After Eli Carter's season-ending injury, Rutgers forced to adapt its offensive game plan
By Brendan Prunty/The Star-Ledger
on February 18, 2013 at 2:10 PM, updated February 18, 2013 at 2:33 PM
REPORTER'S NOTEBOOK
VILLANOVA, Pa. ? Initially, Mike Rice didn't see the full scope of the play that resulted in Eli Carter crumpling to the ground underneath his own basket. But as team doctors attended to Rutgers' leading scorer and Carter eventually had to be helped off the court, it was evident something wasn't right. The outcome of Carter's tumble wasn't a good one for Rice and Rutgers.
X-rays revealed that Carter fractured his right fibula. Rutgers' offensive spark plug will miss the remainder of the season.
"It's an unfortunate accident that will have an impact on our team of course," Rice said Saturday night. "But injuries are part of the game in sports and somebody's going to have to step up and fulfill the void that we have now that Eli's gone. A big void."
Rice is not overselling his point.
When his sophomore season ended prematurely in the surprising loss to a DePaul team which had lost nine in a row and sat at the bottom of the Big East Conference standings, Carter was once again Rutgers' leading scorer. At 14.9 points per game, he had increased his offensive numbers from last year's freshman campaign.
But not only that, he is the cog that the Scarlet Knights' offensive moves around.
His 358 points this season have accounted for nearly one quarter of Rutgers' total output for the year ? at 22.4 percent. He's made 19.4 percent of his team's total field goals (112 of 576) and 32.5 percent of his team's 3-point makes (39 of 120). Carter has also been one of the nation's best free-throw shooters, ranked 14th in the country in free-throw percentage in last week's official update by the NCAA.
However, Carter's absence will likely be felt in a more direct way.
He was in the top 75 nationally in possession percentage ? a metric statistic used to estimate the percentage of a team's possession a player consumes while on the floor. Carter's possession percentage number was 28.85, with Myles Mack being the next closest at 20.9 and Wally Judge at 20.3. Without Carter's presence, the Scarlet Knights' offense will have to adapt accordingly. Other players must acclimate to the ball being in their hands.
"He was such a big part of our team," Rice said. "Not just scoring the ball, which he did, but defensively he always guarded one of the best perimeter guys. He had such a toughness to him and when he was going, we were playing at our best."
There was no denying that, however, since Big East play began this season, Carter had been struggling. Earlier in the year, he went through a horrid three-game stretch, making just eight of his 35 shots. He's had four Big East games where he missed at least 10 shots, as well.
After Carter left Saturday's game with the injury, it was Mack who stepped into the void.
The St. Anthony product scored 16 straight points as the Scarlet Knights attempted a comeback late in the game. He scored a career high 28 points and will likely be the one to assume the mantle of the team's go-to offensive player.
"Coach told me to take over and I tried my best," Mack said after the game.
That will certainly have to remain the case for the rest of the season.
THE GAME
Rutgers (13-11, 4-9 Big East) at Villanova (16-10, 7-6 Big East)
When: 9 p.m.
Where: The Pavilion, Villanova, Pa.
TV: ESPNU
Radio: WOR 710-AM, WCTC 1450-AM, WRSU 88.7 FM
All-Time Series: Villanova, 28-9
Last 10 Meetings: Villanova, 8-2
KENPOM FANMATCH SAYS ...
Prediction: Villanova, 72-61
Thrill Score: 35.9
Rank: 5th out of 18 games
FanMatch is a part of the KenPom site, which uses a formula to not only determine which games will be pleasurable to watch on a certain day, but also how a game is forecasted to be determined.
ABOUT THE WILDCATS
By virtue of Saturday's road win against Connecticut, Villanova's is beginning the process of polishing its NCAA Tournament resume. According to RealTimeRPI.com, the Wildcats now are inside that magic 60 number in the RPI rankings, at 57. They now have three RPI top 50 wins, which is expected to help offset a number of bad losses earlier in the non-conference schedule. However, Villanova's road to close won't be easy. After Monday night's Rutgers game, the Wildcats will host Marquette on Saturday, travel to Seton Hall next week before closing on the road at Pittsburgh and hosting Georgetown in its regular-season finale.
PROJECTED LINEUPS
Rutgers
G//Jerome Seagears ... 5.6 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 2.4 apg
G//Myles Mack ... 13.2 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 2.5 apg
G//Mike Poole ... 4.2 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 1.0 apg
F//Wally Judge ... 7.1 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 1.0 apg
C//Austin Johnson ... 5.5 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 0.7 apg
Villanova
G//Ryan Arcidiacono ... 11.6 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 3.4 apg
G//Darrun Hilliard ... 11.2 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 1.5 apg
G//James Bell ... 9.3 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 1.4 apg
F//JayVaughn Pinkston ... 12.6 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 1.8 apg
C//Mouphtaou Yarou ... 9.1 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 0.7 bpg
THE LINE
Villanova, -10
? NJ.com. All rights reserved.
By Brendan Prunty/The Star-Ledger
on February 18, 2013 at 2:10 PM, updated February 18, 2013 at 2:33 PM
REPORTER'S NOTEBOOK
VILLANOVA, Pa. ? Initially, Mike Rice didn't see the full scope of the play that resulted in Eli Carter crumpling to the ground underneath his own basket. But as team doctors attended to Rutgers' leading scorer and Carter eventually had to be helped off the court, it was evident something wasn't right. The outcome of Carter's tumble wasn't a good one for Rice and Rutgers.
X-rays revealed that Carter fractured his right fibula. Rutgers' offensive spark plug will miss the remainder of the season.
"It's an unfortunate accident that will have an impact on our team of course," Rice said Saturday night. "But injuries are part of the game in sports and somebody's going to have to step up and fulfill the void that we have now that Eli's gone. A big void."
Rice is not overselling his point.
When his sophomore season ended prematurely in the surprising loss to a DePaul team which had lost nine in a row and sat at the bottom of the Big East Conference standings, Carter was once again Rutgers' leading scorer. At 14.9 points per game, he had increased his offensive numbers from last year's freshman campaign.
But not only that, he is the cog that the Scarlet Knights' offensive moves around.
His 358 points this season have accounted for nearly one quarter of Rutgers' total output for the year ? at 22.4 percent. He's made 19.4 percent of his team's total field goals (112 of 576) and 32.5 percent of his team's 3-point makes (39 of 120). Carter has also been one of the nation's best free-throw shooters, ranked 14th in the country in free-throw percentage in last week's official update by the NCAA.
However, Carter's absence will likely be felt in a more direct way.
He was in the top 75 nationally in possession percentage ? a metric statistic used to estimate the percentage of a team's possession a player consumes while on the floor. Carter's possession percentage number was 28.85, with Myles Mack being the next closest at 20.9 and Wally Judge at 20.3. Without Carter's presence, the Scarlet Knights' offense will have to adapt accordingly. Other players must acclimate to the ball being in their hands.
"He was such a big part of our team," Rice said. "Not just scoring the ball, which he did, but defensively he always guarded one of the best perimeter guys. He had such a toughness to him and when he was going, we were playing at our best."
There was no denying that, however, since Big East play began this season, Carter had been struggling. Earlier in the year, he went through a horrid three-game stretch, making just eight of his 35 shots. He's had four Big East games where he missed at least 10 shots, as well.
After Carter left Saturday's game with the injury, it was Mack who stepped into the void.
The St. Anthony product scored 16 straight points as the Scarlet Knights attempted a comeback late in the game. He scored a career high 28 points and will likely be the one to assume the mantle of the team's go-to offensive player.
"Coach told me to take over and I tried my best," Mack said after the game.
That will certainly have to remain the case for the rest of the season.
THE GAME
Rutgers (13-11, 4-9 Big East) at Villanova (16-10, 7-6 Big East)
When: 9 p.m.
Where: The Pavilion, Villanova, Pa.
TV: ESPNU
Radio: WOR 710-AM, WCTC 1450-AM, WRSU 88.7 FM
All-Time Series: Villanova, 28-9
Last 10 Meetings: Villanova, 8-2
KENPOM FANMATCH SAYS ...
Prediction: Villanova, 72-61
Thrill Score: 35.9
Rank: 5th out of 18 games
FanMatch is a part of the KenPom site, which uses a formula to not only determine which games will be pleasurable to watch on a certain day, but also how a game is forecasted to be determined.
ABOUT THE WILDCATS
By virtue of Saturday's road win against Connecticut, Villanova's is beginning the process of polishing its NCAA Tournament resume. According to RealTimeRPI.com, the Wildcats now are inside that magic 60 number in the RPI rankings, at 57. They now have three RPI top 50 wins, which is expected to help offset a number of bad losses earlier in the non-conference schedule. However, Villanova's road to close won't be easy. After Monday night's Rutgers game, the Wildcats will host Marquette on Saturday, travel to Seton Hall next week before closing on the road at Pittsburgh and hosting Georgetown in its regular-season finale.
PROJECTED LINEUPS
Rutgers
G//Jerome Seagears ... 5.6 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 2.4 apg
G//Myles Mack ... 13.2 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 2.5 apg
G//Mike Poole ... 4.2 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 1.0 apg
F//Wally Judge ... 7.1 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 1.0 apg
C//Austin Johnson ... 5.5 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 0.7 apg
Villanova
G//Ryan Arcidiacono ... 11.6 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 3.4 apg
G//Darrun Hilliard ... 11.2 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 1.5 apg
G//James Bell ... 9.3 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 1.4 apg
F//JayVaughn Pinkston ... 12.6 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 1.8 apg
C//Mouphtaou Yarou ... 9.1 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 0.7 bpg
THE LINE
Villanova, -10
? NJ.com. All rights reserved.
