Steve Pikiell said it is on him to address his team’s rebounding woes. The Rutgers basketball head coach’s comments came after his team was dominated on the glass in a 70-60 loss to Mississippi State.
In a year where it was obvious that Rutgers basketball was re-loading and getting ready for its top-10 class coming in next year, there was always going to be a bit of a talent deficiency. But it was still surprising to see Rutgers get out-rebounded 47-26 on Saturday afternoon.
The hallmark of Rutgers the last five years under Pikiell has been its toughness. And with one of the Big Ten’s top centers in Cliff Omoruyi returning for his senior year, it is especially surprising to see Rutgers get out-worked off the glass the way they did on Saturday.
“I watched too much film and I think they are one of the best defensive teams in the country and I thought for twenty minutes we hung around, but it’s on me to figure out this rebounding thing,” Pikiell told reporters after the game.
“We didn’t do a great job on the backboard and obviously that led to free throws. We played an NCAA tournament team and I told our guys if we can find a way for 40 minutes then we would have a chance. This was a big, physical basketball game and we didn’t take care of the backboards the way we needed to.”
Omoruyi had 3 points and no rebounds against Mississippi State. He played just 20 minutes with foul trouble.
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Rutgers saw their two-game winning streak snapped and are now 7-4 (0-1 Big Ten) on the season.
Figuring out the rebounding issue ahead of the start of the Big Ten regular season schedule. Keeping Omoruyi on the court and out of foul trouble would help Rutgers find some balance in rebounding.
“He was in foul trouble today and that was really tough. He never really got into the flow at all. We played on some runs without him and when I left him in he got two quick fouls right away,” Pikiell said.
“We couldn’t get a break today and obviously, we need Cliff. He’s very good, but it’s a team game and it’s on me to make sure he doesn’t get into foul trouble. We have to play better as a group and I have to do better.”