Rutgers men's basketball suffers neutral site loss to Mississippi State
The Rutgers men’s basketball team fell to Mississippi State 70-60 on Saturday afternoon. The Scarlet Knights (7-4, 0-1) struggled to rebound as they dropped the Gotham Classic game at the Prudential Center.
Though the game was considered a neutral site game, the crowd was filled with Rutgers fans, giving the Knights the equivalent of a home-court advantage.
Despite Rutgers and the Bulldogs (10-2, 0-0) both being ranked in the top 20 in adjusted defensive efficiency and outside the top 70 in adjusted offensive efficiency, both teams got off to fast scoring starts. The teams each made their first four shots and Mississippi State led the Knights 12-11 at the first media timeout.
The game slowed down significantly coming out of the media timeout. The Bulldogs went on an approximately 8-minute field goal drought, where they missed 11 straight shots. During that field goal drought, Rutgers was able to establish a 20-15 lead.
The Knights could not capitalize on their momentum further, though, as they went on an approximately 6-minute scoring drought of their own which allowed Mississippi State to take a 25-20 lead with approximately 5 minutes left in the half.
Rutgers cut its deficit to 3 points, and with the game clock expiring and the Bulldogs holding for the final shot, senior forward Aundre Hyatt stripped Josh Hubbard of the ball. Hyatt then drove up the court and nailed a buzzer-beating three-pointer to tie the game 29-29 and ignite the crowd going into halftime.
Mississippi State grabbed nine more rebounds in the first half but also had five more turnovers. Both teams had similar shooting splits heading into halftime, as they each shot less than 40 percent from the field and less than 30 percent from beyond the arc.
Despite the Knights' positive momentum heading into halftime, they came out of the second half looking flat. The Bulldogs went on an 8-2 run in the first 4:01 of the second half, and senior center Clifford Omoruyi picked up two quick fouls. This put Omoruyi into some trouble as the fouls were his third and fourth of the contest.
With Omoruyi on the bench, Mississippi State was able to slowly expand its lead. The Bulldogs held an 11-point lead approximately halfway through the second half, so head coach Steve Pikiell substituted Omoruyi back into the game to try and spark a comeback.
There would be no comeback attempt, though, as Rutgers continued to look outmatched.
Down 15 points with under a minute left, the Knights went on a 7-2 run to close out the game and make their final deficit 10 points.
Rutgers struggled to rebound in the loss. Mississippi State grabbed 21 more total rebounds than the Knights and six more offensive rebounds. Jimmy Bell Jr. and Cameron Matthews dominated inside as they both registered double-doubles. Bell Jr. had a standout game, scoring 17 points and grabbing an astounding 18 rebounds.
“It’s on me to figure out this rebounding thing,” Pikiell said after the game. “We did not do a great job obviously on the backboards.”
Omoruyi struggled for Rutgers, playing only 20 minutes due to his foul trouble. Omoruyi scored just 3 points and did not grab a single rebound. Sophomore guard Derek Simpson also did not play well, scoring just 6 points on 14 shot attempts.
Hyatt was the Knights' lone bright spot, leading the team with 18 points and six rebounds.
Freshman guard Gavin Griffiths and fifth-year guard Noah Fernandes were tied for second on the team in scoring with 9 points apiece.
Rutgers will play its final out-of-conference game of the regular season when it faces Stonehill next Saturday at noon. The contest will be played at Jersey Mike’s Arena on Livingston campus and be broadcast on the Big Ten Network and 88.7 WRSU-FM.
“We have to play better as a group and I have to do better,” Pikiell said.
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