When Jim Calhoun took over Connecticut's men's basketball program back in May of 1986, he had a young incoming freshman who was one of the best players in the state and would soon help elevate the Huskies as a two-time team captain.

Calhoun remembers Steve Pikiell as not only a tough player on the court - one whose shoulder separated close to 40 times - but as a leader.

"He was a terrific young guy," Calhoun told USA TODAY Network New Jersey, not long after getting off the phone with Pikiell.

In three decades since their UConn days, Calhoun has followed his former player's ascension as a college basketball coach, keeping in touch with Pikiell and providing some guidance along the way.

Now Calhoun isn't surprised by what Pikiell has done at Rutgers, lifting the Scarlet Knights from the bottom of the Big Ten to one of the better teams in the conference.

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"He’s probably as old school as you’re going to find. He’s not a self-promoter, he’s not out there living on Twitter and all the other things. He’s coaching basketball," said Calhoun, who's in his second season as the head coach of Division III University of St. Joseph in Connecticut. "He’s much more of an old-fashioned coach. He brings his lunch pail to work, not a lot of frills, just a lot of basketball knowledge."

The way Pikiell is building Rutgers, which has a crucial road game at No. 16 Penn State on Wednesday, mirrors what Calhoun did after taking over the Huskies.

UConn went 9-19 during Calhoun's first season and Pikiell's freshman year. The Huskies won the NIT the following year and first made the NCAA Tournament in year four. Before long they were a perennial NCAA Tournament powerhouse, one that would eventually win three championships under Calhoun.

At Rutgers Pikiell, now in his fourth season, took over a project.

The Scarlet Knights were 7-25 and just 1-17 in the Big Ten during Eddie Jordan's final season as head coach.

Now Rutgers is 18-10 overall, 9-8 in the conference. The Scarlet Knights were ranked this season for the first time since the 1978-79 season and could earn an NCAA Tournament selection berth for the first time since 1991.

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Calhoun believes Pikiell is building something sustainable.

"He’s not a short-cutter," Calhoun said of Pikiell. "He’s a long-termer who builds something permanent and I think he’s doing that at Rutgers."

The way Pikiell's teams play are also similar to Calhoun's early UConn teams.

"With Steve, much is what our UConn teams did," Calhoun said. "They rebound, they defend and they play harder than the other team and make the other team wear down.

"That’s what they’re doing. "

Rutgers will need to do all of that against Penn State on Wednesday to get a road victory that would significantly help its NCAA Tournament resume.

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The Scarlet Knights won the battle on the boards when t they played Penn State in early January, outrebounding the Nittany Lions 43-36, a significant part of their 11-point victory.

Rutgers is hoping for a repeat of that, especially coming off a loss at Wisconsin Sunday.

Calhoun say he'll be watching closely - and that he's proud of what Pikiell has accomplished with the Scarlet Knights.

"Steve’s a special person," Calhoun said. "I’m not shocked by his success. I’m just very happy about his success. I know he’s building to the right things."

Email: iseman@northjersey.com Twitter: @chrisiseman