PISCATAWAY — After he knocked down a pair of free throws that helped seal Rutgers' victory over Purdue Tuesday night, Ron Harper Jr. turned, tapped his chest and pointed straight up at the sky.

Harper Jr. had a personal connection to Kobe Bryant, who was a teammate of his father, Ron, with the Los Angeles Lakers.

As the world mourns the tragic death of Bryant, who was killed along with his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven others in a helicopter crash on Sunday morning in California, it was an emotional night for Harper, who fought back tears during a pregame moment of silence.

"It's hitting him hard," Geo Baker said after the No. 25 Scarlet Knights' 70-63 win over the Boilermakers at Rutgers Athletic Center. "It hit everyone hard. I viewed him as immortal, indestructible. Never in a million years would I have imagined that happening."

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Harper finished with 10 points and four rebounds on Tuesday. He threw down an alley-oop dunk off a feed from Montez Mathis in the first half, and his free throws with 13 seconds remaining gave Rutgers a five-point lead, helping to lock up the win on a tough night.

Harper Jr., who graduated from Don Bosco Prep, posted a photo of him and Bryant on his Instagram account on Sunday with a caption that read, "24 forever. Love you Unc" with a broken-heart emoji.

After the game, Harper Jr. posted a highlight of his dunk to his Instagram account and captioned it, "That was for you big 24."

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"Anytime something like that happens, it’s just awful," Rutgers head coach Steve Pikiell said. "I have a 13-year-old son. He loves Kobe too. Just what he means to a lot of people. And these guys grew up idolizing Kobe Bryant. Ron had a personal connection to him. It’s just tough. It makes you appreciate life. ...It was a tough week. I think a tough week for everybody but I think it makes you think about a lot of things. That’s not a bad thing sometimes."

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As they went through their pregame warm-ups, the Scarlet Knights wore white T-shirts with an image of Bryant on the front and the numbers "8" and "24" on the back.

For Harper and his teammates, Bryant was a larger-than-life figure and a star they grew up watching and emulating.

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"Everyone was affected by it because he really impacted our lives," Akwasi Yeboah said. "Not only for basketball players, but everyone in general. Knowing Ron, we were just with him the whole time and just telling him to stay positive, live on his legacy really and continue to do what he does in memory of him."

Like the rest of the basketball world, the Scarlet Knights have been mourning Bryant's death.

Bryant was an inspiration for many.

Now Harper and Rutgers are trying to follow Bryant's example both on and off the court.

"We’re trying to turn this into something positive," Baker said. "The way we’re looking at it is, we want to embrace life every day. There are times you might have a bad game and get down on yourself, but it’s a bad game, not a bad life. That’s something we’re trying to see and enjoy every second with each other because this is a special group.”

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