Rutgers University
Molloy
Men's Hoops Earn Convincing Victory in Pikiell Debut
Nov 11 | Men's Basketball
Box Score
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PISCATAWAY, N.J. - Steve Pikiell led Rutgers (1-0) to an 86-57 win over Molloy (0-1) Friday evening at the RAC to signal the largest margin of victory ever for RU men's basketball in a head coaching debut. The 29-point win was the most sizable for the Scarlet Knights in a season opener since defeating Bentley 100-60 at the College Avenue Gym on December 1, 1975.
"I thought the student section was great tonight," said Pikiell. "I want to thank them. It was a good team win. We got our two charges and got down for a couple loose balls. Our defense held too. Mike Williams did a great job and was a spark off the bench. Deshawn Freeman got a double-double. That's his mission for the year and he took care of that tonight."
Four players scored in double figures for Rutgers, including Freeman, who had 13 points and 10 rebounds. The redshirt junior team captain was 5-of-10 from the field to aid a 48.3 percent (29-of-60) shooting performance, while also issuing three blocks.
Williams, Nigel Johnson and graduate student C.J. Gettys, joined Freeman in double-digits with 17, 14 and 11 points, respectively. Williams shot 5-of-8 from behind the arc, while Johnson and Gettys made 4-of-8 and 5-of-7 FGAs. Freeman and Gettys were instrumental in the home squad establishing a 42-22 scoring advantage in the paint and a 45-32 margin on the boards.
Rutgers jumped-out to a 9-0 lead, but persistent Molloy remained within striking distance. The home squad led by as many as 13 points before entering the locker room at the midpoint with a 35-25 advantage.
A trio of three-pointers after the break brought the Lions to within five, 45-40, with 15 minutes to play. The Scarlet Knights responded by scoring 25 of the contest's next 31 points, fueled by an 18-0 run to confirm the eventual conclusion.
RU led from the opening tip to the final buzzer largely due to a defensive effort that limited Molloy to 38 percent (19-of-50) shooting.
Fourteen players saw action for Rutgers, contributing to a 43-11 differential in bench points. Of those players, six were competing in their initial game in a Scarlet Knight uniform.
RU returns to the hardwood this Sunday to host Drexel in a 4 p.m. tip-off at the RAC. The game will be televised live nationally on BTN, with Greg Amsinger and Bob Wenzel calling the action.
Postgame Notes
- The 29-point win was the largest margin of victory ever for RU men's basketball in a head coaching debut.
- It was the largest margin of victory in a season opener since a 40-point, 100-60, win over Bentley in 1975-76.
- The victory was the 1,200th win in the history of Rutgers men's basketball.
- Making their Rutgers debuts: Issa Thiam, C.J. Gettys, Nigel Johnson, Eugene Omoruyi, Candido Sa and Matt Bullock.
- Making their first start at Rutgers: Thiam and Gettys.
- 14 players saw action, with RU holding a 43-11 advantage in bench points
- Deshawn Freeman had his first career double-double, recording 13 points and a career-high 10 rebounds.
- Mike Williams led the team with 17 points, including five three-pointers.
- Nigel Johnson had 14 points, 13 of them coming in the second half.
- Gettys reached double-digit scoring with 11 points in his RU debut.
- Corey Sanders had eight assists, the third highest single game total of his career.
- Thiam had six points in his Rutgers debut.
- Omoruyi had six points, five rebounds and four assists in his Rutgers debut.
- Sa had six points and three rebounds in his Rutgers debut.
- Rutgers had four players score in double digits for the first time since Feb 17, 2016 versus Illinois.
- Johnson took the first charge of the season in the second half.
- The Scarlet Knights are now 76-29 all-time in season openers.
Postgame Quotes
Rutgers Head Coach Steve Pikiell:
Opening Statement: "First of all, thank you for coming. I thought the student section was great tonight. I want to thank them. It was a good team win. We got our two chargers and got down for a couple loose balls. Our defense held too. Mike Williams did a great job and was a spark off the bench. Deshawn Freeman got a double-double. That's his mission for the year and he took care of that tonight. It was a good team win. We'll take a few minutes to enjoy it and then we are on to Sunday's game."
On expanding margin in second half: "I think we wore them down. I kept saying to these guys in timeouts `they're hitting some tough shots so give Molloy credit.' Those guys played fearlessly. I knew they couldn't continue at that pace. I really think you saw at the end there that our condiitoning was really good. We had enough players coming in and out. We wore them out and got to them on the backboards. We went on a little run too on the offensive end. We've got to defend. We held them under 40 percent, which is one of our goals. They were 31 percent from three, we have to get that down. And we fouled too much, so we have to spend some time on making sure we defend without fouling,because stopping the clock kind of helped them."
On the first win: "I'm just happy. These guys have worked hard. They played defense and it was a total team - everyone came in the game and helped us. It takes everybody. Mike was huge off the bench today. A nice lift. I think our bench really gave us a lot of production and I think that takes some pressure off of our starting lineup. Again, everyone chipped in, everyone came in. Eugene came in and did some good stuff, Issa made some three's, Nigel got us going a little bit. Candido made a big foul line jump shot when we needed it. A lot of guys chipped in. Good team win. And that is how we have to play."
On setting the tone for the season: "I like the fact we held a team under 60, that is one of our missions. It's nice to win. These guys deserve it, they played hard and prepared well. We had good practices this week and we're going to have another good one tomorrow."
On CJ Gettys: "He knows how to play. He's huge as you've seen. He's got a nice touch around the basket. He played with some energy. I like it. He's got a little swagger. He's going to help us moving forward. It's a tougher game for him today, chasing around jump shooters. We had to invert our bigs a little bit. Play with Eugene, but it's nice to have some versatility where we can sub different guys in that can do some different things defensively. Happy to have him. He is going to be a force moving forward."
Molloy Head Coach Charles Marquardt:
On his overall thoughts of the game: "We were excited to be in this and we appreciate Rutgers giving us an opportunity. I thought we came out a little nervous, but then we settled in. Made shots are everything. Our defense early was decent. It kept us around.
"We made a little bit of a run in the second half. We have to be proud of that. I thought we played 40 minutes of respectable basketball. We got worn down. [Pikiell] does a great job. He has depth, from my seat he does. They also hit some big shots. Mike Williams hit some big shots in that corner during their big run. Those are daggers. When you have that as well as the size differential, it creates problems defensively in a zone."
On playing at the RAC: "It was a great environment and a great setup. This is a great court. It's a great arena to play in. I love the colors, which make it dark in the gym. To me, it creates a nice night setting. It's a regular-season game, so it's tough to open like that, but as far as an experience now, looking back, it was good for these guys, a Division II team, to have the opportunity."
On what they can take away from this game: "We have to toe the line for 40 minutes. We have to play a certain way all the time. It also tells me what we have to work on. Whether it be shot selection or what not. We talk about ball control all the time. Ball control, to me, is everything. Rebounding, fouling on the defensive end, offensively with shot selection and turnovers, we just have to keep working on those things."
