Preview In its third game in six days, the Georgetown will face a young and aggressive opponent, but one that bears some of the same characteristics that St. John's and DePaul faced in their recent matchups with the Hoyas.
Much like DePaul, Rutgers has begun to turn aside from its former losing ways and relies on a freshman-heavy lineup to raise the visibility of the Scarlet Knights. In its three conference wins, Rutgers has relied on defense to keep the score close and to have a fighting chance--in its three wins, opponents have been held under 60 points. When giving up more than 60, RU is 0-3.
Three freshmen starters and a key freshmen reserve pilot the Rutgers attack, and all three lead from the backcourt. Point guard Jerome Seagears leads the team in assists for the season but is struggling from the field in Big East games at just 32 percent from the floor, and his assist average has diminished to just 2.1 a game in conference play. As such, Seagears has been expendable in the lineup and his time is now split with freshman Myles Mack, averaging 8.8 per game in Big East with a 50 percent shooting average over the last nine games (40% in Big East play). Mack's 15 points led Rutgers to a near upset of West Virginia last weekend, but a poorer effort against Notre Dame did not hurt Rutgers in its 65-58 win over Notre Dame.
The heavy artillery in the backcourt has come from freshman Eli Carter, averaging 13. 7 points per game in Big East play and the most aggressive of RU's outside shooters. Much like D'Angelo Harrison and Brandon Young before him this week, his shooting guard position is a target of the Georgetown defense, who will look for him to build upon his negative assist to turnover ratio to date.
The veteran of the lineup is its most serious threat to the Hoyas. While Dane Miller's career has been up and down, his 51 percent shooting has been an effective weapon for Rutgers, but his there point shooting (4-16) has been sorely lacking. Any tangible improvement in this game could pay big dividends for Rutgers against the Georgetown zone.
Rutgers' front line is a work in progress, and performance has been limited up front. 6-8 freshman Derrick Randall hasn't taken more than two shots a game in the five games he has started. Center Gilvydas Biruta has been more aggressive, his interior shooting has suffered (35 percent). Biruta needs to improve on his rebounding to prevent second chance points.
Rutgers isn't at the bottom of any Big East statistics categories, but isn't above eighth in any of them. It has been most successful this season in defense, especially with teams that struggle to bring the ball upcourt. RU may be more persistent on Georgetown's guards as a result, but its front line must be ready.
Keys to the game:
Much like DePaul, Rutgers has begun to turn aside from its former losing ways and relies on a freshman-heavy lineup to raise the visibility of the Scarlet Knights. In its three conference wins, Rutgers has relied on defense to keep the score close and to have a fighting chance--in its three wins, opponents have been held under 60 points. When giving up more than 60, RU is 0-3.
Three freshmen starters and a key freshmen reserve pilot the Rutgers attack, and all three lead from the backcourt. Point guard Jerome Seagears leads the team in assists for the season but is struggling from the field in Big East games at just 32 percent from the floor, and his assist average has diminished to just 2.1 a game in conference play. As such, Seagears has been expendable in the lineup and his time is now split with freshman Myles Mack, averaging 8.8 per game in Big East with a 50 percent shooting average over the last nine games (40% in Big East play). Mack's 15 points led Rutgers to a near upset of West Virginia last weekend, but a poorer effort against Notre Dame did not hurt Rutgers in its 65-58 win over Notre Dame.
The heavy artillery in the backcourt has come from freshman Eli Carter, averaging 13. 7 points per game in Big East play and the most aggressive of RU's outside shooters. Much like D'Angelo Harrison and Brandon Young before him this week, his shooting guard position is a target of the Georgetown defense, who will look for him to build upon his negative assist to turnover ratio to date.
The veteran of the lineup is its most serious threat to the Hoyas. While Dane Miller's career has been up and down, his 51 percent shooting has been an effective weapon for Rutgers, but his there point shooting (4-16) has been sorely lacking. Any tangible improvement in this game could pay big dividends for Rutgers against the Georgetown zone.
Rutgers' front line is a work in progress, and performance has been limited up front. 6-8 freshman Derrick Randall hasn't taken more than two shots a game in the five games he has started. Center Gilvydas Biruta has been more aggressive, his interior shooting has suffered (35 percent). Biruta needs to improve on his rebounding to prevent second chance points.
Rutgers isn't at the bottom of any Big East statistics categories, but isn't above eighth in any of them. It has been most successful this season in defense, especially with teams that struggle to bring the ball upcourt. RU may be more persistent on Georgetown's guards as a result, but its front line must be ready.
Keys to the game:
- Points Per Possession: Georgetown owns a 0.1 average gain on each possession. More possessions, more points.
- Rebound Margin: Georgetown's impressive +22 advantage on the boards vs. DePaul is a road map for controlling Rutgers.
- Many, Not One: Rutgers tend to do best when scoring is distributed, and relies less on one player to take over a game. Georgetown has been able to steer past its last two opponents with strong individual performances, but also needs more scoring options than merely Jason Clark and Hollis Thompson.
