Three fixes for Rutgers men's basketball ahead of Wednesday's game against Wake Forest
The Rutgers men's basketball team will travel to Winston-Salem, North Carolina, to play against Wake Forest on Wednesday. The game marks the first time the Scarlet Knights (5-2, 0-1) will play outside New Jersey in the regular season.
Rutgers is coming off its worst home defeat since 2018 after getting dismantled by Illinois on Saturday at Jersey Mike's Arena on Livingston campus.
The Knights will now need to bounce back in a big way against the Demon Deacons (4-3, 0-0) if they want to prevent Saturday's loss from snowballing.
Here are three things Rutgers will need to fix to get back in the win column against Wake Forest.
Rebounding
The Knights have not done a strong job rebounding to begin the year, as they have been outrebounded in 4 of their 7 games. Rutgers has especially struggled in its last two games, being outrebounded 106-65. One of those matchups was against the Fighting Illini (6-1, 1-0), who rank No. 1 in the entire nation in rebounding. The other game was against Saint Peter's, an inferior opponent that the Knights should have physically dominated.
Senior center Clifford Omoruyi and sophomore forward Antwone Woolfolk are both physical specimens who must impose their will on the boards. Wednesday's game will present an excellent opportunity for them to do so, as the Demon Deacons are not a particularly good rebounding team and currently rank in the bottom 70 in the country in rebounding.
Rutgers needs to take advantage and out-physical Wake Forest on the glass.
Offensive identity
The Knights' offense has lacked consistency and identity. Against then-No. 24 Illinois, Rutgers' offense was stagnant and did not create many open looks. Many possessions seemed to be centered around Omoruyi, as the Knights tried to get him to create offense down low on his own.
As gifted as Omoruyi is as a player, he is not necessarily a master with the ball in his hands. Omoruyi does not have the softest touch around the rim and often struggles to make post moves that free him up for good looks.
The Demon Deacons give up more than 70 points per game and rank in the bottom half of the country in scoring defense.
Head coach Steve Pikiell needs to craft better offensive sets and schemes to tailor to his players' strengths and get better shots. That means more second-chance points and pick-and-rolls for Omoruyi. Rutgers must find something that works against Wake Forest and stick with it.
Rotations and substitutions
What may help with developing an offensive identity is better rotations and substitutions. Pikiell has opened up the season with some inconsistent lineups, as seven different players have started in at least one game, and players' minutes seem to vary drastically on any given night.
The combination of Omoruyi and Woolfolk in the starting lineup had some potential, but it looked like a failed experiment against the Fighting Illini. Despite the two men being strong rebounders and defenders, they, at times, limit the team on the offensive end when sharing the court together.
Graduate student guard Austin Williams and freshman guards Jamichael Davis and Gavin Griffiths provide energy off the bench but need more opportunities, as the three have been difference-making sparkplugs in numerous games this season.
Considering the aforementioned subpar rebounding numbers of the Demon Deacons, Pikiell must decide on his priorities. Whether he doubles down on the two-bigs lineup with Omoruyi and Woolfolk or decides to shake things up, Pikiell needs to be decisive and open-minded with his rotations against Wake Forest.
Wednesday’s game between the Knights and Demon Deacons will tip off at 6 p.m. and be broadcast on ACC Network and 88.7 WRSU-FM.
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