Subscribe
Follow Us
The Rutgers basketball team came into this season with incredibly high expectations after finishing with one of the best recruiting classes in the country last year. The Scarlet Knights have two of the nation's top prospects in Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper, and they seemed destined to contend for the Big Ten. Well, things haven't really gone to plan for Rutgers so far this year as they came into Wednesday night's game against #23 Illinois at 11-11 overall and 4-7 in Big Ten play. The Scarlet Knights were desperate for a big win, and they finally got it, taking down the Fighting Illini 82-73.
We have been waiting for the Rutgers basketball team to break through and win a big game, and it finally happened on Wednesday night. The Scarlet Knights have been close in past contests as they have taken some tough teams down to the wire, but they haven't been able to finish. It looked like the same thing might happen against Illinois, but the Scarlet Knights turned up the heat in the late stages of the game, and they earned the big win.
Perhaps part of the reason why Rutgers has struggled this year is because their dynamic duo hasn't been able to play as much as we originally thought. Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper are the two stars on this team, but Harper hasn't been able to play a lot lately as he has been battling an ankle injury. He was able to return to the lineup on Wednesday night, and Rutgers finally picked up that big win that we have been waiting for.
The Rutgers basketball team started this game incredibly strong as they immediately got out to a big lead. Before people could even find their seats, the Scarlet Knights had built a 17-point advantage as they led 23-6 about halfway through the first half. It looked like Rutgers might cruise to a win, but it's never that easy in the Big Ten.
Credit to Illinois for finding a way back into this game after going down big early on. It's not easy to do that on the road, especially against a team with stars like Bailey and Harper on the court. The Fighting Illini closed out the first half strong and got the deficit down to single digits by halftime.
Illinois had all the momentum going into the locker room despite being down by eight points, and that momentum carried over into the second half as well. The Fighting Illini ended up taking the lead with a little over 10 minutes remaining in the game, and it looked like the Scarlet Knights were destined for another heartbreaking loss.
Article Continues Below
The Fighting Illini led 62-60 with a little under eight minutes remaining, but Harper and Bailey were able to lead Rutgers to a win down the stretch. The Scarlet Knights were finally able to tighten up at the end of the game to earn a win that they so desperately needed. Harper was definitely the star of the show as he finished with 28 points, but Bailey had a big game as well.
Dylan Harper took the pressure off Ace Bailey
Ace Bailey played a very strong and efficient game on Wednesday night against Illinois. While Harper has been out, we have seen the Rutgers basketball team rely on Bailey to get them every big bucket. Opposing teams know that it's coming and they send multiple defenders at him, and while Bailey can still make things happen in those situations, it's just not a good recipe for sustained success.
On Wednesday night, Bailey didn't need to go and drop 30 points for Rutgers to get the win. The scoring was much more balanced as all five starters got in on the action with three scoring 13 points or more. Bailey ended up finishing the game with 18 points on 7-13 shooting, and he also added 11 rebounds.
What makes this Rutgers duo of Bailey and Harper so special is that these two players feed off each other and make each other better. When they are both on the court, the Scarlet Knights are a very hard team to beat. Rutgers has a lot of work to do to get into the NCAA Tournament picture, but if Harper can stay healthy, anything can happen.
With the win, Rutgers is now 12-11 overall on the season and 5-7 in Big Ten play. They will look to start a winning streak on Sunday as they hit the road to take on a surging Maryland squad. That one won't be easy, and they will once again need big games from Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper.
