Rutgers basketball: Baker, Yeboah find groove in romp of Niagara 5 takeaways as the Scarlet Knights improved to 2-0

Jerry Carino | Asbury Park Press

PISCATAWAY — On Friday, Rutgers basketball captain Geo Baker and sat down with head coach Steve Pikiell to watch film of the season-opening squeaker over Bryant.

“We looked horrible,” Baker said.

Then the whole team watched the tape, and after that, something interesting happened.

“A lot of other guys went in (the film room) and watched it on their own,” Baker said. “That’s something we never would have done in the past. That never happened last year, or the year before that.”

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The extra focus showed Sunday as the Scarlet Knights throttled Niagara 86-39, the largest margin of victory against a Division I opponent in Pikiell’s three-plus years on the banks. This was the explosive, cohesive Rutgers folks expected to see this season.

“I love the fact that they were coachable the past couple of days,” Pikiell said. “They took the tape and they learned from it. Really good sign.”

Baker took the reins, tallying 22 points on 8-of-11 shooting and handing out four assists while committing just one turnover. That’s a huge bounce-back from the junior guard’s 3-of-11 struggle against Bryant.

“He dominated,” postgrad forward Akwasi Yeboah said. “He was very vocal and encouraging with all of us. He led us to this victory from start to end.”

Yeboah did his part, too. The Stony Brook transfer chalked up 14 points, six rebound and two assists in 17 ultra-efficient minutes off the bench. He exhibited the kind of inside-outside versatility that made him an All-Metropolitan player with the Seawolves.

“His maturity helps our team a great deal,” Pikiell said. “He’s able to shoot, rebound, score around the basket, and I think you’ll see some more things as we keep adding some wrinkles for him.”

Defensively, this marked the ninth time since the advent of the shot clock (in 1985-86) that Rutgers held an opponent under 40 points. Five of those have been under Pikiell.

Transition defense in particular was a point of emphasis in the film study. Rutgers (2-0) outscored Niagara (0-2) 26-2 in points off turnovers and 25-2 in fast-break points.

FIVE TAKEAWAYS

1. Superb ball movement

The Scarlet Knights tallied 22 assists, with eight different players handing out at least one. There were several half-court possessions where the ball never touched the ground as five or six players moved it around the perimeter, throwing the extra pass until the best look presented itself.

“We made a whole clip session about making an extra pass, and today it showed,” Baker said. “That’s dream basketball. I love that stuff, when we really move the ball and get wide-open shots or a dunk or layup. I hope we continue to do that.”

Added Yeboah: "It’s like poetry in motion. It’s beautiful to watch a team share the ball like that.”

Rutgers shared the ball fairly well against Bryant but that was obscured by all the missed shots.

“When we’re moving the ball like that we’ll be a hard team to play against,” Pikiell said. “Everyone passed up a good shot for maybe a great one. Guys took shots in rhythm and range. I think there were jitters the other day, being the first game out.”

2. More from Mulcahy

Freshman guard Paul Mulcahy built on his strong debut Thursday with a team high six assists, plus four points and three boards, in 18 minutes. The former Gill St. Bernard's star is averaging 4.5 assists and shooting 5-of-8 from the field so far. He's committed just one turnover.

"He's getting more and more comfortable on the floor," Pikiell said. "Guys like playing with a guy like that. He sees the floor, he's got good size, really works. He's a nice addition for us and a great kid."

3. Going 11 deep

Pikiell called on all 11 scholarship players within the first 10 minutes Sunday. Junior guard Peter Kiss made his season debut after riding the bench Thursday; he registered one steal in seven minutes. Redshirt sophomore forward Mamdou Doucoure was the 11th player to enter, points four points and one rebound in 9:24.

4. Tough draw

Like many Big Ten programs, Rutgers plays some Sunday home games, going up against the NFL to avoid conflicts with college football Saturdays. Competing with the Jets-Giants and the other 1 p.m. tips knocked attendance down to about 3,000 Sunday, including a sparse student section.

5. Easy street continues

Rutgers will play host to Drexel Wednesday (8 p.m., BTN-Plus). By way of comparison, the Dragons beat Niagara by eight points at home on Friday. There is no real test on the horizon. What was supposed to be a decent matchup against St. Bonaventure in Toronto Nov. 16 has lost some luster after the Bonnies opened with losses to Ohio and Vermont.

Rutgers basketball manager Scott Scherer in action A look at the Manalapan H.S. grad during a recent team workout.

Jerry Carino has covered the New Jersey sports scene since 1996 and the college basketball beat since 2003. He is an Associated Press Top 25 voter. Contact him at jcarino@gannettnj.com.