Too many fans flying in helicopters missing what people flying 25,000 feet+ are seeing

[Greene Rice FIG]

The program should be building a foundation for the long term and not sacrificing short term gains that could hurt the foundation.

I have not seen one post about Nigel Johnson sitting the rest of the game and very little about our results on the defensive end of the court.

If we had any chance of coming back it had to include Nigel Johnson. Pikiell chose to send the message and keep him on the bench. We have also seen Freeman and Sanders not in games in crunch time because of defense.

Pikiell is building the foundation. Penn State game was a part of it. There are things a Rutgers basketball player has to do to get playing time. Guys like Jonathan Laurent are starting to figure it out.

Don't get so caught up in wins and losses. Don't expect next year for there to be a breakthrough. I don't see many of the guys Pikell inherited as guys that will be PLUS defensers. Could be wrong.

when we stunk last year I said i'd rather see us lose 60-40 then 90-70. Unfortunaely (or fortunately) I got my wish.

 

[Section114]

Well Said FIG!

 

[Scarlet Shack]

Greene

Nailed it

But I am more optimistic here...we are playing SOLID defense now. SP DEMANDS good now and later OUTSTANDING defense now and he is sending that message loud and clear

If we keep teams in the 60s and the low 70s like we did against Wisconsin, SHU and PSU...we will get out big ten wins this year and have a winning record..as the offense will eventualy come...even if it is uneven and game to game for this year

 

[Local Shill]

Greene

Nailed it

But I am more optimistic here...we are playing SOLID defense now. SP DEMANDS good now and later OUTSTANDING defense now and he is sending that message loud and clear

If we keep teams in the 60s and the low 70s like we did against Wisconsin, SHU and PSU...we will get out big ten wins this year and have a winning record..as the offense will eventualy come...even if it is uneven and game to game for this year

I wish I could be as optimistic as you. As bad as we've been on offense the past three games, I could easily see our guys losing even more confidence in their shooting strokes as losses pile up.

 

[motel00]

No doubt. Pikiell did not turn around Stoney Brook in a day. For that matter, Wooden did not win championships until he had been at it for several years.

In the short run, it was disheartening to see our offensively challenged team play a real stinker in front of a lot of fans against a very beatable Penn State squad. Until now, we had beaten everyone that we should have beaten but had not really scored a great win. With this loss, it puts more pressure on our team to score a few upsets without which recruiting again becomes that much harder. But I definitely have faith in this staff in terms of their coaching acumen and in terms of their ability to recruit if we can keep them together.

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

Greene

Nailed it

But I am more optimistic here...we are playing SOLID defense now. SP DEMANDS good now and later OUTSTANDING defense now and he is sending that message loud and clear

If we keep teams in the 60s and the low 70s like we did against Wisconsin, SHU and PSU...we will get out big ten wins this year and have a winning record..as the offense will eventualy come...even if it is uneven and game to game for this year

I am probably a bit emotional when it comes to our O. Taking too much stock in what I saw in PSU game. If we hold .962 points allowed per possession constant (average of SHU, WISC, and PSU 204/212) I would hope there are 4 or 5 wins out there if our O has an A or B game.

Most of the games left will be lower tempo...think 66 possesions (NOT 76 vs SHU or 72vs PSU). If we allow 64 points (66*.962) we will need to score 65.

 

[richthedentist]

What did Nigel Johnson do that he was put on the bench for the last 15 minutes? I did not see or am not sure if someone knows thanks!!

 

[motel00]

Defense, shot air balls, to's. Corey Sanders was also awful but I suspect the ankle injury played a part in that.

 

[RUChoppin]

Pike needs to spend some time on what to do when the defense denies passes into the post. I think Sanders/Johnson were struggling a bit because the post was being closed off, and they were trying to force things on their own - and Freeman was getting frustrated because of lack of touches (which meant he was more likely to force shots and not give the ball back up, because he didn't know when he'd get it back).

Still, to have an inside-out game, you need to have some scoring from the outside to keep defenses honest.

 

[RUJMM78]

I wish I could be as optimistic as you. As bad as we've been on offense the past three games, I could easily see our guys losing even more confidence in their strokes as losses pile up.

Defense has kept Rutgers in games but with a very mediocre offense they lost to Miami,Seton Hall,Wisconsin and Penn Stats by double digits.The team improvement must come from the offense because the 3 point shot is the equalizer in college athletics and B1G opponents have shooters that can make shots regardless how well Rutgers defense performs.

The Penn State game was a big disappointment because they played without two starters and still dominated the game after going 0-10 shooting at the start of the game.Coach Pikiell stated the obvious with the comment "can't win,if you can't score".Where the points will come from is the unknown moving forward.Comments directed toward the defense is only masking the real problem this program has endured for decades , namely the lack of talent .Complementary type players won't get the job done in a power conference.

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

What did Nigel Johnson do that he was put on the bench for the last 15 minutes? I did not see or am not sure if someone knows thanks!!

I know he mentioned something to him about defense. I also heard him tell Sa that this isn't a jump shooting contest so I am guessing shot selection could have been part of it.

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

I wish I could be as optimistic as you. As bad as we've been on offense the past three games, I could easily see our guys losing even more confidence in their strokes as losses pile up.

Quite frankly how is that possible...other than Williams we were 0 fer from 3.

 

[RU-ROCS]

The program should be building a foundation for the long term and not sacrificing short term gains that could hurt the foundation.

I have not seen one post about Nigel Johnson sitting the rest of the game and very little about our results on the defensive end of the court.

If we had any chance of coming back it had to include Nigel Johnson. Pikiell chose to send the message and keep him on the bench. We have also seen Freeman and Sanders not in games in crunch time because of defense.

Pikiell is building the foundation. Penn State game was a part of it. There are things a Rutgers basketball player has to do to get playing time. Guys like Jonathan Laurent are starting to figure it out.

Don't get so caught up in wins and losses. Don't expect next year for there to be a breakthrough. I don't see many of the guys Pikell inherited as guys that will be PLUS defensers. Could be wrong.

when we stunk last year I said i'd rather see us lose 60-40 then 90-70. Unfortunaely (or fortunately) I got my wish.

Greene- A very good perspective with which I agree.

 

[RUChoppin]

Over the last three games from range:

Williams: 9-21 (.429)
Johnson: 4-11 (.364)
Thiam: 0-6
Sa: 0-4
Sanders: 0-2
Omoruyi: 0-2
Freeman: 0-1
Dadika: 0-1

That's 13-48 (.271)

Thiam has gone from shooting 12/33 (.364) over his first 6 games to 6/22 (.273) over his next 8. He's gone from attempting 5.5 per game to just 2.8

 

[higgins3]

Coach likes getting in the paint.

He knows his team well. He will get the shots that will help the team win games.

 

[Eagleton96]

The team is playing well. We need more shooters. We got reasonable looks from 3 against PSU and only hit like 2-3 out of 20. It's not the coaching or the system. We don't have great shooters, and our shooters didn't even shoot at their average against PSU. But the future looks great.

 

[RU MAN]

For once in more than a decade and a half I feel we FINALLY have a real coach, a top notch staff that will take us where we all can be proud of--which includes a raucous RAC where B1G members will dread playing us and where we're unstoppable at home.

As FIG said, it's about building the foundation and once Pikiell is able to get the kind of kids he wants in the program this program will fly and then soar to new heights. I'm very excited about the future with Pikiell at the helm (geez I'm a mixed-metaphor machine--LOL).

 

[Caliknight]

The program should be building a foundation for the long term and not sacrificing short term gains that could hurt the foundation.

I have not seen one post about Nigel Johnson sitting the rest of the game and very little about our results on the defensive end of the court.

If we had any chance of coming back it had to include Nigel Johnson. Pikiell chose to send the message and keep him on the bench. We have also seen Freeman and Sanders not in games in crunch time because of defense.

Pikiell is building the foundation. Penn State game was a part of it. There are things a Rutgers basketball player has to do to get playing time. Guys like Jonathan Laurent are starting to figure it out.

Don't get so caught up in wins and losses. Don't expect next year for there to be a breakthrough. I don't see many of the guys Pikell inherited as guys that will be PLUS defensers. Could be wrong.

when we stunk last year I said i'd rather see us lose 60-40 then 90-70. Unfortunaely (or fortunately) I got my wish.

Great post. All about building program fundamentals. If that means potentially sacrificing in the short term, fine.

 

[DennisHajekRC84]

I know he mentioned something to him about defense. I also heard him tell Sa that this isn't a jump shooting contest so I am guessing shot selection could have been part of it.

that's great to hear because I for one am not down on this coach. I am holding the players responsible for how they play-execute now. I am totally convinced we have a coach now.

 

[WhichReligionIsRight]

Just think about how awful the team has been the past two years. We were regularly getting whipped by 20, 30, 40 or 50+ points. This is a multi-year building process.

 

[mikefla]

Coach P is showing the team the difference between OOC and B10 play.

To win we need to play as perfect as we are capable of playing.

Going 11-2.....I think the guys may have gotten a tad full of themselves maybe
and the coach is bringing them back to earth.

heck...if either Nigel OR Freeman had their usual game..we would have been in a dogfight
we are headed in the right direction

 

[RUinFla]

Could see this coming. People got excited when we beat bad teams, OOC. Now, they are ready to jump ship. Several posters have mentioned that the players we have now are not good enough to do what we want. But they do have some skills and some promise, and can serve as a bridge. Going to take a few years--you think the Cleveland Browns would be happy maybe winning 4 or 5 games next year after winning just one this year? Bet on it.
TL

 

[RickB113]

I don't disagree necesarily with the OP. But to me it is VERY simple. When we consistently recruit top 150 players meaning back to back to back classes with mostly top 150 players we have a shot to make the post season because I think Pikiel will coach them up. If he doesn't recruit those guys it won't happen.

I don't want to hear about his "eye for the under the radar guy who fits his system". Nope won't get it done with those guys. On. 13 scholarship team you can afford one or two guys like that.

Bottom line is it will come down to recruiting.

 

[RUJMM78]

I don't disagree necesarily with the OP. But to me it is VERY simple. When we consistently recruit top 150 players meaning back to back to back classes with mostly top 150 players we have a shot to make the post season because I think Pikiel will coach them up. If he doesn't recruit those guys it won't happen.

I don't want to hear about his "eye for the under the radar guy who fits his system". Nope won't get it done with those guys. On. 13 scholarship team you can afford one or two guys like that.

Bottom line is it will come down to recruiting.

Complementary type players didn't work in the Big East and its doubtful in the B1G.The basketball program needs playmakers ,shooters ,guards with size and inside players who can finish around the basket.I hope my New Years wish comes true within the next two years because kicking the can down the road hasn't worked in the past.

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

More than talent.

Build a nice house and then put the furniture in.

 

[RickB113]

More than talent.

Build a nice house and then put the furniture in.

Yes you have to have a "nice house", but EVERY other team in the big ten already has a nice house. So yes, we need to have a nice house too, but that is just the starting point that every other team is already at. It will all come down to recruiting. There is no way around it. No short cut. No other way to do it.

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

Yes you have to have a "nice house", but EVERY other team in the big ten already has a nice house. So yes, we need to have a nice house too, but that is just the starting point that every other team is already at. It will all come down to recruiting. There is no way around it. No short cut. No other way to do it.

I am not sure about this. Let's see Minnesota or Nebraska or Penn State finish out a season

 

[RickB113]

I am not sure about this. Let's see Minnesota or Nebraska or Penn State finish out a season

Minnesota and PSU both had a very good class last year. They need to follow them up with two or three more if they want to get there. Nebraska is a bit off right now but they have two tremendous wins to start the season and their facilities are as good as anyone's. On top of that they have great institutional resources so they have a nice house too.

Again, I am not really arguing with you. Good coaching is important, no doubt and I believe Pikiel has shown some good stuff. The big ten though is full of good coaches with great facilities. I guess my point is Pikiel isn't going to out coach the rest of the big ten to get there. He might have been able to do that at Stony Brook. Here he is going to have get great players if we ever want to go to the NCAA's.

 

[Scarlet Shack]

Think everyone is getting way way down to quick

Let's keep focused on 16 wins. I really think it's coming

I still think we will be much better in march than now

more offensive observations later ...but I see a lot of very fixable things out there

Team reminds me of Calipsri's first team at UMass...which was a real pain in the ass as the season ended

 

[RutgersRaRa]

I know he mentioned something to him about defense. I also heard him tell Sa that this isn't a jump shooting contest so I am guessing shot selection could have been part of it.

FIG, where are your seats? Sounds like behind the bench.

 

[RUChoppin]

More than talent.

Build a nice house and then put the furniture in.

I think we're on the way toward building a nice house right now. Pike, Hobbs, Knight, and Young are the best house we've built to date from a staff standpoint - and having broken ground on the practice facility is a great next step. We have something to sell now to 2018 kids - great staff that will help you improve, and a facility that will be available during your time on the Banks. 2018 and 2019 are crucial classes.

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

FIG, where are your seats? Sounds like behind the bench.

Other side of the court