Game Day Essentials: Game #14 vs Rutgers

Rutgers Info

Head Coach: Steve Pikiell
Location: Piscataway, NJ
Conference: B1G
Nickname: Scarlet Knights

KenPom rank: 51

Point Spread: Rutgers by 6

Depth: 9+

Previous history: Nebraska leads the all-time 8-4. 2019 had eventful meetups as the Huskers melted down at the RAC as part of a 7 game conference skid and beat the Knights in their B1G tournament run

Shirt not to wear: Medieval 

Offensive Style: In the paint

Defensive Style: In the paint

Key Injuries: None

Hoiberg Presser

Cheatham Presser

Discussion mostly focused on the start of conference play

Players to watch:  Geo Baker

The Junior PG is first on the team in assists and steals, 2nd in scoring and blocked shots. He's the catalyst for Rutgers working their way into the paint on offense.

Players to watch:   Akwasi Yeboah

The Kevin Cross sized Stony Brook transfer was originally recruited by Pikell. Yeboah was first team All-Conference last year and has been one of the few Scarlet Knights knocking down 3s

Roster points

As you can see, Rutgers rolls out a lot of height

• Ron Harper Jr. is more of a slasher than a shooter but draws plenty of contact and is a defensive stopper
• Center Myles Johnson is deadly when fed in the post and is a beast on the boards. He's a godawful FT shooter
• Mathis, like many Rutgers SGs, is a SG who struggles to shoot
• Texas transfer SG Jacob Young is the only player under 6'4" on the roster (6'2"). He takes a lot of shots and has been markedly worse than Mathis
• F Caleb McConnell has platooned with Yeboah and also has been shooting well from 3
• Fr Paul Mulcahy is the PG of the future. He's very tall (6'6"). He also will rarely shoot at this point in his career
• Centers Shaq Carter and Mamadou Doucoure are depth for Myles Johnson

The Skinny:

This is a team that Nebraska does and does not matchup well with.  On the plus side, Rutgers plays fast enough offensively so they're not going to cramp Nebraska's style and there should be transition opportunities. Their traditional centers will have to try and guard Nebraska's small ball lineup at times. Nebraska's pack most likely won't be burned from 3.  On the minus side, get ready for possessions where Rutgers continuously misses and then rebounds the ball until they finally score. It's probable that the size of the guards will be enough to kill some of Nebraska's transition offense. The Knights have been defending without fouling. 

This appears to be the best team that Steve Pikiell has assembled at Rutgers so it's not entirely surprising to see them favored over this inconsistent Nebraska team. Is Rutgers ready to win a game on the road? They haven't just yet though they gave Michigan St a scare last month. Let us hope this Friday crowd is ready to carry the Huskers over the hump.

Prediction: Nebraska 73 - Rutgers 70