Geo Baker’s dunk in waning moments of second half was dagger for Rutgers Wednesday night in win over Indiana. (Photo by Noah K. Murray/USA Today Sports Images)
PISCATAWAY, N.J. — In order for Rutgers to truly prove itself worthy of the postseason berth that many scarlet-bleeding fans have allowed themselves to start dreaming into existence later than usual on the banks of the old Raritan, one more valuable characteristic had to be displayed Wednesday night.
Yes, the State University of New Jersey’s basketball program has already looked the part in victories such as last month's demolition of in-state rival Seton Hall — who has turned the loss into its latest phoenix-like reincarnation with seven straight wins since that seminal moment at the RAC — and last week's convincing, winning-going-away triumph over Penn State. Impressive as those were, Rutgers needed to show not only could it take a punch from a heavyweight opponent, especially on the heels of a hard-fought loss on the road last Saturday against Illinois, but also respond by throwing a harder shot in return.
Indiana, the bluest of blueblood programs in the Big Ten Conference despite its crimson and cream hues, was willing to oblige.
Spotting Rutgers a 12-0 head start, the Hoosiers fought their way back into the game, and even forged a lead of their own as the first half drew to a close. Ron Harper, Jr. had other ideas, however, quickly swinging the pendulum back for good on a 3-pointer that kick-started an 18-2 run bridging the last four minutes of the opening stanza with the first four after the intermission, the difference in a gritty 59-50 decision Wednesday, one that has come to define the style with which Steve Pikiell has coached going back to his time on Long Island, when the affable Jim Calhoun disciple built Stony Brook from the ground up.
“This league is all about taking punches,” Pikiell admitted after Rutgers (13-4, 4-2 Big Ten) returned to the win column by yielding its lowest point total to an opposing Big Ten team in his tenure. “Twelve teams in the top 35 (of the NET rankings), it’s a gauntlet. We took a good punch — we knew they would — and we responded well, and we took another punch and stayed in the ring. Our guys are getting better at responding to runs from other teams, so it was a good feeling, but our guys were all locked in today.”
“It just shows that we’re determined,” Akwasi Yeboah countered. “We don’t go away easily, we have a lot of toughness about us that helps us get over the hump when we need to.”
But would last year's iteration of the Scarlet Knights be able to orchestrate such a powerful victory and resume the offensive after being knocked down?
“We beat Indiana last year,” Geo Baker — who made his return after missing three games with a thumb injury — began before ultimately illustrating how far this group has come by saying, “but I don’t think so.”
Such a distinct change in culture can be attributed to the man responsible for the shift in on-court success, that being Pikiell, whose hardscrabble background was honed in a family of nine siblings before even seeing the court competitively. And although he is reticent by nature, choosing merely to focus on the next game at hand, his approach is not lost on the young men in whom his spirit lives and is subsequently carried out.
“He’s a hard worker,” Yeboah said, praising Pikiell’s nonstop commitment to excellence. “This guy’s always watching film, he brings guys in to watch film with you. Honestly, I think he doesn’t sleep. But he believes and trusts in us, and he puts us in positions to be successful.”
In recent years, a punch like the Illinois loss would have been a downward spiral for Rutgers. Now it serves as motivation, and a testimonial for the latest facet of an NCAA Tournament-caliber team.
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