bac - season prediction thread?
- Thread starter Degaz-RU
- Start date
I lie the mix and enthusiasm on the team. I will go with over .500
Some of you are So Negative. I think we will be much better than Littlepage, Hill and Jordan. I actually think we will surprise many and might be slightly better than last year if we can stay healthy.
I don't think we even have 1 legit B1G player on the team.
I liked what I saw of this team at the scrimmage before Meet the Team Knight. I think they will have a better season than the football team, which is a low bar and a cheap shot on my part.
I think they will finish over 500 if Pikiel can get them back to playing with an intensity as tough as they did several years ago when Purdue’s coach Matt Painter said “if I had to go to war, I would first stop at Rutgers to bring that team with me.” Rutgers has a lot of tall athletic players that could be a nightmare for other teams offenses.
Rutgers plays a lot of weak out of conference games to start the season and will definitely need those games to develop players and build a winning record because Big Ten wins will be hard to come by and we will need sellout crowds used to seeing Rutgers win to keep the RAC magic going.
Barring injuries, I think the players that will get the most minutes are Grant, Buchanan, Zrno, Davis, Francis and Nwuli because they are all talented players who you will want to keep on the floor. If they live up to expectations, we could be very good. However, I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see other players step up and replace the more experienced players as there is a lot of talent with Marks, Powers, Dortch and Badalau. I expect that the center position will be by committee with Ogbole and Fall manning the position unless they go with three forwards, which may be the way to go given that may be the most talented group overall on the team.
Given tonight’s football debacle, basketball season can’t come soon enough for me!
I'll start one up but its going to be a painful season
It’s probably a 12-14 win season at worst. Small chance at a few more wins. The hope is they develop some young building pieces, then have the NIL to keep them and add transfers.
Fans on this site had way too high expectations for football and the expectations for basketball are a little off the deep end in the opposite direction. Everyone is a bit emotional around here. I see people projecting Eddie Jordan numbers. That’s just ridiculous. Pike has never had less than 14 wins at RU and while I expect a down year, the sky isn’t going to fall, chicken little.
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Can RU fans count on continuous coverage from Sweet Pea’s Corner this season?
Any programming changes or surprises for SP fans to look forward to?
Struggle to win more than 2 games in the B1G. Maybe 9 wins overall? Something like that.
I remember before the 2023 season people were saying we didn’t have one B1G starter on the team aside from Cliff. Barring injury (to a guy fans in the preseason didn’t think could possibly adequately fill the position), that lineup was top 10 in the country and team was around top 25.
Clearly, we have a lot to prove this year. Pike hasn’t earned the benefit of the doubt for how the last few seasons have gone. Nobody has proven themself as a B1G starting quality player. But IMO there’s a few things going in our favor:
1. Talent is down across college basketball, as pretty much all 5th year seniors are gone. This is somewhat accounted for with Europeans coming into the fold but still there’s plenty of teams hoping for guys transferring up a level or the guys coming in from Europe will do something for them.
2. This team is simply a Pike team. No misconceptions about how they will need to play fast and jack up a lot of threes. No relying on star basketball. Just a bunch of guys aware that the way they’ll win is gonna have to be by limiting possessions, playing tough defense and REBOUNDING. IMO this might be a Pike type of team we haven’t seen before, as this is certainly the biggest and possibly deepest forward room he’s had. Even our good teams we were always a little small on the wings.
Now that being said we have 3 major issues: Offense, proven returners that are especially important for what Pike likes to do, and the schedule as it isn’t one that gives us tons of room for error and the B1G did not give us much of a break as we play some of the best teams in conference at the same time we are playing our most important OOC fixtures, and it doesn’t really let up until maybe the end of the year where we just have to hope we can cling to some glimmer of hope when we get to face the Penn States of the conference.
That being said, while this could certainly be a horrendous year, there is a small glimmer of hope at the end of the tunnel IMO and hopefully we realize that.
Clearly, we have a lot to prove this year. Pike hasn’t earned the benefit of the doubt for how the last few seasons have gone. Nobody has proven themself as a B1G starting quality player. But IMO there’s a few things going in our favor:
1. Talent is down across college basketball, as pretty much all 5th year seniors are gone. This is somewhat accounted for with Europeans coming into the fold but still there’s plenty of teams hoping for guys transferring up a level or the guys coming in from Europe will do something for them.
2. This team is simply a Pike team. No misconceptions about how they will need to play fast and jack up a lot of threes. No relying on star basketball. Just a bunch of guys aware that the way they’ll win is gonna have to be by limiting possessions, playing tough defense and REBOUNDING. IMO this might be a Pike type of team we haven’t seen before, as this is certainly the biggest and possibly deepest forward room he’s had. Even our good teams we were always a little small on the wings.
Now that being said we have 3 major issues: Offense, proven returners that are especially important for what Pike likes to do, and the schedule as it isn’t one that gives us tons of room for error and the B1G did not give us much of a break as we play some of the best teams in conference at the same time we are playing our most important OOC fixtures, and it doesn’t really let up until maybe the end of the year where we just have to hope we can cling to some glimmer of hope when we get to face the Penn States of the conference.
That being said, while this could certainly be a horrendous year, there is a small glimmer of hope at the end of the tunnel IMO and hopefully we realize that.
Most preseason B1G Ten predictions have Rutgers ranked in the bottom three teams.The reasons are pretty obvious starting with the loss of the leading scoring threats from last season.Team success will now be dependent on defense more than offense which is wishful thinking with so many new players needing time to develop team cohesion.On offense the loss of Bailey and Harper mean the team will have great difficulty scoring 65 points even against weak out of conference opponents.Winning on the road has always been difficult for Rutgers but with this roster,road wins seem highly unlikely.Fans are upset because of what happened last season and lack confidence that the new roster formation will result in a winning season.
Coach Pikiell has been a great spokesman for Rutgers University.His problem which is shared with other Rutgers head coaches is the inability to win at a high level against Big Ten rivals.
Coach Pikiell has been a great spokesman for Rutgers University.His problem which is shared with other Rutgers head coaches is the inability to win at a high level against Big Ten rivals.
BAC’s hoops stuff as good as anybody’s.
Degas is up there too.
Expectations so low that I think Pike might just over perform.
We went 15-17 two years ago after UConn bought Cam last minute(Classy moves by Dan Hurley & Company and the Spencer Family) and lost Paul last minute. That was a great coaching feat.
But then again shouldn’t have let Simpson go last year so who knows…
Degas is up there too.
Expectations so low that I think Pike might just over perform.
We went 15-17 two years ago after UConn bought Cam last minute(Classy moves by Dan Hurley & Company and the Spencer Family) and lost Paul last minute. That was a great coaching feat.
But then again shouldn’t have let Simpson go last year so who knows…
Prediction : We ll make the Big 10 tourney and won’t have to sweat it out ! 
Will be thrilled with a.500 overall record for the season !
I will predict a WTF loss again in November / December and a WTF win in January / February !
I expect the team to be a typical Pike team that is tough defensively and offensively challenged
I also predict team will be better than last year and the season will be more fun than last year !
Will be thrilled with a.500 overall record for the season !
I will predict a WTF loss again in November / December and a WTF win in January / February !
I expect the team to be a typical Pike team that is tough defensively and offensively challenged
I also predict team will be better than last year and the season will be more fun than last year !
Inability win a high level against Big Ten rivals? Can you explain what you mean by that? Are there specific rivals you are talking about? All of the Big Ten?
For starters how about a winning record against Big Ten rivals which is the only way Rutgers has a chance for a NCAA bid?The addition of the four west coast teams doesn't help Rutgers be ranked in the top 10 BIG Ten schools.
The past 6 seasons Rutgers has finished; 5th of 14, 6th of 14, 4th of 14, 9th of 14, 12th of 18, and 11th of 18. Beaten the number 1 team in the country twice, was NCAA Tournament worthy 4 of those six years and only had a Big Ten losing record twice out of 6 seasons. The last two years were disappointing for sure but let’s not mislead. Those are the facts. Rutgers should be making the ncaa tournament. That is the expectation for sure but it’s not going to happen every year. Even the blue bloods miss out from time to time. Rutgers is not a blue blood and will have down years, regardless of the coach.
Last 3 seasons all in the bottom half of league
In nil era those seasons 4 years plus away are long gone
Knights 1212, I agree with your sentiments, but that's not saying much. Those three coaches were an embarrassment to Rutgers BB.
It won’t be an apples to apples comparison. Pike dumbed down the non- conference schedule to basically eliminate anyone with a pulse except for the Players Era Tournament, and I get a very strong feeling they would have dropped out of that if they could. They are clearly hoping to pile up some wins before the Big Ten schedule starts.
Suspect around 10 win season, prob 2-18 in B1G. A lot of blowouts like what just happened in football.
and no accountability
and no accountability
a petty point in a petty feud .
This is a prediction thread , I tend to think, even non ticket holders can participate,
If you want only season ticket holders to post, start a thread for season ticket holders only.
As for bac giving up his tickets, I believe he does go to the games he wants to see,
I agree. I just don’t put the responsibility 100% on Pike. Rumors support that he had money lined up if the university would support a tax exempt structure. If the university fixes that, I believe he can win at RU. Like he did before.
Seems to me the most negative posters expect this season to be like 2008-09 when FHJ was coach. We started the season 9-3 and finished with 11 wins. https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/schools/rutgers/men/2009-schedule.html
Could that happen again? Yes. Will it? Doubtful. Pike is a tremendous coach in comparison to FHJ. A minimum of 14 wins is my expectation.
This doesn't mean I am pleased with where the program as a whole currently stands. It simply means this is what I expect this season.
Could that happen again? Yes. Will it? Doubtful. Pike is a tremendous coach in comparison to FHJ. A minimum of 14 wins is my expectation.
This doesn't mean I am pleased with where the program as a whole currently stands. It simply means this is what I expect this season.
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If you profess strenuously that you no longer care for college sports, as bac did time and time again, and then continue to ***** and moan, especially if RU is involved, you should lose all credibility about what you say so adamantly. And I'd still like to know if he gave up his season tickets since he was advocating others should do so also--- not something a loyal fan should be pushing on others.It matters.
i guess you will just have to wait and see...i will keep you waiting on the edge of your potty chair
Actually, I think I know the answer,you being the phoney you are, you probably renewed-- you're that much of a blowhard.
Time will tell...another year you won't take up the challenge of fighting a dog in the bowels of the rac
You're a _hole. And by the way why do you and your brother persist in challenging people to fights--- do you really think that's a macho move or makes you tough??? You're still a phoney and a --- off.
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hopefully it's better than that, but can't say it will be even that
( now back to the pillow fight
)