RAPID REACTION — NJIT

[GM]

Mark is like the one player capable of maintaining an athletic advantage over his opponent offensively. He’s got his issues but I think the good far outweighs the bad. The best this team has looked was in the first half against St John’s and that was primarily due to Lino in high pick and roll with spacing and him just cutting St Johns up and kicking out when stopped at the rim. If there’s any game to push the Jones>Mark agenda, I don’t think tonight was it. I love Jones, does his role well, but Lino has more star quality than him as jones has very little capability of getting past his man either and is more just a floor spacer.

 

[RW90]

- Lino is the fastest player with the ball in his hands.
- Gurdak is a high IQ finesse 5, can score & pass.
- Tariq is a pure scorer, with help this year.
- JMike is efficient and an improved rebounder.
- Smith has a knack for finding space to score.
- Miteo is a beast in the making, with agility.
- Garavaglia is a fellow Italian, ‘nuff said.
- Buchanan is good at bully-ball.
- Jones can shoot the rock from deep.
- Ware has untapped potential.
- Wooten looked best in attack mode.
- Sydnor unleashed is eye-popping.
- Don’t expect much from Tonejc, Buca, or Powers.
- If Max is playing, it means we’re winning.

I know it's early but this is easily the deepest roster of the Pikiell era.
It's gonna be difficult for Knight to find enough minutes for a lot of these players once the real season starts. I just hope we can retain most of these underclassmen for next season.

 

[RU82]

Miteo looks like he genuinely has a lot of potential. I’m very intrigued to see how he develops this year.

 

[ancienthooper]

I'm just very worried about Gurdak on the pick and rolls he overcommits andhe was torched a bunch by NJIT yesterday; when we get into BIG play the teams will step it up a notch and we will get roasted on defense

Don’t worry about it.

 

[G- RUnit]

- Lino is the fastest player with the ball in his hands.
- Gurdak is a high IQ finesse 5, can score & pass.
- Tariq is a pure scorer, with help this year.
- JMike is efficient and an improved rebounder.
- Smith has a knack for finding space to score.
- Miteo is a beast in the making, with agility.
- Garavaglia is a fellow Italian, ‘nuff said.
- Buchanan is good at bully-ball.
- Jones can shoot the rock from deep.
- Ware has untapped potential.
- Wooten looked best in attack mode.
- Sydnor unleashed is eye-popping.
- Don’t expect much from Tonejc, Buca, or Powers.
- If Max is playing, it means we’re winning.

Still have hope for Powers. Shot looks pure.
Sydnor, granted in garbage time, looks like he should get more PT.
Lino looked liked he could have beaten NJIT down the court at any time.
Garavaglia on that one outside three was a thing of beauty that sadly we haven’t really seen since Cam.

 

[RUfan1977]

Remember Richie said he probably wouldn't be a full go till December at least

Sydnor looks like he is ready to go and wants to go a lot more than they are letting him go right now.

The biggest concern I would have is will that put him at risk of getting reinjured which l’m perfectly willing to comment on and say let him go out and play since that was what I did when I was young and recovering from a serious knee injury even though I have zero actual medical knowledge or experience to base my opinion on.

 

[BillyC80]

I'm just very worried about Gurdak on the pick and rolls he overcommits andhe was torched a bunch by NJIT yesterday; when we get into BIG play the teams will step it up a notch and we will get roasted on defense

I agree he has a weakness in that regard. What I always say is, you take the whole person, as long as the good outweighs the bad, which in his case I believe is true for Gurdak.

 

[BillyC80]

Lino is a disruptor — lightning fast, high energy, intense competitor. He had those innate qualities last year, and now he’s improved on finishing around the rim and looking to dish to the open man.

Having a guy with those unique talents in our arsenal keeps the defense on it’s heals and creates multiple offensive opportunities for him and his teammates.

 

[seels2662]

Do I think the paint defense needs to improve? Yes. But it is overrated a little as the centers in this league will score points no matter who we put there. The difference this year will be that Gurdak can go point for point with these guys so we are not in so much in a hole. Plus we have 4 centers this year so we can play a little hack-a-Shaq and let those 50% free throw shooters get to the line.

 

[seansherm]

Sorry to hear that your DVR malfunctioned, you missed quite the highlight show from Mark when Rutgers started poorly and Mark cut through the NJIT defense in transition for 3 impressive drives to the basket in a row. He looks faster and more in control than Jacob Young looked and Young was a real offensive weapon and disruptor on defense like Mark. Disagree with Mark being useless in half court but even if you’re right, Mark is so good in transition that Rutgers can run and score in transition almost at will. If Rutgers wants to make scoring in transition part of their identity they really need Mark.

If the team ups the pace of the offense on a consistent basis, sure, maybe I change my mind. Look at night one, the teams pace was slow, even scoring almost 80. Last night they had 36 fast break points, they only had 364 ALL last year, ten a game. Only 11 in the first game. Show me the pace upping and transition meaning something to the team a few more games, and my opinion could change, I definitely like a different 5 in a fast paced offense than in the current offense.

 

[RUDiddy777]

He did average 10 points a game over the last ten B1G games last year.

And we lost most of those (not his fault, he was one of the few who could score). But as others said, if he can turn those aggressive drives to the hoop into dishes when the d collapses, he’ll get us a lot of open looks from 3.

 

[RUDiddy777]

Sorry to hear that your DVR malfunctioned, you missed quite the highlight show from Mark when Rutgers started poorly and Mark cut through the NJIT defense in transition for 3 impressive drives to the basket in a row. He looks faster and more in control than Jacob Young looked and Young was a real offensive weapon and disruptor on defense like Mark. Disagree with Mark being useless in half court but even if you’re right, Mark is so good in transition that Rutgers can run and score in transition almost at will. If Rutgers wants to make scoring in transition part of their identity they really need Mark.

Definitely agree on the JY comparison. Better handles, a touch slower/in control.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

If the team ups the pace of the offense on a consistent basis, sure, maybe I change my mind. Look at night one, the teams pace was slow, even scoring almost 80. Last night they had 36 fast break points, they only had 364 ALL last year, ten a game. Only 11 in the first game. Show me the pace upping and transition meaning something to the team a few more games, and my opinion could change, I definitely like a different 5 in a fast paced offense than in the current offense.

Brandin said in the presser our goal is to pick up the pace. Take that for what it’s worth, but at minimum it’s what our coach hopes to be able to do.

 

[LeapinLou]

Jones has been lethal from the perimeter. We may actually have multiple reliable 3-point threats this season.

 

[NBKnight]

And we lost most of those (not his fault, he was one of the few who could score). But as others said, if he can turn those aggressive drives to the hoop into dishes when the d collapses, he’ll get us a lot of open looks from 3.

So? The post I responded to wondered if he can continue his improved play against B1G competition. He already proved that he could.

 

[goru7]

1. Got the job done again against an overmatched low major opponent. NJIT’s defense was pretty awful, and we got what we wanted when we wanted it. This could’ve been a 50 point win if Rutgers had not missed a boatload of bunnies and layups. First time Rutgers scored 100+ points in over a decade (2/3/2016).

2. Nervous times in the first five minutes, though, as NJIT jumped out to a 13-8 lead. But Rutgers stormed back on the strength of four dribble drive layups by Lino Mark, and with Rutgers clamping down on defense and NJIT going cold. Once we got the lead to double digits, we just kept going and never looked back.

3. Solid night again from deep, as we hit 7 of 17 before garbage time, and 8-21 overall, with Rasheed Jones (2-2) and Tariq Francis (3-4) leading the way.

4. I honestly didn’t love the interior defense, particularly from Christian Gurdak. We had trouble defending the pick and roll, and were generally allowing too many easy looks in the paint.

5. Lots of contributions up and down the lineup again, with 12 players scoring. The offense was led by Lino Mark (17 pts, 7 rebounds, and 4 assists) and Francis (17 pts, 6 assists)

6. Special shoutout to Will Sydnor, who only played 7 minutes in the last quarter of the game, but had 10 points, including a nice three and 5-6 from the line. Sydnor looks smooth and athletic, has a nice looking shot, and he shows no ill effects from the ankle injury. I think it’s time to weave him into the regular rotation instead of just playing as a deep reserve. He looks like he can be a difference maker.

Good recap.
Thought Lino was terrific with 17 points , 8 rebounds and 4 assists. Loved the rebound and go for those 3-4 transition blow by layups and great finishing. He is also looking to penetrate and dish so the assist part of his game is getting better. He will be the fastest player on the court with the ball in his hands and have to use that aggressively.

RU really has 3 reliable and efficient 3 point shooters in Jones, Smith and Tarik who all can shoot 40% or close . Plus JMike , Lino , Diego and Syndor can also shoot the 3 and we have never had that before. If we hit 6-9 a game on about 20 attempts a game that is a perfect formula with this team.

Think Miteo and even Ware give us depth at center so if Gurdack plays 28-33 a night , we will not get killed for the other 8-12 minutes. Miteo has potential especially offensively. He missed a bunch of layups yesterday but he was in the right position.

Absolutely love the shot distribution and efficiency last night. Tarik 5-8 with 17 points ; Lino 5-9 with 17 points ; Gurdak 4-8 with 12 points ; Buchanan 3-5 for 10 points; Smith 4-8 with 9 points ; JMike 2-5 with 8 points ; jones 2-2 for 6 points ; Syndor 2-3 for 10 points ; Diego 1-2 for 3 points ; Ware 2-2 for 5 points; Miteo 1-5 for 2 points. With the exception of the early struggles with Gurdack and Miteo missing early layups and a few of Smith’s shots that went in and out early , the rest of the game was good shot quality. Obviously , Tarik will take more shots more games but loved his 6 assists tonite and his efficiency.

Brandon Knight has a big roster and it appears a deep roster as the portal haul of smith, Jones , Gurdak and Syndor will be the best yet. I like how he is giving each guy 5-6 minute stretches so they can be properly evaluated instead of being yanked in and out And the film will be a good teaching point.

Syndor looks healthy. He is the most athletic skilled 4 man we have ever had. He glides and can drive handle , hit a three , and rebound the ball. Envision him getting a lot of offensive boards. Because of his layoff last year and the ankle injury , Brandon is bringing him along slowly with 5 and 7 minutes but he will be starting for Buchanan shortly. Love the versatility of the lineups.

We have played cupcakes so everything is not a complete analysis but it looks good so far. Watching some of these BIG 10 teams , Michigan , Purdue , Indiana , Northwestern , Ohio State , it appears those teams are down compared to prior years. Going be a fun season. Big week next week in Vegas. Should give us a better picture.

 

[PhillyRU]

As far as interior defense goes, Syndor was a pretty good shot blocker at Manhattan in 2024-25 (4.5% block rate in MAAC play). If he can carve out a starting/consistent role at the 4, he’d really help us out as a secondary rim protector.

Beyond that, I think a really crucial thing for us so far has been ball security. We had eight turnovers against NJIT, but six belonged to Tonjec (3), Syndor (2) and Powers, who only played pretty late in the game. We were very good at avoiding turnovers last season, and with a better offense I think that allows us to make up for some of the shortcomings in the Pike/Knight offensive scheme.

TQ has committed four total turnovers in his last eight regular season games now, insane

 

[goru7]

As far as interior defense goes, Syndor was a pretty good shot blocker at Manhattan in 2024-25 (4.5% block rate in MAAC play). If he can carve out a starting/consistent role at the 4, he’d really help us out as a secondary rim protector.

Beyond that, I think a really crucial thing for us so far has been ball security. We had eight turnovers against NJIT, but six belonged to Tonjec (3), Syndor (2) and Powers, who only played pretty late in the game. We were very good at avoiding turnovers last season, and with a better offense I think that allows us to make up for some of the shortcomings in the Pike/Knight offensive scheme.

TQ has committed four total turnovers in his last eight regular season games now, insane

Yes about the turnovers. We had 1 turnover 30 plus minutes into the game with all those transition buckets. That was phenomenal and will be key to winning road games for sure.

 

[rob kight]

Wonder if the men’s and women’s basketball teams ever passed the century mark in the same season?

 

[rob kight]

When you watch the replay, the NJIT Center is about 8 seconds late reacting to Lino flying by.