Rutgers Men's Basketball 2011-12 Season Notables
Mar 12 | Men's Basketball
The Rutgers men’s basketball team concluded its season with a 14-18 (6-12 BIG EAST) record under second-year head coach Mike Rice. Along the way, the Scarlet Knights had many notable accomplishments…
• Rutgers was the nation’s fifth-youngest team in 2011-12 according to a formula utilizing minutes played considering class status by StatSheet.com. Of the five youngest teams in the country (Boston College, St. John’s, Niagara, Nicholls State, Rutgers), the Scarlet Knights had the highest winning percentage. 52.2 percent of the RU’s overall minutes (3386 of 6475) were played by freshmen and 55.4 percent of the team’s overall points (1161 of 2095) were scored by freshmen.
• Twenty of Rutgers’ 31 regular season games (65 percent) were played against teams that received postseason bids. The Scarlet Knights played 12 games against NCAA Championship squads (Syracuse, Marquette, Georgetown, Louisville, Florida, Notre Dame twice, Cincinnati, West Virginia twice, UConn, USF), six contests versus National Invitation Tournament squads (Seton Hall twice, Miami, LSU, Illinois State, Stony Brook) and two games against teams that received College Basketball Invitational bids (Pittsburgh, Princeton).
• Rutgers is 4-5 against teams entering the postseason ranked in the RPI top 50.
• Rutgers earned six BIG EAST Conference victories in 2011-12, its most since capturing seven league wins in 2005-06. Of the six teams the Scarlet Knights defeated in conference play, five (Connecticut, Notre Dame, Cincinnati, Seton Hall, Pittsburgh) were nationally-ranked at some point during the season. Picked 11th in the BIG EAST preseason coaches poll, RU was the 11th seed in the 2012 BIG EAST Championship, its highest since a No. 10 seed in 2006.
• Rutgers defeated BIG EAST metro rivals Seton Hall and St. John’s in 2011-12. It marked the first time the Scarlet Knights had defeated both schools in the same season since 2005-06.
• Rutgers defeated a pair of top 10 teams at the RAC in 2011-12, downing No. 10 Florida 85-83 in double overtime on Dec. 29 and defeating No. 8 Connecticut 67-60 on Jan. 7. It marked only the second time in program history that the Scarlet Knights had downed a pair of top 10 foes in the same season. In 1981-82, RU defeated No. 8 UCLA and No. 6 West Virginia. The win over the Huskies signaled the only time that Rutgers has downed a defending national champion. In two seasons “On the Banks” Mike Rice has defeated three top 10-ranked teams, second only to former head coach Tom Young (1973-85, 4) in the RU annals.
• Freshman guard Eli Carter (Paterson, N.J.) averaged a team-best 13.8 ppg, including 14.0 ppg in the BIG EAST. He scored in double figures 25 times. Carter averaged 16.6 ppg against nationally-ranked teams. In BIG EAST games, he ranked fourth among all freshmen in scoring, third in 3-pt FG% and fifth in steals. Carter was named BIG EAST Rookie of the Week after 31 point performance in 85-83 2OT win over No. 10 Florida and was cited on BIG EAST Honor Roll after scoring 19 points in 67-60 win over No. 8 UConn.
• Junior wing Dane Miller (Rochester, N.Y.) shot 50 percent (97-194) from the field and had seven double-doubles this season. He ranked fourth in the BIG EAST in blocks (1.6), 11th in FG% and 14th in rebounding (6.6). Miller excelled in wins over metro foes. He had 21 points & 10 rebounds in a 77-72 OT win at Seton Hall and was named to BIG EAST Honor Roll after a 10 point, 10 rebound showing in the 61-58 win over St. John’s.
• Rutgers freshmen made a definite impact. In all games, Carter ranked fourth in scoring and fourth in three-point field goal percentage (.353) among league rookies. Myles Mack (Paterson, N.J.) was fourth in free throw percentage (.788), fifth in three-point field goal percentage (.338) and fifth in steals (1.4) among BIG EAST freshmen. Derrick Randall (Brooklyn, N.Y.) led all league rookies in field goal percentage (.561) in 2011-12. In addition, Jerome Seagears (Silver Spring, Md.) boasted a 1.58 assist-to-turnover ratio. Big man Greg Lewis (Randallstown, Md.) steadily progressed and earned his first career start in the BIG EAST Championship. RU’s highly-touted rookie class was somewhat hampered by injury, as Kadeem Jack (Queens, N.Y.) missed the first 13 games due to preseason foot surgery and Malick Kone (Conakry, Guinea) was sidelined in mid-season due to arthroscopic knee surgery.
• Junior Austin Johnson (Elkins Park, Pa.) and sophomore wing Mike Poole (Rosedale, N.Y.) both provided veteran production off the bench. Johnson shot 23-of-42 (55 percent) coming off the bench in 17 contests. Poole hit double figures seven times in a reserve role and shot 77.8 percent from the free throw line.
• Power forward Wally Judge (Washington, D.C.) participated in all team activities in 2011-12, but did not compete in games under NCAA transfer guidelines. A McDonald’s All-America selection and the No. 15-ranked overall player nationally by ESPN in 2009, Judge will have two seasons of eligibility remaining to compete “On the Banks.”
• Rutgers played 12 nationally televised games, including 10 on the ESPN network (ESPN/ESPN2/ESPNU) and two on the CBS Sports Network, to highlight its 2011-12 season. Every RU game was televised in some form, whether or it be national or regional television, or via the web (ESPN3 and RVision). The Scarlet Knights were one of nine BIG EAST teams to have all of its games available for live viewing.
• Despite a busy class and practice/game schedule the Scarlet Knights made time for community service in 2011-12. Under the leadership of Director of Player Development Eric Murdock, RU players participated in a multitude of community outreach initiatives during the season. Players volunteered at Elijah’s Promise soup kitchen in New Brunswick, were active in the NABC’s “Ticket to Reading Rewards” program, volunteered at the United Way’s Gifts for the Season program and visited with ill children at Robert Wood Johnson Children’s Hospital. The team also continued its Scarlet Letters Pen Pal program directed by academic advisor Randi Larson. Just prior to the season, on Nov. 5, Coach Rice and his wife Kerry hosted a tip-off dinner at the RAC to benefit the American Cancer Society and its Coaches vs. Cancer program.
• The Rutgers men’s basketball team excelled in the classroom and has a cumulative grade point average of 3.013. In the fall 2011 semester, nine student-athletes earned semester grade point averages of 3.0 or above and Austin Carroll (Bedford, Mass.) and Tyree Graham (Durham, N.C.) were both recognized on the Dean’s List. Charlie Rigoglioso (Wayne, N.J.) is presently pursuing a master’s degree after earning a BA in economics in January. Mike Kuhn (Oceanport, N.J.) is slated to graduate in May with a BA in finance, while Graham will graduate with a BS in labor & employment relations.
• Rutgers initiated a “Jersey Heroes” program in 2011-12, recognizing a returning combat veteran currently enrolled as a student at Rutgers in conjunction with the national anthem. All of the honorees saw combat duty in Iraq or Afghanistan.
