Rutgers men's basketball looks forward to final week of regular season play
The Rutgers men’s basketball team heads into its final week of the regular season, where it will take on Minnesota tomorrow and Northwestern on Sunday. The Scarlet Knights (18-11, 10-8) will look to lock up an NCAA Tournament bid and get a higher seed in the Big Ten Tournament this week.
Rutgers seeks a sweep of the Golden Gophers (7-20, 1-16) in the season series. In the Knights' first game against Minnesota, Rutgers cruised to a 90-55 victory at home. This game against the Golden Gophers will be played in Williams Arena in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
The key matchup will be between junior center Clifford Omoruyi and Dawson Garcia. The first time these two teams met this season, Minnesota was playing without Garcia, who is the focal point of the Golden Gophers' offense and the team's leading scorer and rebounder.
Garcia is expected to play in the rematch and can cause problems for the Knights in the paint. He can also stretch the floor, as he is currently shooting 33.3 percent from beyond the arc. On defense, Omoruyi must prevent Garcia from establishing a position in the low post and step up when Garcia has the ball at the top of the key.
Look for Rutgers to remain aggressive in this game. Minnesota has the lowest shooting percentage in the Big Ten — 61.6 percent from the free-throw line, so the Knights should not be afraid to give up a few extra fouls.
The Golden Gophers also have the worst turnover margin in the Big Ten. Rutgers should be able to take advantage of this, as its opponents thus far have averaged a league-high 14.6 turnovers per game.
Fifth-year senior guard Caleb McConnell has a good opportunity to get some steals against Minnesota. As he enters his final games for the Knights, he has a chance to make history. McConnell enters the week with 206 steals during his career at Rutgers, which is the third most steals of all time. He is also six steals away from passing Myles Mack, and he is 15 steals away from passing Eddie Jordan for the most steals in program history.
After the Knights' game against the Golden Gophers, they will travel back home to take on the Wildcats (20-9, 11-7).
McConnell, senior guard Paul Mulcahy, junior forward Oskar Palmquist, junior forward Aundre Hyatt and senior forward Andrew Fulin will be honored for the annual Senior Day.
Rutgers will also have the opportunity to sweep Northwestern in the season series. When these two teams faced off earlier in the season, the Knights won 65-62, thanks to a game-winning shot from senior guard Cam Spencer.
Rutgers will have to try to generate open three-point attempts for Spencer if they want to beat the defensive-minded Wildcats.
Mulcahy will have to have a bounce-back week, as he fouled out and finished with no points in the Knights' last game against Penn State.
Rutgers will also have to find a way to slow down Boo Buie and Chase Audige, who together average an efficient 31.8 points per game and are two of the best defensive guards in the Big Ten. Expect McConnell to be positioned near one of the two guards on defense and freshman guard Derek Simpson to try and use his speed to create some shots on offense.
The Knights currently sit in a three-way tie for sixth place in the Big Ten and are one game away from a top-four finish. If Rutgers can win its final two games of the season and get favorable results in other Big Ten games, it may find itself with a double bye for the Big Ten Tournament in early March.
The Knights' away game against Minnesota will tip-off at 7 p.m. and will be broadcasted on Fox Sports 1 and 88.7 WRSU-FM. Rutgers’ senior day game against Northwestern will tip-off at 7:30 p.m. and will be broadcasted on the Big Ten Network and 88.7 WRSU-FM.
"That's our culture. When our back is against the wall we stick together, we show grit, we grind," McConnell said. "That is why we are able to do things like this. That is kind of what we have been preaching all year … When we do us, we get us results."
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