Tag: Noah Fernandes

Rutgers men’s basketball drops fifth conference game of the year to Illinois

Rutgers basketball is flat in a loss at Illinois.

It was a flat day at the office for Rutgers men’s basketball who were unable to build off their thrilling win over Nebraska. The Scarlet Knights took an Illinois and had no answer defensively in an 86-63 loss. From the start, the Fighting Illini were in complete control.

As Illinois built a lead early on, they were nearly unstoppable close to the basket. The Fighting Illini scored 50 points in the paint and only allowed 32. They also dominated on the boards with 46 rebounds.

While Illinois’ success was a team effort, they were led by Justin Harmon. The Chicago native added 18 points to his resume and hauled in eight rebounds. He got some help from Terrence Shannon Jr., who scored 16 points.

Although Rutgers didn’t get the result they wanted, Clifford Omoruyi had his best game in weeks, scoring 22 points. It marked the first time in over a month that the talented center reached the 16-point mark. Aundre Hyatt and Noah Fernandes also scored double digits.

 

 

Illinois took advantage of their opportunities in this matchup, shooting 50.8 percent from the field. Rutgers wasn’t able to match their success, only shooting 37.7 percent from the field.

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With their 19th game of the season in the books, Rutgers will shift its focus to finishing the month strong. They will face Purdue and Penn State before the calendar flips to February.

Down big in the first half, Rutgers basketball battles back in loss at Ohio State

Rutgers basketball lost a tight Big Ten game at Ohio State.

On Wednesday night, Rutgers men’s basketball faced Ohio State in their first game of 2024. While the Scarlet Knights were able to keep things close, the Buckeyes emerged with a 76-72 win and improved to 8-1 at home.

Rutgers is now 8-5 (0-2 Big Ten) following the loss at Ohio State.

As Rutgers struggled to stop Ohio State, the Buckeyes’ Bruce Thornton was a scoring machine. Thornton, a guard, scored 24 points while dishing out seven assists. He has been Ohio State’s best player all season and he showed why in front of 10,614 fans at Value City Arena.

Although Clifford Omoruyi and Aundre Hyatt struggled, Rutgers got some solid offensive play from their backcourt. Derek Simpson led the way offensively with 23 points, and Noah Fernandez helped out with 17. The duo continued to step up when needed.

 

While Wednesday night ended in disappointing fashion, Rutgers showed a lot of fight. After being down 45-32 in the first half, Rutgers outscored Ohio State 40-31 in the second half. Had they not gotten off to a slow start, an upset was well within reach.

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After three days off, Rutgers will be back in action on Wednesday against Iowa. The Hawkeyes are off to an 8-6 start and have lost their last game on Tuesday. For Rutgers, taking care of the basketball will be vital after turning the ball over 11 times against Ohio State.

Who are the top five players for Rutgers basketball this season?

Rutgers basketball has had some ups and downs this season but still has a very solid foundation moving forward.

With the start of 2024 only weeks away, Rutgers fans are excited about what the new year will bring to college basketball. The Scarlet Knights are off to a 7-4 start and are 0-1 in conference play. While Rutgers currently sits towards the bottom of the Big Ten standings, January represents a chance for them to make up some ground.

As the Scarlet Knights have made the most of non-conference play, five players have stood out the most. That list includes Clifford Omoruyi, Aundre Hyatt, Gavin Griffiths, Noah Fernandes and Derek Simpson. The talented group has frustrated opponents with their offensive play and ability to take advantage of mistakes.

 

With Omoruyi and Hyatt averaging over ten points a game, Fernandes and Simpson have provided balancing scoring. In his freshman year, Griffiths has shown why he was a highly regarded recruit and has already carved out a role in the lineup.

Scroll down for a breakdown of their 2023 campaigns!

Rutgers winter athletics are off to a good start in December

With the halfway point of December quickly approaching, Rutgers winter athletics has been a winning machine of late.

With the halfway point of December quickly approaching, Rutgers winter athletics has been a winning machine of late. Men’s basketball won their first matchup of the season against Seton Hall on Saturday. Wrestling has also lived up to the preseason hype with a 5-1 start.

However, they are not the only sports that have stood out. Women’s basketball is off to a solid start, and they showed some encouraging signs in their loss to Indiana over the weekend. The matchup marked Rutgers most challenging task yet, as the Hoosiers are ranked as the 16th-best team in the country.

 

For many Rutgers fans, December has been marked on the calendar for a few weeks. On the 28th, Rutgers football is set to take on Miami in the Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl. It is the first time in over eight years that the Scarlet Knights are participating in a bowl game.

Scroll down and check out how Rutgers sports have been doing this winter!

Gallery: Rutgers basketball celebrates a big – and important – win over rival Seton Hall

Rutgers basketball got a much-needed win on Saturday night over Seton Hall.

It was a thorough and complete performance from Rutgers basketball on Saturday night in a 70-63 win over rival Seton Hall. It is the kind of performance that Rutgers hopes they can build on with the heart of the Big Ten schedule fast approaching.

With the win, Rutgers is now 6-3 (0-1 Big Ten) on the season and they captured the Garden State Hardwood Classic Trophy, the annual rivalry trophy for their game against Seton Hall. It was the first time since 2013 that Rutgers beat Seton Hall at the Prudential Center (Newark, New Jersey).

It was a bit of a breakout performance for Cliff Omoruyi, who had 11 points, 13 rebounds and seven blocked shots. Noah Fernandes led all Rutgers scorers with 19 points.

Also encouraging was that Mawot Mag, in his first game of the year since suffering a season-ending injury last February, played 24 minutes.

Rutgers very much needed the win, following disappointingly lopsided losses against No. 24 Illinois and at Wake Forest. The Scarlet Knights raced out to a 12-5 lead early in the opening minutes of the game and took a 33-25 lead into halftime.

The big news from the night was the play of Omoruyi, who looked dominant and imposing on both ends of the court. This coupled with the return of Mag and Rutgers looked calmer and more composed on the court.

“When he plays like that, he is a problem. When we added some experience here another eight rebounds from Mawot and Cliff does a lot of great things,” head coach Steve Pikiell told reporters after the game.

“He had two straight days of great practices and really good leadership. I was proud of him. He is a problem when he plays like that and causes a lot of problems in the lanes when he blocks and alters a ton of shots.”

Scroll down and check out the best photos from Rutgers beating Seton Hall!

Rutgers loses first road game of the season

Rutgers basketball had another disappointing loss on Wednesday night.

On Wednesday night, Rutgers struggled in their first road game of the season as they lost to Wake Forest 76-57. While the Scarlet Knights kept the game close in the first half, Wake Forest took over in the second half and outscored Rutgers 39-26.

Wake Forest’s offense was hard to stop as they got balanced scoring throughout the lineup. Kevin Miller led the way with 23 points and Eftor Reid added 12 points of his own. Since December 2018 the Demon Deacons are 24-0 against nonconference opponents.

Although Wednesday night didn’t go as planned for Rutgers, there were still a few bright spots. For the fifth time this season, Aundre Hyatt scored more than 10 points. Noah Fernandes also had a productive night, scoring 13 points.

 

In this matchup Rutgers biggest issue was taking care of the ball. The Scarlet Knights committed 14 turnovers, while the Demon Deacons only committed 10. Rutgers was also in foul trouble as they ended the night with 18 fouls.

After a disappointing performance on Wednesday, Rutgers will turn its action to Seton Hall. They are set to take on the Pirates on Sunday and will again be in front of a road crowd. It will be a good challenge for the Scarlet Knights as entering play on Thursday, the Pirates were undefeated at home.

Rutgers beats Georgetown in Gavitt Games, improve to 3-1

Rutgers basketball got a big win on Wednesday against Georgetown.

On Wednesday night, Rutgers men’s basketball continued its winning ways when it welcomed Georgetown to Jersey Mike’s Arena. Freshman guard Derek Simpson shined offensively, and Rutgers took advantage of the Hoyas’ mistakes to improve to 3-1.

After losing to Princeton on opening night, Rutgers has looked like a different team. That was on display Wednesday night. While Rutgers was outrebounded 40-29, they turned 21 Georgetown turnovers into 25 points. Rutgers also got offense from various sources, scoring a season-high 71 points.

Four players scored at least 10 points, including Simpson, who led the way with 15. However, he was not the only one who made an impact offensively, as Noan Fernandes, Aundre Hyatt, and Gavin Griffiths also scored double-digit points. Griffiths’s performance was particularly encouraging, as the talented freshman scored 12 points after only scoring five against Bryant on Sunday.

 

Although the Hoyas kept things close, Rutgers used an 11-0 run early in the second half to put the game out of reach. They never trailed at any point and held off Georgetown’s rally in the second half.

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With the Gavitt Games over, Rutgers will turn its focus to its matchup with Howard on Saturday night. Rutgers will again play in front of their home fans at Jersey Mike’s Arena, where they are is 3-0.

Rutgers Noah Fernandes was one of the top ten transfers in the Big Ten

Rutgers basketball added former UMass guard Noah Fernandes. The new Scarlet Knight is a top ten transfer in the Big Ten Conference.

Rutgers basketball added former UMass guard Noah Fernandes out of the transfer portal in April. According to On3, Fernandes has the potential to be one of the top incoming transfers in the Big Ten this year.

The 5-foot-11, 180-pound point guard played in 11 games last season for the Minutemen, averaging 29.5 minutes and 13.4 points per game. The Mattapoisett, Massachusetts, native is a top transfer in the Big Ten Conference, ranking No. 6, according to On3.

During the 2022-23 season, the new Scarlet Knight averaged 4.1 assists, 1.3 steals, and 45.3 three-point percentage while playing with UMass. Ferdenades only played 11 games for the Minutemen after going down with a season-ending ankle injury.

According to 247Sports, the three-star transfer was ranked the No. 42 point guard and the No. 149 overall player in the NCAA transfer portal.

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The fifth-year senior has played 73 college games with a career average of 10.1 points and 3.8 assists per game. He scored 738 points and logged 275 assists while recording a 46.6 shooting percentage in his four-year career.

If Fernandes can stay healthy, he will pair with Rutgers sophomore Derek Simpson in the Scarlet Knights’ backcourt. Simpson played in 34 games with six starts last season for the Scarlet Knights.

Fernandes was UMass’s team leader in points during the 2021-22 season, averaging 14.9 points and 5.3 assists for the Minutemen while shooting 43.5 percent from the field. He is entering his final season of eligibility, adding much-needed shooting for the Scarlet Knights after the departure of Cam Spencer.

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Jon Rothstein projects the Rutgers basketball starting five

Jon Rothstein projects the Rutgers men’s basketball starting lineup.

Put it in pen: Rutgers basketball has a starting five according to Jon Rothstein. The college basketball insider has spoken following his time spent at the team’s facility this week.

The lineup projection isn’t much of a surprise, but the inclusion of a true freshman is particularly interesting or perhaps, more apropos, intriguing.

Four-star Gavin Griffiths, the highest-ranked player to ever sign with Rutgers, is in the starting five at small forward according to Rothstein. The 6-foot-6 forward from Connecticut was ranked the No. 12 small forward in the nation according to ESPN.

Why is this significant? Rothstein was at the men’s basketball practice on Thursday, giving him up close access. Seeing Griffiths work out and perform in person is just further validation that the program landed someone who can contribute and help immediately.

 

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Rothstein also has Mawot Mag, injured last season in the win at Madison Square Garden over Michigan State, in his starting lineup. Mag likely won’t be ready at the start of the season but his loss last season was noticeable, coinciding with the team’s drop in form.

Again, like the news about Griffiths, the inclusion of Mag in the starting lineup at some point this upcoming season is a nice little nugget from Rothstein. Not shocking, but just good confirmation about the player’s progress this offseason.

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Griffiths adds a true shooter’s touch to the lineup, with the ability to stretch the floor. He has a very polished outside game.

With a healthy Mag and the insertion of [autotag]Noah Fernandes[/autotag], a transfer from UMass, the Rutgers lineup should get the Scarlet Knights back to the postseason.

Rothstein is a college basketball insider for CBS Sports and creates content for Fan Duel.

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After an offseason full of change, Rutgers men’s basketball preparing for 2023-2024 campaign

What are the biggest stories of the Rutgers basketball upcoming season?

For Rutgers basketball, a lot has changed over the last few months. Key pieces such as Cam Spencer and Paul Mulcahy entered the transfer portal, and Caleb McConnell said goodbye to Piscataway. While they all played an important role, the Scarlet Knights are shifting their focus to the 2023-2024 campaign.

The roster will feature many new faces, including Jamicheal Davis, Derek Simpson, and Gavin Griffiths. The trio should add a boost offensively which will be vital in the Big Ten. For head coach Steve Pikiell it will be an important season after Rutgers missed the NCAA Tournament last year.

Pikiell will have talented upperclassmen to lean on in Clifford Omoruyi and Aundre Hyatt, who took his game to another level during the 2022-2023 campaign. That duo should make life harder for opponents when they take on Rutgers.

While the season is still months away, fans in Piscataway could have a fun winter in store. This team has the chance talent to make things interesting and has been shaped by six moves in particular.

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