Unfinished business brought Rutgers seniors back for one more run

Geo Baker (0) and Ron Harper, Jr. (24) both flirted with NBA Draft process, but each returned to Rutgers with unfinished business and larger goals at hand. (Photo by NJ Advance Media)

PISCATAWAY, N.J. — In the wake of Rutgers’ second-round NCAA Tournament loss to Houston, several events transpired that shaped the narrative for the year ahead.

First, Myles Johnson and Jacob Young transferred to the Pac-12, with Johnson enrolling in a graduate engineering program at UCLA while Young headed to Oregon. Shortly thereafter, Montez Mathis took his talents across the Hudson River, opting to spend his final two years with Mike Anderson and St. John’s. Between all the shuffle, the futures of Geo Baker and Ron Harper, Jr., the Scarlet Knights’ top two players, hung in the balance while each tested the NBA Draft waters.

Baker was first to announce his return after an anticipation period lasting most of the spring and summer. Then, after initially leaning toward turning pro, Harper soon followed. The pair, and fourth-year junior Caleb McConnell, had a common denominator in their decisions to remain on the banks:

Unfinished business.

“I think it was a combination of things,” Baker admitted with regard to his offseason decision. “I definitely learned a lot during the process, I went up against some really good players, but (with) the COVID year (and) not ending on a good note, losing that game against Houston, I think those were two things that are important. And I want to take one more crack at it with my brothers. I feel like we have a really good time, and I’m excited to do it.”

“To be honest, I didn’t see myself coming back to Rutgers for my final year,” Harper, the native New Jerseyan, revealed. “I was still always around here working out and playing pickup with the guys, and this team just attracted me like nothing else. I wanted to play for this team, I wanted to play with these guys, and ultimately, I came back because I wanted to be a part of this group one more time. Me and Geo would talk a lot of times about the process and what we wanted to do, and we thought that if we came back and we ran it back one more year, it’d be a truly special year. We both agreed that we’ve got a special group of guys, and we can’t wait to work with them. This season’s gonna be a fun one, and I can’t wait to put my heart on the line every day for these guys.”

Harper was noticeably vocal about how the team bonded in the offseason, citing its impact on the Scarlet Knights being more connected on the floor, which is also a byproduct of head coach Steve Pikiell’s infectious energy that McConnell feels was a major influence in the trio choosing to play in Piscataway.

“I wanted to be a culture changer,” McConnell proudly declared. “I wanted to come here and change the program around, and this is a place that I knew I could win at. If your leader is saying those things and preaching those things, I feel like that’s a big thing, especially when choosing a school.”

“We fell in love with Pike when we came here, and we made a difference. We changed the culture, and now we’re trying to keep it going and raise the bar higher. As a whole, if we set the bar higher, can’t nobody stop us.”

The return of an experienced core, as well as a raucous crowd at the RAC, has players and fans naturally dreaming big on the heels of waters that had not been navigated since 1991. Normally, expectations would be tempered for a group of this ilk, but with Pikiell being the first to embrace the lofty goals, his players have once again followed suit in the latest affirmation of trust in their leader.

“I’ve been here at Rutgers through it all,” said Harper. “We finished 12th when I got here my freshman year, so it’s just come full circle. I believed in Coach Pikiell’s vision just because of that. He told me he was going to bring this group back to the NCAA Tournament. He did, and we have so much more to accomplish.”

“Being able to share that with the guys that were here last year is an honor, but everybody in this room will tell you that we wanted to go further. And we will go further this year. We have high expectations for ourselves and each other, and we’re going to have a great year.”

Baker, perhaps the owner of the grandest scale on the team, has an even bigger stage on his agenda.

“I think that’s something that’ll be great for everybody to get that experience, (for) fans and players to really feel the love and the environment,” he said. “But we’re not even thinking NCAA Tournament, we’re thinking national championship. That’s what we really want to do.”