This is an interesting week for Rutgers men’s basketball coach Steve Pikiell.

On Sunday, his team participated in the Tunnel to Towers 5K as a symbolic end to offseason conditioning — and a lesson in the bravery of first responders who died on 9/11.

On Monday, he headed to Europe for a three-day recruiting trip.

On Friday, he’ll gather the Scarlet Knights for the first full practice of the 2017-18 season. Coming off a surprisingly competitive 15-18 debut campaign and a strong summer of recruiting, Pikiell spoke with Gannett New Jersey about the state of his program.

Q. Looking back on it, how much of the foundation was laid last season?

A. “We’ve set a little bit of a foundation on how we’re looking to build it. We have some new pieces this year and a lot of our (returning) guys have gotten better. That’s a big part of what we want to do -- self-development. When you see our guys, you’re going to say ‘They’re better.’”

Rutgers basketball: 5 burning questions for the preseason

Q. You have two returning captains in Mike Williams and Deshawn Freeman. Who are emerging as this year’s leaders?

A. “Those guys have helped and gotten better, but Soufi (Mensah) has come in and been a great leader. Any time you get a guy who’s a point guard who has those characteristics, it’s a good thing. Leadership doesn’t just have to come from seniors and juniors. Our freshmen have shown it too. We have young guys with the characteristics of future leaders.”

Q. What player is going to surprise everybody most this season?

A. “Eugene Omoruyi. His body is tremendous, his conditioning is tremendous, he’s more mature, he has a good energy about him. I’m excited about him. Issa (Thiam) too. He has scored a lot more (effectively) in this offseason than he did last year. People will be excited about his development.”

Q. What are your expectations for Corey Sanders this year?

A. “I thought he made a huge jump last year in practice, in terms of consistency. I’m hoping he makes a huge jump here, too. There were times last year where he showed what kind of defender he could be. I think we’ll put him in better position to score, too. We have more backcourt answers now. We can move him around, which makes him harder to guard. But I want him to be more consistent and I want him to be more of a leader.”

Q. What have you seen from freshman guard Geo Baker so far?

A. “He’s a really good guard. Knows how to play, shoots it, has great size. He’s going to be a real good player for us for a long time.”

Q. What is freshman big man Mamadou Doucoure’s eligibility status?

A. “He’s practicing with us right now. He’s cleared to practice. We’re waiting for full clearance (for games). It takes time. We’re hopeful to hear soon.”

Q. Who will be your primary ball-handler?

A. “We were limited to one guy in the past. Now these other guys are going take a lot of pressure off Corey. Sometimes it’s hard to score from the point. Corey is excited about playing with guys who can get him the ball in the open court.”

Q. How is the team’s shooting?

A. “Mike Williams has gotten better, Geo Baker is a real good shooter. Myles (Johnson), he’s a good shooter for a big guy. Deshawn (Freeman) is making 17-footers, which will help a great deal. So we’re better in that department, but we still have a long way to go.”

Q. How is Shaq Doorson’s foot doing after his springtime surgery?

A. “He’ll be cleared for full workouts probably in a couple of weeks. I thought he would be cleared 3-4 weeks ago. We’re being very cautious, which is good. I think he’ll be ready when the season begins. The question is, can we get him up to game speed?”

Q. Last year you played 10 deep all season. Same philosophy this year?

A. “I don’t know if that’s my style or if I just thought that was the best way last year, when we didn’t have much of a difference one through 10. We’re in better shape this year and I want to play faster, which means more subbing at times.”

Q. What do you think of your schedule, both non-conference and league?

A. “It’s our schedule. I want to play at the RAC and pack the place. That’s where we have home-court advantage so I’m excited about that. The way our schedule works out, next year we’ll be on the road a lot (out of conference). Then we open league play with four ranked teams in our first five. So it will be a top 50 schedule by the end of the year no matter how you look at it.”

Q. After taking over a damaged brand, what’s been the key behind your Class of 2018 recruiting success? (a viral dunk by one of the pledges is embedded above)

A. “I’ve got a great staff and we’ve worked really hard. There are a lot of good things going on at Rutgers. The new (practice) facility, (athletics director) Pat Hobbs has tremendous energy, and we’re playing in the best conference in the country academically and athletically.”

Q. The success you had at Stony Brook, how much did that prepare you for Rutgers and the Big Ten, and how much of a learning curve is there?

A. “The good part is, I’ve been a part of all these builds (including UConn). The obstacles I’ve seen here at Rutgers are the same. I have tremendous confidence with how we’re building it. We’re recruiting great-character kids into the program. I see signs all the time. Yesterday I left the gym at 11 p.m. and Candida Sa was in the gym shooting, Soufi was in there shooting around. These are the signs of how you’re building.”

Staff writer Jerry Carino: jcarino@gannettnj.com.