GAME 3 NJIT: Improvement yet....

[bac2therac]

OK lets just start with the good

Its a win. Rutgers is 3-0. RU has played some very uneven basketball to start the season and at times has looked like a team lacking confidence especially with their shot. Tonight we saw some of them yet Rutgers did shoot better overall at 42% and showed their most aggression offensively of the first 3 games. So while trailing yet again, RU went on a 20-10 burst to start the 2nd half where they finally started to at least look like the team we thought they could be. It was not pretty overall and NJIT still was left open for some 3s and clawed back within 6 but RU held sway with a big run to the end the game and won going away. That is a big positive. RU finished the game strong. They won the 2nd half 43-28

Welcome to the 2021-2022 season Geo Baker! Geo brought it tonight...8-10 shooting, 3-4 from 3, 19 points and 4 assists. Geo doesnt have to put up those numbers every night but as a 5th senior he has to bring the energy and aggressiveness we saw tonight. I know he took a lot of flack from posters on the board and I have no trouble with my criticism of him the first 2 games, Geo wasnt bringing it like he should have and he got called out. Tonight was a step up to the Geo we know he can be. He will be counted on even more as we hit the road. Ron Harper has been off to a fantastic start, his 3rd straight double double, 21 points/13 boards and while his overall shooting percentage wasnt so hot, he was involved everywhere. You cannot discount how important its going to be for him to make up for the rebounding loss of Myles Johnson. Its been weak competition but thus far Ron is embracing that challenge.

Paul and Caleb are leaving me exasperated as is Pike's handling of the situation. I dont know if I can add more to this than everyone has seen with their own eyes. Perhaps Paul later in the 2nd half we saw some glimpse that he may be emerging from darkness. A couple of baskets and boards, those kind of things help. Caleb takes one step forward and two back. I dont like his mindset at all. I dont know if Pike is giving him free reign but IMO its hamstringing the development of the team. We need to get Hyatt and Jones integrated as quick as possible to add offensive firepower. Hyatt looked good early but his shot wasnt on. Still he contributed defensively with 6 boards and 3 blocks, taking another step hopefully to the starting lineup. Jaden got the T and rode the pine, message sent but Pike has to trust him more. We cant have Paul and Caleb forcing shots all over the court and expect to be successful.

Cliff was so good in the first two games but so out of it tonight, I know he got kicked in the jewels early in the game but he should have dominated against NJIT and I worry that we are not developing his shot other than a dunk.

All in all it was still good for everyone to get a win knowing that if you put your head down and work hard good things will happen. Again only a weak NJIT but tonight was tangible improvement.

But don't ask me to evaluate where we are. Again its baby steps. I am having a pretty tough time getting a read on this team. Last recap I threw my hands up in the air and asked alot of questions. I am not sure many questions were answered and in fact I am still grasping for simple answers. I think the one thing I am learning is that this team is a definite work in progress to use that cliche. What their ceiling is, its still unknown? Starting to get the impression that perhaps there is just not enough on this team to be a top half Big 10 team. We have some talent, we have young talent but we have a bunch of limited players who are what they are. This team will have to relearn EVERYTHING they knew. There is no JY to bail them out when they are struggling on offense. There is no Myles that will dominate the paint and rebound at will. They will have to bring their lunch pails EVERY day. Pounding nails, if you thought they did that couple of years ago, its how they are going to have to do it this year. At this juncture, it does not look like their is much cohesiveness or collective team purpose. Players seem to be on different pages, trying to do totally different things and each coming with a different level of emotion. A lot of the play seems to revolve around each player working out their own kinks and demons. Whether it be Geo finally getting his shot together, Paul pressing, or Caleb trying to do too much. There seems to be a lot of issues to work on before we can even get to this team being able to gel and put forth a solid 40 minutes. This team has a pretty big journey ahead of them

At this point I think a step back of expectations until we see how they fair in a huge test at De Paul. This game should give us a better idea of just where the lineup is headed and its looking like it might be a short rotation for some of these bigger games. We see players like Reiber, Mag and Miller riding the pine or seeing little minutes. Jones technical aside still is not receiving enough minutes yet. I know Pike wants Paul and Caleb to work through their troubles but that might come with a price and I hope it doesnt come on Thursday. Its imperative that Rutgers get off to a better start than in the previous 3 games and if they think they can get by with turning on the juice in the 2nd half, they are going to be on the receiving end of a blowout.

 

[rutger80]

Good wrap up. If you've watched our games, then watched SH-Michigan, you'd say uh-oh. Doesn't look like we have the quickness or intensity at this point compared to those teams.

 

[goru7]

Good wrap up. If you've watched our games, then watched SH-Michigan, you'd say uh-oh. Doesn't look like we have the quickness or intensity at this point compared to those teams.

Michigan did not look quick or athletic and despite their blowing an 11 point lead in the second half , failing terribly to get the ball to Dickinson , they are definitely not as good as past years. Their heralded freshman Houston did nothing and their other role players did nothing. Their new transfer point guard is not great. I am a happy camper and looking forward to playing this Michigan team.

 

[goru7]

Lots of good things from Geo and Ron and I hope that they both got the message that we need that consistently to make hay this year. Everybody else did not look so good . Cliff and Andre did not do enough tonight to establish their presence. We had an Agee sighting tonight for some good minutes. Paul and Geo are in terrible funks. Both screw up whatever fast breaks we get and worse yet do not pass ahead when we have a guy ahead of the field. Both shooting % ‘s are embarrassingly bad and Caleb great stroke in his first 2 years is gone . You cannot play both together. I looked up at the scoreboard in the second half and both had 0 points next to their names almost 25 minutes in. Pike is loyal to a fault but the quicker he realizes this the better for the team.
Really did not like what Pike did with Jones. Jones got bumped and then their guard trash talked him and he trash talked back and ref as usual never gets the instigator but the second guy. So Pike takes him out and instead of making him go sit next to his assistants who could chew him out , they never talk to him and he sits down further down the bench. Pike then left him there for 11 minutes. The crime did not fit the punishment. Bad job by Pike and bad job by the assistants. I hated the message for retaliatory trash taking and being bumped .
To end on a happy note , love Ron’s game and his rebounding on the defensive end and asserting his physicality on the offensive end down low. Want to see this all year long. He has become a stud. 3 straight double doubles

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

Good analysis. I don’t want to be negative about Jones but I suspect the answer to your questions might become more clear on Thursday (I.e. while Jones can ball on offense so far he unfortunately has not looked good at all on defense against weak teams - Merrimack couldn’t score period in our game so he was able to remain on the court in that one). I fear he will be badly exposed on defense Thursday and it will become painfully obvious why Pike has to let Caleb work through his issues and at least get his FT stroke back and hit a few unguarded mid rangers to keep defenses honest. I’d love to be wrong here but he just hasn’t looked ready yet defensively.

Hyatt is going to play a ton. He already played 23 minutes today. Realistically - foul situation is going to come in play and RHJ and Geo won’t play 35 minutes a game. Hyatt will be absorbing that time and settling in at 28-30ish minutes.

 

[cubuffsdoug_rivals]

I know some people here are analyzing Rutgers to the 10th degree, but compared to the rest of the B1G, just about every team is struggling to start the season. Could it be B1G teams are built to face one another and not necessarily small non-conference teams?

What I've noticed is these small teams, in size, rely on the 3 for the majority of their offense. You see crazy 3s from any spot on the court. It doesn't mean those teams are better. It just means you can't get a solid read on teams like Rutgers. We'll have a better view of where Rutgers is this Thursday against DePaul.

FYI: did any of you notice once Rutgers played defense in the second half, those 3 were harder to come by for chuck and duck teams? And Rutgers punished those teams by going to the basket and forcing them to foul. I just wish Rutgers would do that from the opening tip. Stop playing around. Your mindset determines how consistent you are nightly. It's not a switch you turn on or off at a snap of a finger.

 

[runova09]

Really did not like what Pike did with Jones. Jones got bumped and then their guard trash talked him and he trash talked back and ref as usual never gets the instigator but the second guy. So Pike takes him out and instead of making him go sit next to his assistants who could chew him out , they never talk to him and he sits down further down the bench. Pike then left him there for 11 minutes. The crime did not fit the punishment. Bad job by Pike and bad job by the assistants. I hated the message for retaliatory trash taking and being bumped .

Coach Hobbs talked with him when he went out.

 

[Rutgers25]

So far Jones doesn’t look like a high motor guy, which is what you need on the defensive end. A little concerned about his ability to play at the required level of intensity.

Caleb is very detrimental to this team offensively. He’s shooting horrifically and is also playing selfish. He doesn’t see the court and when he makes up his mind that he wants to shoot he has blinders on. That only works if you can actually shoot! Pike needs to bench him for Andre.

 

[AshCatchEm]

Good wrap up. If you've watched our games, then watched SH-Michigan, you'd say uh-oh. Doesn't look like we have the quickness or intensity at this point compared to those teams.

If you think we are going to play Seton hall or Michigan with the same intensity as we play njit, you do not know our team

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

Paul and Caleb were bad and effective at the same time. Caleb got the assignment after a hit start to shut down #2. Paul made some plays in the closing stretch like gambling and getting a big steal and a big offensive rebound and the put back.

This game might have been concerning the most to me in that we got great offensive games from Geo and Ron and didn’t really separate all that much from NJIT. I suspect if Geo doesn’t go off we are life and death at the end of the game with NJIT.

great to be 3-0, but we are playing bad teams and all 3 games shouldn’t be close.

We have to be better defensively with switching and we have to defend the line better. Offensively I am real worried. The 3rd and 4th option have to emerge. We have too many guys in the rotation that aren’t good offensive players.

Hyatt has to be the backup 5. As a 5 there isn’t anything that the other 2 can do that Hyatt can’t. Agee hasn’t shown a nose for the ball and I think Hyatt is just as long and is definitely agile.

 

[bac2therac]

Our situation really highlights Pikiell's recruiting woes. How do you have 2 years "qualifying" for the tourney yet struggle to land talent. Bringing in Jones was a plus but enormous holes in those 4/5 spots

 

[NewJerseyHawk]

Our situation really highlights Pikiell's recruiting woes. How do you have 2 years "qualifying" for the tourney yet struggle to land talent. Bringing in Jones was a plus but enormous holes in those 4/5 spots

Your assessment of RU basketball is almost unreasonable or unrealistic.

Why would anyone expect a seamless of fluid transition of 5 new players (Hyatt, Agee, Jaden Jones, Mag and maybe either Miller or Reiber) replacing 4 departing players???

We transitioned out 2 players who accumulated 3 years in the system and program (Jacob Young, Montez Mathis.....

And had 2 other players in Myles Johnson and Doucoure, who were in the program for 4 years.....and yes I recognize that Doucoure didn't pan out, but a player with 3 years in the program, should be a little more cohesive than a player (Agee) who hasn't played 20 minutes here or Reiber who has little experience.

The program (if we are going back to the middle of last year) started out very fast, sustained a ton of injuries to starters Baker, Cliff and Harper and had Caleb planning to redshirt with a back injury.....then changed course on Caleb because it needed more depth......and then lost 5 straight games.....the roster (although experienced, lost a very talented frosh to a knee injury which slowed his progress in the midst of that streak and 2 very hyper aggressive defensive shooting guards who are wired to shoot and score.

We are replacing 3 year players/starters with kids who have not been here or played yet in Hyatt, Agee and essentially a 2021 frosh who reclassified to 2020 and secured a 9 month head start on his true freshman year.....who is maybe 18 or 19 years old.

Why would any logical RU fan expect that 2 or 3 games into a season, flawless execution, exact roles and perfect execution??

The moves to elevate Jaden Jones to me, and being fortunate enough to land Hyatt, are required to look beyond this 2021-22 season.....I know fans are stuck in this only today matters mindset, but finding Hyatt in the transfer portal as a bench replacement for Mathis, is an upgrade in the long term. Gone are the head-down drives into traffic, that I think fans complained about nonstop.....we complain about the things that weren't changing with Mathis and bring in a more team-focused and different/better long term option, and yet the complaints are still there??

Jaden Jones as a frosh, I could argue, could warrant starting right now and he could be a 3 or 4 year college starter, replacing a 5th/6th year player in Jacob Young.....there is going to be a drop-off from a 5th/6th year 24 year old guard, to a 18/19 year old 2021 true frosh recruit, playing in his 2nd or 3rd games....yes,but I thought that was already understood......

RU in November is not going to be this well oiled machine, vs where things were in February or March.....but if you kept Jacob, Myles and Mathis again this year.....

A) do you really want 1 year of Jacob Young or 1 year of Jaden Jones getting playing time so he is positioned to play in a larger role after 2021-22??

B) Do you want 1 more year or Mathis or 3 years of Hyatt???

C) I believe Cliffs hard work and development is part of the progress that only can happen when he's forced into a starting role and can improve.

We have to get Caleb and Paul acclimated to new roles and responsibilities as scorers, but I don't think it's realistic to expect immediate results 7 days into a season......I don't remember too many RU players that hit the ground running.....but the signs of Jaden and Hyatt to me, are encouraging enough to not panic in mid November.

In terms of recruiting and the transfer portal etc....I would feel much better with a bona-fide Top 150 type of kid signed in 2022.....but we are not done yet for 2022 recruiting and while I am not a huge fan of assuming the transfer portal fixes everything, I will wait to see where recruiting is in June 2022, before jumping off the deep end.....

 

[zebnatto]

I’ll add my Paul M thoughts in this thread:
The misses are clearly in his head—talking to himself, shaking his head, practicing his stroke during 2nd half warmups. Yesterday’s 2nd half was his best of the season. His overall problem is that he doesn’t really have a position. Unlike some Ibtrust him w ball in half court offense. though he sometimes holds the ball too long, that’s his game—waiting for a cutter or guy to pop free. Definitely negatives—struggles bringing the ball up, gets beat on D too often, still too soft at the rim. He does rebound well—I think six last night—and a good help defender.

 

[goru7]

Coach Hobbs talked with him when he went out.

He never did. I sit right across from the bench . No assistant said a word nor did Pike. Bad bad job. No excuse for it. No excuse for leaving him out for 11 straight minutes with the Paul and Caleb shooting woes. We need the right players taking shots and Jones, Geo and Ron are the top 3. In no world should Paul and Caleb be taking 10 shots with how they are shooting.

 

[Rutgers25]

He never did. I sit right across from the bench . No assistant said a word nor did Pike. Bad bad job. No excuse for it. No excuse for leaving him out for 11 straight minutes with the Paul and Caleb shooting woes. We need the right players taking shots and Jones, Geo and Ron are the top 3. In no world should Paul and Caleb be taking 10 shots with how they are shooting.

Hobbs definitely went over to him right as he came to the bench. It was clear as day on TV. It was a very short message…maybe 10 seconds

 

[bac2therac]

Why is Pike allowing those 2 to take that many attempts

 

[NewJerseyHawk]

Why is Pike allowing those 2 to take that many attempts

It's Game 3....someone has to take those shots.

15 Harper
10 Baker
10 Mulcahy
10 Caleb
10 Hyatt
Cliff had 3 dunks and 1 or 2 others and Agee had 2, with Mag 2, Jones had 2 in 15 minutes.

The flow of the game kinda dictates where the shots go. The only way to redistribute the shots would be play Jones more and someone else less.

We are in agreement that Mulcahy at 10 and Caleb at 10 and Hyatt and Jones at 10 and 2, isn't a formula for success long term. I think Paul probably forced up 3 and Caleb took a couple out of the flow.

 

[Scarlet Blind_rivals]

Updated +/- thru 3 games(vs NJIT), 3 wins/+30

Cliff +29,81min(+9,25m), RHJ +18,107min(+13,34m), Paul +14,88min(+12,31m),
Geo +13,108min(+9,35m) Caleb +12,76min(+3,24m), Hyatt +11,71min(+7,23m),
Jaden +1,36min(-3,11min), Mag -6,16min(-4,3min) Agee -10,29min(0,14min)

Geo and RHJ been doing the same role for years

Mulcahy, 18min, 27min, 2yrs, 29.3 thru 3, full time starter
McConnell, 15, 21, 23, 3 years, 25.3 thru 3, full time starter
Cliff, 15 min last year, 27 Min thru 3, full time.starter
Hyatt, 11 mins, 16 mins, 2yrs, 23.7 thru 3, increase in minutes

As those 3 returning players are promoted up in roles, they seem to be pressing unconsciously for the loss of JY, Mathis, Myles, better play by the starters in the 2nd half of the last 2 games. Hyatt is the only other player to step up so far as consistent, it's hard to play consistently with a rotation of 6 players. Pike has got to find a 7th and 8th he can trust, Jones being the closest thing so far, despite lapses in defense. This is going to cost us a game soon, tired legs, mental drain at the end of a close game. He has 2 games, @DePaul and Lafayette, to experiment and grow quick because the @UMass, vs Clemson, @ Illinois, vs Purdue, @Seton Hall stretch doesn't looking as comfortable as first thought, if he doesn't figure out a better rotation soon. I think the solution is just moving 1 starter to a bench, and a freshman, like in 2017-18(Doucoure), or Agee to the starting lineup to give you more flexibility off the bench, not named Hyatt, 24pts, 71 minutes or Jones, 18pts, 36 minutes. 44 pts out of 48 bench pts (14,17,17). Mulcahy 16 pts scored, 88 minutes and Caleb 14 pts, 76 minutes. most likely candidates to get either jump started.

 

[rutgersfan1766]

The highlight of the night: game was done in about 1h 45m. Great officiating crew that swallowed the whistle.

 

[JonathanAlan]

BAC--I thought the most insigthful comment in your analysis was wondering what is the ceiling for this team.I have the same question. Last year , you could see the talent disparity against teams like NJIT and Lehigh but not so much this year. What's really hurting this team is the lack of a point guard to push the ball up , dish out underneath while penetrating and playing tough defense on opposing small guards. No fast breaks , few steals , little athleticism. And we are getting next to nothing in scoring from the guard position. Boy do we miss JY and his uptempo offense and steals. Hyatt needs to start --period. We need a third option in rebounding to pair with Cliff and Ron and can't assume that Ron will consistently have 7-10 rebounds a game. I don't understand why the point guard frosh from DC is not given a few minutes to get his feet wet. I thought he reminded some of JY with his quickness and defense. Lastly , Pike's recruiting needs to improve . He signed 4 freshmen last year and with the exception of Cliff, we are getting nothing from Reiber, Oskar, and Mawot.

 

[richthedentist]

Your assessment of RU basketball is almost unreasonable or unrealistic.

Why would anyone expect a seamless of fluid transition of 5 new players (Hyatt, Agee, Jaden Jones, Mag and maybe either Miller or Reiber) replacing 4 departing players???

We transitioned out 2 players who accumulated 3 years in the system and program (Jacob Young, Montez Mathis.....

And had 2 other players in Myles Johnson and Doucoure, who were in the program for 4 years.....and yes I recognize that Doucoure didn't pan out, but a player with 3 years in the program, should be a little more cohesive than a player (Agee) who hasn't played 20 minutes here or Reiber who has little experience.

The program (if we are going back to the middle of last year) started out very fast, sustained a ton of injuries to starters Baker, Cliff and Harper and had Caleb planning to redshirt with a back injury.....then changed course on Caleb because it needed more depth......and then lost 5 straight games.....the roster (although experienced, lost a very talented frosh to a knee injury which slowed his progress in the midst of that streak and 2 very hyper aggressive defensive shooting guards who are wired to shoot and score.

We are replacing 3 year players/starters with kids who have not been here or played yet in Hyatt, Agee and essentially a 2021 frosh who reclassified to 2020 and secured a 9 month head start on his true freshman year.....who is maybe 18 or 19 years old.

Why would any logical RU fan expect that 2 or 3 games into a season, flawless execution, exact roles and perfect execution??

The moves to elevate Jaden Jones to me, and being fortunate enough to land Hyatt, are required to look beyond this 2021-22 season.....I know fans are stuck in this only today matters mindset, but finding Hyatt in the transfer portal as a bench replacement for Mathis, is an upgrade in the long term. Gone are the head-down drives into traffic, that I think fans complained about nonstop.....we complain about the things that weren't changing with Mathis and bring in a more team-focused and different/better long term option, and yet the complaints are still there??

Jaden Jones as a frosh, I could argue, could warrant starting right now and he could be a 3 or 4 year college starter, replacing a 5th/6th year player in Jacob Young.....there is going to be a drop-off from a 5th/6th year 24 year old guard, to a 18/19 year old 2021 true frosh recruit, playing in his 2nd or 3rd games....yes,but I thought that was already understood......

RU in November is not going to be this well oiled machine, vs where things were in February or March.....but if you kept Jacob, Myles and Mathis again this year.....

A) do you really want 1 year of Jacob Young or 1 year of Jaden Jones getting playing time so he is positioned to play in a larger role after 2021-22??

B) Do you want 1 more year or Mathis or 3 years of Hyatt???

C) I believe Cliffs hard work and development is part of the progress that only can happen when he's forced into a starting role and can improve.

We have to get Caleb and Paul acclimated to new roles and responsibilities as scorers, but I don't think it's realistic to expect immediate results 7 days into a season......I don't remember too many RU players that hit the ground running.....but the signs of Jaden and Hyatt to me, are encouraging enough to not panic in mid November.

In terms of recruiting and the transfer portal etc....I would feel much better with a bona-fide Top 150 type of kid signed in 2022.....but we are not done yet for 2022 recruiting and while I am not a huge fan of assuming the transfer portal fixes everything, I will wait to see where recruiting is in June 2022, before jumping off the deep end.....

Agree with everything you wrote but one thing that really concerns me is back up center as we get into Big10 play Cliff is going to be outmanned and I don't think Ralph Agee is really an adequate back up what's your opinion on that?

 

[SHUSource]

If you think we are going to play Seton hall or Michigan with the same intensity as we play njit, you do not know our team

To me, this is the thing. If Rutgers struggles against the higher-level teams, then I'd worry about things if I were you. I think this is the downside of scheduling down-market opponents, especially if those teams can actually play a little bit relative to their level of competition. They are coming for you, and your team just can't summon the thing that has been its greatest advantage the past few seasons, that intensity level.

 

[kcg88]

Your assessment of RU basketball is almost unreasonable or unrealistic.

Why would anyone expect a seamless of fluid transition of 5 new players (Hyatt, Agee, Jaden Jones, Mag and maybe either Miller or Reiber) replacing 4 departing players???

We transitioned out 2 players who accumulated 3 years in the system and program (Jacob Young, Montez Mathis.....

And had 2 other players in Myles Johnson and Doucoure, who were in the program for 4 years.....and yes I recognize that Doucoure didn't pan out, but a player with 3 years in the program, should be a little more cohesive than a player (Agee) who hasn't played 20 minutes here or Reiber who has little experience.

The program (if we are going back to the middle of last year) started out very fast, sustained a ton of injuries to starters Baker, Cliff and Harper and had Caleb planning to redshirt with a back injury.....then changed course on Caleb because it needed more depth......and then lost 5 straight games.....the roster (although experienced, lost a very talented frosh to a knee injury which slowed his progress in the midst of that streak and 2 very hyper aggressive defensive shooting guards who are wired to shoot and score.

We are replacing 3 year players/starters with kids who have not been here or played yet in Hyatt, Agee and essentially a 2021 frosh who reclassified to 2020 and secured a 9 month head start on his true freshman year.....who is maybe 18 or 19 years old.

Why would any logical RU fan expect that 2 or 3 games into a season, flawless execution, exact roles and perfect execution??

The moves to elevate Jaden Jones to me, and being fortunate enough to land Hyatt, are required to look beyond this 2021-22 season.....I know fans are stuck in this only today matters mindset, but finding Hyatt in the transfer portal as a bench replacement for Mathis, is an upgrade in the long term. Gone are the head-down drives into traffic, that I think fans complained about nonstop.....we complain about the things that weren't changing with Mathis and bring in a more team-focused and different/better long term option, and yet the complaints are still there??

Jaden Jones as a frosh, I could argue, could warrant starting right now and he could be a 3 or 4 year college starter, replacing a 5th/6th year player in Jacob Young.....there is going to be a drop-off from a 5th/6th year 24 year old guard, to a 18/19 year old 2021 true frosh recruit, playing in his 2nd or 3rd games....yes,but I thought that was already understood......

RU in November is not going to be this well oiled machine, vs where things were in February or March.....but if you kept Jacob, Myles and Mathis again this year.....

A) do you really want 1 year of Jacob Young or 1 year of Jaden Jones getting playing time so he is positioned to play in a larger role after 2021-22??

B) Do you want 1 more year or Mathis or 3 years of Hyatt???

C) I believe Cliffs hard work and development is part of the progress that only can happen when he's forced into a starting role and can improve.

We have to get Caleb and Paul acclimated to new roles and responsibilities as scorers, but I don't think it's realistic to expect immediate results 7 days into a season......I don't remember too many RU players that hit the ground running.....but the signs of Jaden and Hyatt to me, are encouraging enough to not panic in mid November.

In terms of recruiting and the transfer portal etc....I would feel much better with a bona-fide Top 150 type of kid signed in 2022.....but we are not done yet for 2022 recruiting and while I am not a huge fan of assuming the transfer portal fixes everything, I will wait to see where recruiting is in June 2022, before jumping off the deep end.....

Nobody is expecting perfect execution. We're expecting at least ONE halftime lead against Lehigh, Merrimack, or NJIT.

Come on now. Don't pretend there aren't deeper issues than "this team just needs to gel."

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

Why is Pike allowing those 2 to take that many attempts

I suspect he knows they are going to need to play a ton against better teams in order for us to compete and wants them to work through their issues now. Both have their shortcomings but neither is as bad as they’ve looked (Caleb’s FT shooting this year case in point). Jones has not yet shown an ability to defend a decent low major guard let alone BIG caliber guards. Maybe we’ll see improvements at DePaul.

 

[AshCatchEm]

Nobody is expecting perfect execution. We're expecting at least ONE halftime lead against Lehigh, Merrimack, or NJIT.

Come on now. Don't pretend there aren't deeper issues than "this team just needs to gel."

If you want a halftime lead against a team that shoots 65% from three with 7 threes made in the first half you're probably asking for too much

I was quite content with where we were at the half because I had a sense of realism actually looking at the stats and understanding they wouldn't continue that clip in the second half. This is basketball. Anyone can get a hot streak.

We won by 14. That's not enough for you? C'mon terrible take man.

 

[RutgHoops]

kenpom stats thru 3 games:

Eff FG%: 323rd
3P%: 329th
2P%: 281st

Oof. Nowhere to go but up one would hope.

 

[RU_DIO]

He never did. I sit right across from the bench . No assistant said a word nor did Pike. Bad bad job. No excuse for it. No excuse for leaving him out for 11 straight minutes with the Paul and Caleb shooting woes. We need the right players taking shots and Jones, Geo and Ron are the top 3. In no world should Paul and Caleb be taking 10 shots with how they are shooting.

This is wrong. Hobbs went up to him pretty quickly after Jones sat down.

 

[Joey Bacala]

Good recap Bac.

The Caleb conundrum is downright baffling. The air balls!! He looks like he has no idea what plays are being run on either end of the floor. He is aggressive on D though and is the closest thing we have to a “stopper.” He had the most reliable mid range jumper the past two years and now nothing.

Jones intrigues me, I think that Pike should over rotate on giving him minutes in the rest of the “gimme” non conf games to accelerate his development but also light a fire under his *** because he can look to be lacking energy/urgency.

One other reply alluded to this and I think it bears repeating - we have too many of the same players and it’s unclear that they have defined roles. Paul, Caleb, Jones, etc. Do we want all of them to run the offense or not. At times Geo, Caleb, Paul have all run point bringing the ball up the court. Paul is very tough to assign to any traditional/specific role and I think he’s hit a ceiling because of it. He’s not quick enough to be the full time PG, he sure as hell isn’t a SG, not athletic enough to be a wing, not big enough to be a PF. It’s a big problem if Pike is going to keep him in the starting lineup with major minutes.

Another observation. The Mag/Palmquist/Reiber class couldn’t start at a decent Mid major. That non-productive class is going to cause this program to fall badly next year if not this year. That’s 100% on Pike - he sold that group to us like he robbed a bank getting those three and they are not B1G players or even sixth men. Seeing Mag last night in person he’s smaller than I thought and chucking up those Hail Mary shots yikes. Palmquist the sharpshooter not exactly sharp and Reiber is a body For a couple fouls.

I’m worried. Can’t wait to see what happens Thursday against DePaul so we start to get a better read.

 

[RUBB86]

This is wrong. Hobbs went up to him pretty quickly after Jones sat down.

Yes, this is correct. Just saw it on the replay.

 

[NewJerseyHawk]

Agree with everything you wrote but one thing that really concerns me is back up center as we get into Big10 play Cliff is going to be outmanned and I don't think Ralph Agee is really an adequate back up what's your opinion on that?

I can say I am more interested in how fast we develop Hyatt and Jones and can we marry that together with Mulcahy and Caleb getting on track.

Agee (to me) is going to have to play through mistakes and get acclimated much more so. I could actually argue that Agee is better than Doucoure, Reiber and is more of a mid range big, being asked to be a post up big.

How teams play is much more important than anything.....we had great post defense when we had Shaq Doorson, but good luck asking him to close out on shooters....it wasn't his strength. You gotta give up something to get something.

The key remains ramping up and getting more shots and looks for Hyatt and Jones, without having to push them into the starting lineup.....I am a firm believer that Mulcahy and Cliff is a good combo and Cliff is 4 points better per game with PM playing vs not.

Mulcahy scoring 6 to 8PPG and getting Cliff a quick 2 dunks is better than not IMO.

 

[rutgersfan1766]

I can say I am more interested in how fast we develop Hyatt and Jones and can we marry that together with Mulcahy and Caleb getting on track.

Agee (to me) is going to have to play through mistakes and get acclimated much more so. I could actually argue that Agee is better than Doucoure, Reiber and is more of a mid range big, being asked to be a post up big.

How teams play is much more important than anything.....we had great post defense when we had Shaq Doorson, but good luck asking him to close out on shooters....it wasn't his strength. You gotta give up something to get something.

The key remains ramping up and getting more shots and looks for Hyatt and Jones, without having to push them into the starting lineup.....I am a firm believer that Mulcahy and Cliff is a good combo and Cliff is 4 points better per game with PM playing vs not.

Mulcahy scoring 6 to 8PPG and getting Cliff a quick 2 dunks is better than not IMO.

Agee is my new favorite player. Had to find a replacement after Mathis left.

 

[NewJerseyHawk]

Good recap Bac.

The Caleb conundrum is downright baffling. The air balls!! He looks like he has no idea what plays are being run on either end of the floor. He is aggressive on D though and is the closest thing we have to a “stopper.” He had the most reliable mid range jumper the past two years and now nothing.

Jones intrigues me, I think that Pike should over rotate on giving him minutes in the rest of the “gimme” non conf games to accelerate his development but also light a fire under his *** because he can look to be lacking energy/urgency.

One other reply alluded to this and I think it bears repeating - we have too many of the same players and it’s unclear that they have defined roles. Paul, Caleb, Jones, etc. Do we want all of them to run the offense or not. At times Geo, Caleb, Paul have all run point bringing the ball up the court. Paul is very tough to assign to any traditional/specific role and I think he’s hit a ceiling because of it. He’s not quick enough to be the full time PG, he sure as hell isn’t a SG, not athletic enough to be a wing, not big enough to be a PF. It’s a big problem if Pike is going to keep him in the starting lineup with major minutes.

Another observation. The Mag/Palmquist/Reiber class couldn’t start at a decent Mid major. That non-productive class is going to cause this program to fall badly next year if not this year. That’s 100% on Pike - he sold that group to us like he robbed a bank getting those three and they are not B1G players or even sixth men. Seeing Mag last night in person he’s smaller than I thought and chucking up those Hail Mary shots yikes. Palmquist the sharpshooter not exactly sharp and Reiber is a body For a couple fouls.

I’m worried. Can’t wait to see what happens Thursday against DePaul so we start to get a better read.

The Palmquist, Reiber, Mag class has been already "corrected" or at best, RU bought a year for Mag.....RU landed Jones and then asked him to reclassify to 2020 and enroll in January 2021, so he can or could be ready now......Hyatt as a transfer portal addition, erases whatever potential Palmquist may have had....if Palmquist doesn't develop it's not the end of the world.

Reiber was also bought a year to potentially develop, by bringing in Agee as a grad transfer for this year. Reiber, Palmquist or Mag are not part of the rotation right now, so while 2020 focuses on these 3, you can't ignore Cliff and Jaden Jones (or Hyatt) essentially in the same class of newcomers that are technically underclassmen.....

RU or Pike are counting on a 3 year player in Caleb, being more healthy or consistent in Year 4.....We are also counting on a 20 to 24 minute player in Mulcahy, stepping up and expanding his role as a junior....I don't think asking for those 2 players to be "solid" is unreasonable for the next year or 2....technically both players have 2 years left here if they want them....Mulcahy is a true junior and Caleb a true senior.

 

[kcg88]

If you want a halftime lead against a team that shoots 65% from three with 7 threes made in the first half you're probably asking for too much

I was quite content with where we were at the half because I had a sense of realism actually looking at the stats and understanding they wouldn't continue that clip in the second half. This is basketball. Anyone can get a hot streak.

We won by 14. That's not enough for you? C'mon terrible take man.

How about Merrimack and Lehigh? My point isn't about one game, it's that we've looked bad for long stretches in all three games against teams we should be handling easily.

 

[rubjk]

kenpom stats thru 3 games:

Eff FG%: 323rd
3P%: 329th
2P%: 281st

Oof. Nowhere to go but up one would hope.

Good defense and good enough offense so you score at least 1 more point than your opponent is a good way to win games.

 

[rubjk]

How about Merrimack and Lehigh? My point isn't about one game, it's that we've looked bad for long stretches in all three games against teams we should be handling easily.

You clearly forgot last year. We looked awful for 5 whole games in b10 schedule. Some we should have handled easily.

 

[Scarlet Blind_rivals]

Lets lay it out in shot attempts per game since 2018-19

2018-19
1) Geo 11.7 2) EO 11.3 3) Mathis 8.2 4)RHJ 6.9
5) Kiss 5.7 6) Caleb 4.2 7) Thiam 3.9 8) Myles 3.8
2019-20
1) Geo 10.1 2) RHJ 9.8 3) JY 8.0 4) Yeboah 7.7
5) Mathis 7.3 6) Caleb 6.1 7) Myles 5.7 8) Paul 2.8
2020-21
1) RHJ 12.3 2) JY 11.6* 3) Geo 9.7 4) Mathis 7.9*
5) Caleb 7.0 6) Myles 5.6* 7) Paul 4.3 8) Cliff 2.5
* no longer here

2021-22
1) RHJ 13.3 2) Geo 10.3 4) Hyatt 8.3(career high 3.5, 6th)
3) Paul 8.7 5) Cliff 8.0 and 6) Caleb 6.3 all 4 have never been higher than option #5 on offense, and it shows in every shot they are taking on offense in these first 3 games, being option 3-6, 7) Jaden 3.7 8) Agee 1.7

Maybe Gonzales-Agee is the right move to start who at least has the offensive experience of being the 4th option on a team last year at 8.0 shots a game in the MWC. Hyatt and Cliff has looked more comfortable in an enhanced role than Paul or Caleb the first 3 games.

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

Our situation really highlights Pikiell's recruiting woes. How do you have 2 years "qualifying" for the tourney yet struggle to land talent. Bringing in Jones was a plus but enormous holes in those 4/5 spots

It isn't easy.

Your assessment of RU basketball is almost unreasonable or unrealistic.

Why would anyone expect a seamless of fluid transition of 5 new players (Hyatt, Agee, Jaden Jones, Mag and maybe either Miller or Reiber) replacing 4 departing players???

We transitioned out 2 players who accumulated 3 years in the system and program (Jacob Young, Montez Mathis.....

And had 2 other players in Myles Johnson and Doucoure, who were in the program for 4 years.....and yes I recognize that Doucoure didn't pan out, but a player with 3 years in the program, should be a little more cohesive than a player (Agee) who hasn't played 20 minutes here or Reiber who has little experience.

The program (if we are going back to the middle of last year) started out very fast, sustained a ton of injuries to starters Baker, Cliff and Harper and had Caleb planning to redshirt with a back injury.....then changed course on Caleb because it needed more depth......and then lost 5 straight games.....the roster (although experienced, lost a very talented frosh to a knee injury which slowed his progress in the midst of that streak and 2 very hyper aggressive defensive shooting guards who are wired to shoot and score.

We are replacing 3 year players/starters with kids who have not been here or played yet in Hyatt, Agee and essentially a 2021 frosh who reclassified to 2020 and secured a 9 month head start on his true freshman year.....who is maybe 18 or 19 years old.

Why would any logical RU fan expect that 2 or 3 games into a season, flawless execution, exact roles and perfect execution??

The moves to elevate Jaden Jones to me, and being fortunate enough to land Hyatt, are required to look beyond this 2021-22 season.....I know fans are stuck in this only today matters mindset, but finding Hyatt in the transfer portal as a bench replacement for Mathis, is an upgrade in the long term. Gone are the head-down drives into traffic, that I think fans complained about nonstop.....we complain about the things that weren't changing with Mathis and bring in a more team-focused and different/better long term option, and yet the complaints are still there??

Jaden Jones as a frosh, I could argue, could warrant starting right now and he could be a 3 or 4 year college starter, replacing a 5th/6th year player in Jacob Young.....there is going to be a drop-off from a 5th/6th year 24 year old guard, to a 18/19 year old 2021 true frosh recruit, playing in his 2nd or 3rd games....yes,but I thought that was already understood......

RU in November is not going to be this well oiled machine, vs where things were in February or March.....but if you kept Jacob, Myles and Mathis again this year.....

A) do you really want 1 year of Jacob Young or 1 year of Jaden Jones getting playing time so he is positioned to play in a larger role after 2021-22??

B) Do you want 1 more year or Mathis or 3 years of Hyatt???

C) I believe Cliffs hard work and development is part of the progress that only can happen when he's forced into a starting role and can improve.

We have to get Caleb and Paul acclimated to new roles and responsibilities as scorers, but I don't think it's realistic to expect immediate results 7 days into a season......I don't remember too many RU players that hit the ground running.....but the signs of Jaden and Hyatt to me, are encouraging enough to not panic in mid November.

In terms of recruiting and the transfer portal etc....I would feel much better with a bona-fide Top 150 type of kid signed in 2022.....but we are not done yet for 2022 recruiting and while I am not a huge fan of assuming the transfer portal fixes everything, I will wait to see where recruiting is in June 2022, before jumping off the deep end.....

I don’t agree with him, but I respect his opinion.

we have played 3 terrible teams and were down at half or taken to OT all 3 games.

our head coach said this was his best team yet.

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

Let’s be real honest…….
So far the new players as a whole have been extremely disappointing. It is only 3 games in so I am far from giving up.

 

[rubjk]

It isn't easy.

I don’t agree with him, but I respect his opinion.

we have played 3 terrible teams and were down at half or taken to OT all 3 games.

our head coach said this was his best team yet.

Only score at the end of the game matters. The team last year looked worse at times and lacked effort at times too. Better now than 5 games during the b10 schedule.

 

[rubaseball78_rivals]

Lots of good things from Geo and Ron and I hope that they both got the message that we need that consistently to make hay this year. Everybody else did not look so good . Cliff and Andre did not do enough tonight to establish their presence. We had an Agee sighting tonight for some good minutes. Paul and Geo are in terrible funks. Both screw up whatever fast breaks we get and worse yet do not pass ahead when we have a guy ahead of the field. Both shooting % ‘s are embarrassingly bad and Caleb great stroke in his first 2 years is gone . You cannot play both together. I looked up at the scoreboard in the second half and both had 0 points next to their names almost 25 minutes in. Pike is loyal to a fault but the quicker he realizes this the better for the team.
Really did not like what Pike did with Jones. Jones got bumped and then their guard trash talked him and he trash talked back and ref as usual never gets the instigator but the second guy. So Pike takes him out and instead of making him go sit next to his assistants who could chew him out , they never talk to him and he sits down further down the bench. Pike then left him there for 11 minutes. The crime did not fit the punishment. Bad job by Pike and bad job by the assistants. I hated the message for retaliatory trash taking and being bumped .
To end on a happy note , love Ron’s game and his rebounding on the defensive end and asserting his physicality on the offensive end down low. Want to see this all year long. He has become a stud. 3 straight double doubles

Actually either Hobbs or Knight spoke to Jones; they didn't ignore him.