Three Thoughts on Rutgers Basketball’s win over Penn State
On an emotional senior day, Rutgers Basketball captured a 59-58 win against Penn State at Jersey Mike’s Arena.
Here are three thoughts after the game….
RUTGERS SURVIVES A CLOSE ONE.....
Despite leading by 15 points in the second half, Penn State used a 19-6 run to tie the game at 55 with 1:53 remaining. However, the Nittany Lions were unable to take the lead as Caleb McConnell and Geo Baker sunk clutch free throws to help the Scarlet Knights escape with the win.
“I never thought it was over,” Ron Harper Jr. said. “That’s a really good basketball team. I told these guys, the record doesn’t display how good they actually are. They play tough games night in and night out and a lot of their losses are really tight games like this.”
While it might not have come pretty, Rutgers will take this victory and run all the way to Indianapolis as it finds itself on the bubble with Big Ten foes like Indiana and Michigan breathing down its neck. Although this win might not do a lot to boost their resume, a loss here would have been detrimental for the Scarlet Knights as they look to hear their name called on Selection Sunday.
A GREAT DEFENSIVE EFFORT.....
Despite only coming away with a one-point victory, the fact Rutgers held Penn State to 32 percent from the field and 6-for-24 from three should not be overlooked as it put together a stellar defensive performance. Dean Reiber and Ralph Gonzales-Agee were also tasked with guarding Penn State big man John Harrar for most of the first half as Cliff Omoruyi picked up two fouls in the first 61 seconds of the game and the duo answered the bell as they held him to just seven points.
“It’s a 40-minute game, you just have to win the game and we were able to do that,” head coach Steve Pikiell said. “I think they’re [Penn State] the number one team in the country at playing one-possession games so I told our guys it’s going to be a one-possession game and I certainly didn’t lie to them.”
The Scarlet Knights were also assisted by a little bit of lady luck as Paul Mulcahy turned the ball over on an inbounds pass with 7.2 seconds remaining leading to a missed 3-pointer from Sam Sessions that would have won the game.
AN ODE TO THE SENIORS.....
While the Rutgers faithful would have likely preferred a win where they did not have to sweat so much, this victory almost encapsulates what the program has become under Pikiell and this group of seniors.
“I just look at this league and I know how we’re playing,” Pikiell said. “Not only can we be in that thing [NCAA Tournament], we can win some games too. This is a really good basketball team.”
Whether it was Harper Jr. leading the way with 15 points or Baker and McConnell making clutch free throws, winning by the skin of their teeth only feels like the right way this class could have ended their careers at a place where they helped create so many memories.
Rutgers will look to state its March Madness case even further when it travels to Indianapolis with the double-bye and its highest-ever seed in the Big Ten Tournament at four.
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