The Morning Dish

The Morning Dish – Thursday, December 12, 2019

At some places, progress is slow, with little victories that might not seem like much, especially to fans of programs that win more frequently. But when it’s there, it’s hard to deny, and little by little, Steve Pikiell is building Rutgers up.

In each of Pikiell’s three-plus seasons, the Scarlet Knights have recorded a win of some significance. In his first season, they beat Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament; winning a game in the conference tournament is always big for a team. In year two, they knocked off arch-rival Seton Hall and later won two games in the Big Ten Tournament. Last season, they didn’t win a conference tournament game, but they beat Ohio State and added a big road win as they won at Iowa late in the season.

This time around, they got the win a little earlier, although as has been the case often, it came in the Big Ten. Wisconsin came to Piscataway, and Rutgers led for most of the contest in a 72-65 win. They won the possession battle by a big margin, out-rebounding the Badgers 40-26 and turning the ball over three fewer times, which helped them overcome allowing the Badgers to shoot just under 48 percent from the field as well as their own struggles from long range (they were 5-19 on three-pointers).

While the Badgers aren’t a lock for the NCAA Tournament if it were held tomorrow, as they have a .500 record, they remain a good team and one that should be at least in the top half of the Big Ten. Going 0-2 in the Legends Classic in Brooklyn didn’t help.

Rutgers lost to St. Bonaventure in Toronto, as well as Pittsburgh and Michigan State, the latter two on the road. Their 7-3 mark is respectable, and this win also helps them when they host arch rival Seton Hall on Saturday afternoon. After that, the remaining non-conference slate is manageable, and with a trip to rebuilding Nebraska up first when Big Ten play gets going in earnest, they could go above .500 before a few tougher games come up.

Looking a little longer term, provided there are no transfers or early NBA Draft entrants, a lot of this team will come back as they have just two seniors, one of who is a reserve. That means there is lots of room for growth. Thus far, there has been exactly that, with at least one sign of it every year under Pikiell.

 

Side Dishes

In the other Big Ten game on the slate, the home team also scored an important win. Illinois has whiffed on their best non-conference opportunities for quality wins, but they didn’t miss their chance when Michigan came to town. Instead, they used 15 offensive rebounds to out-rebound the Wolverines by 16 and got a big game from Kofi Cockburn (19 points, 10 rebounds, four blocked shots) en route to a 71-62 win. In that game, after a basket while fouled, Cockburn inadvertently struck referee Lewis Garrison in the head while celebrating, knocking him unconscious. Garrison left the court under his own power, but did not finish the game, and his condition is unknown.

Other results of note: Yale won their sixth straight to go to 9-3, knocking off UMass 83-80 in overtime behind 16 points, 11 rebounds and six assists from Jordan Bruner; Houston got past UT Arlington 71-63 behind 25 points and 10 rebounds from Nate Hinton; and Tulsa built a 43-22 lead at the half and made it stand up in a 69-56 win over Boise State.

NCAA president Mark Emmert spoke about the future of the organization with regard to legislation on Wednesday, and he said it is “highly probable” that federal legislation will eventually be passed regarding how athletes may be compensated for the use of their name, likeness and image. Emmert spoke at a forum sponsored by the Sports Business Journal in New York. Since California passed its law in October, more than 20 other states have taken action towards such legislation, but that would pose a consistency issue for the NCAA, hence the desire for something federal.

After NC State filed their response to the notice of allegations received from the NCAA, attorneys for former head coach Mark Gottfried are questioning what the NCAA used to make the allegations. The attorneys note that new NCAA bylaws don’t allow evidence and testimony from court cases that are under appeal, which is the case for United States v. Gatto, et al. Attorneys Scott Tompsett and Elliott Abrams argue in their appeal to the NCAA that the enforcement staff took improper actions. Gottfried is now the head coach at Cal State Northridge, and the NCAA alleges a failure to monitor charge against him.

 

Tonight’s Menu

A light night of action is ahead as just six Division I games are on the slate.

  • Austin Peay makes the trip to West Virginia to give the Mountaineers a test (7 p.m.)
  • Abilene Christian tries to reach .500 as they host Howard Payne (7 p.m.)
  • Wright State looks to keep their good start going as they host Southern (7 p.m.)
  • The best game on tap is a big rivalry game as Iowa State hosts Iowa (8 p.m.)
  • Northern Iowa takes their 8-1 record on the road to visit Grand Canyon (9 p.m.)
  • The last game of the night also involves a non-Division I team as Portland State hosts Portland Bible (10:05 p.m.)

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