PISCATAWAY, N.J. — As Steve Pikiell steered his car into the parking lot outside of the Rutgers Athletic Center, a man knocked on his window. This was on Jan. 19, hours before the Scarlet Knights tipped off against Minnesota in what would be their fourth sellout of the season. Pikiell rolled down his window. “Hey,’’ the guy said. “You got any tickets?” The head basketball coach grinned broadly at the man who clearly had no idea who he was. “Man, this is a great day!” Pikiell said. Focused solely on the transaction at hand, the man responded, “Why you got some?” Pikiell shook his head in apology. “Actually, I don’t. But I’m just so happy you’re here scalping!”



A program that languished for years from neglect and disfunction, Rutgers suddenly is enjoying a stunning boon of progress. The Scarlet Knights are 15-5, ranked for the first time since 1979 and in position to record their first...