Coming off of a bad loss a week ago against Illinois, Rutgers faced the challenge of facing the newly crowned No.1 Purdue Boilermakers. To make matters worse, they would once again be without one of their leaders, senior guard Geo Baker.
There were a few things in Rutgers’ favor, though. First, things can’t be as bad as that Illinois game … right? Second, the Scarlet Knights returned home to a raucous crowd at Jersey Mike’s Arena that was sold out for the 15th consecutive game. Lastly, despite never having beaten the top-ranked team in the country, Rutgers had Purdue’s number as of late. Coming into the contest, the Scarlet Knights had won three in a row against the Boilermakers.
Many fans wondered if unranked Rutgers could compete with Purdue. Well, the Scarlet Knights did more than just compete, they earned a hard-fought 70-68 victory.
Let’s take a look at five key takeaways from the thrilling upset in Piscataway.