners and right now Rutgers (16-9, 10-5 Big Ten) is writing history with each win. Not only did the Scarlet Knights improve upon their previous record of three straight wins against ranked teams, but they set the benchmark in college basketball history becoming the first unranked team to knock off four straight ranked opponents.
“These guys take a lot of pride and have all gotten better,” head coach Steve Pikiell said. “I think they’re all defending and playing hard and that’s what we need to do, it’s a blue-collar group and they play that way but they practice well every day.”
While there are still five games remaining, if the season ended today Rutgers would likely find itself in the NCAA Tournament which is a far cry from where it was following its loss to Northwestern. The Scarlet Knights have also found themselves 1.5 games back of first place in the Big Ten which is not something even their most prudent supporter would have predicted a couple weeks ago.
CLIFF OMORUYI COMES UP BIG
In a season that has had its share of ups and downs, Cliff Omoruyi has been Rutgers’ most consistent player and this matchup showed why he may soon find himself as one of the best big men in the conference. Not only did he record another double-double with 15 points and 13 rebounds, but he went toe-to-toe with one of the best the Big Ten has to offer in Kofi Cockburn and held his own.
“He’s just getting better and throw the tape on from last year and look at how far he’s come defensively,” Pikiell continued. “He plays outstanding defense and played an elite player."
As good as Omoruyi has been, perhaps the most intriguing aspect of his game is that he still has room to improve. As Illinois head coach Brad Underwood left his postgame press conference he commented he hopes Omoruyi declares for the NBA Draft. Well, if Omoruyi keeps this up then soon enough that wish might become a reality.
RUTGERS PUMMELS ILLINOIS ON THE BOARDS
If one wants to get a read on which team wanted it more, look no further than the rebounding totals. While the Fighting Illini (18-7, 11-4 Big Ten) came in as a top-ranked rebounding team, the Scarlet Knights crushed them on the boards 46-28.
“I told you guys I like this team and I think you’re starting to see that they get along great,” Pikiell said. “They share the game the right way.”
Along with Omoruyi’s 13 rebounds, Ron Harper Jr. tallied eight and Caleb McConnell had seven. Aundre Hyatt also came off the bench and pulled down five boards as the Scarlet Knights took the fight to the Fighting Illini and landed the knockout blow.
Rutgers will look to make it five in a row when it travels to Mackey Arena to take on Purdue on Sunday at 5:30 p.m. (ET) on BTN.
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