INDIANAPOLIS – A historic season came to an end on Sunday night, as No. 10 seed Rutgers men's basketball fell to No. 2 seed Houston 63-60 at Lucas Oil Stadium in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament. The Scarlet Knights broke new ground for the program this season, qualifying for the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1991. On Friday night, the team defeated No. 7 seed Clemson for the first NCAA Tournament win for RU since 1983.

The Scarlet Knights completed the landmark campaign with a record of 16-12. While playing in the best conference in the nation, RU won 11 games over Big Ten teams, marking double-digit conference wins in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 1989-90 and 1990-91.

"This team made history," head coach Steve Pikiell. "They got through a two-year journey, all the obstacles they had to fight through. They now become the standard for what we want to be here at Rutgers."

Rutgers got 14 points from Geo Baker and 10 points from Montez Mathis. The team shot 44 percent, holding Houston to 37 percent, but the Cougars claimed a 39-29 advantage in rebounding.

Ron Harper Jr. swished an early triple for RU, but Houston took an early 14-7 lead. Rutgers rallied back, using a 13-4 run to take the lead at 20-18. Montez Mathis was key in the opening half, scoring a game-high 10 points in the frame, and boosting RU to a 30-27 advantage at the break.

In the second half, Rutgers used back-to-back three-pointers from Jacob Young and Geo Baker to take a 43-35 lead with 14 minutes.

The Scarlet Knights came out of the halftime locker room with the same intensity. A three-pointer from Ron Harper Jr. made the lead double-digits at 50-40 with 11 minutes to play.

The Cougars would not go away, as they chipped away at the lead. A three-points with four minutes to play got the Cougars back within five at 58-53. A 7-0 run got them within two, but Geo Baker answered with a clutch basket.

However, Houston rallied to claim the game late. The Cougars used a 20-10 run down the stretch to retake the lead with 24 seconds remaining and held on.

"We've been through so much this year," Geo Baker said. "It's been two years leading up to this moment. To lose like that today was tough. Afterwards, everyone was just saying how much we loved each other and how proud we were of what we'd accomplished."
 
Postgame Quotes

Head Coach Steve Pikiell 

STEVE PIKIELL: Tough day, tough game. Houston was really good. I knew they would be.

But before I start, I just want to send my condolences, Coach Boylan, our beloved radio guy, one of the nicest people I've ever met, traveled with us for the last five years, was the voice of Rutgers basketball, passed away today. He will just be really missed. One of the greatest people that I've been around. A real just special person. I'm really sorry for his family, the loss. He's a loss for everyone. He was a legend at Rutgers. He was just a special person. I know he's in heaven. He's that kind of guy.

Again, want to send my prayers out to his family. Not only was today's loss real tough, but losing Coach Boylan, yeah, was just tough, so...

But congratulations to Houston. I thought we played our hearts out. This team made history. They got through a two-year journey, COVID, never missing a day, never having a pause, all the obstacles they had to fight through. They now become the standard for what we want to be at Rutgers.

Just really tough day when you play that hard, you want something very badly. Again, congratulations to Houston.

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. You only had one game postponed this season, but with all the new protocols and safety measures, what was this regular season like for you?

STEVE PIKIELL: I mean, we never had a pause, we never had a game canceled. It's a tough year. I can tell you the sacrifices that the players made. All of them, too, had the opportunity to opt out, and none of them did. They wanted to make this year special. They certainly did that. First time in 30 years getting to the tournament. First time in 38 years winning a game.

The sacrifices their families made and they made, truly unbelievable. Thankful to the NCAA that they gave them all their year back because this year was just different from start to finish. Our guys have been together since June. Very difficult to be on a streak the way we were of never having a pause or never having an issue with COVID. Very thankful.

But it was very difficult. The sacrifices, not seeing their family and friends, everything else, that they made to have a special season, very thankful for their sacrifices.

Q. Can you just explain kind of how it turned in the last 4 minutes or so?

STEVE PIKIELL: Yeah, well, I mean, they made some plays. We had our opportunities I felt. We knew the backboards were a huge, huge thing in the game. I thought in the first half we did a great job of that.

They just came up a couple plays -- we just came up a couple plays short. That's all it takes. The margin of winning and losing in this tournament is a box-out here, free throw box-out. It comes down to some little things. They did those and we didn't.

The backboards were a huge key in the second half. They got to the free-throw line and we didn't. First half we got to the free-throw line. Game kind of changed some of those areas.

Q. Can you talk about the last sequence, Ron, the three-pointer. Probably the best shot you can take at that moment.

STEVE PIKIELL: We executed. That's a play that we'd run all year. We haven't had to run it. I thought Ron got a good look. I thought it was going to go in.

We really didn't get the rebounds down the stretch that we needed to, to kind of put the game away. But, yeah, that was a play that we've run many times in practice over the last couple years. I thought he got a good look at it, but it just didn't go for us.

Q. Geo has been brilliant in the situations late in the game tonight. How hard was it to see him lose the handle on that ball? What did you say to him after the game?

STEVE PIKIELL: I love all my guys. My guys are devastated. They gave it everything this year. Every single one of them. Geo has won us a lot of games during his career. We wouldn't be here without all the efforts of all the players.

We were ready to play tonight, too, against a team that hasn't lost many games, is very good, well-coached. But Geo has won us a lot of games. Hugged him and thanked him. I mean, it's a tough day for us. Had to share the news about Coach, too. Just a tough locker room afterwards.

But I do love all my players. I am very thankful to be coach here. This university is great. They started the standard now for what we want to be as a program, not just on the court, but off the court, academically.

We need this group to be remembered for a long time, again, be the standard for where we want to go every year.

Q. In the last 5 minutes, what do you think, at least offensively did you think you guys slowed down? Were you looking to take clock?

STEVE PIKIELL: No, I mean, they're really good defensively. We got some good looks. It was at the backboards really. Then we fouled too. We got the looks. Geo got to drive to the middle of the basket. We got a couple layups that we didn't finish.

I mean, you had a couple opportunities to get layups that we just didn't convert on, and it becomes a one-possession game. I like what we ran. I like the looks, I felt comfortable with Geo with the ball in his hands. He's won us a lot of games.

But at the end of the day we really talked about a lot of rebound, rebound, rebound. They were 16 offensive rebounds. That helped them a great deal. That helped them get to the free-throw line.

Q. How banged up was Myles? What did you think about the effort he put forth? What was your message to the team after the game?

STEVE PIKIELL: Well, I mean, just tough in the locker room when you have to tell them a guy who has been with us for five years every game, he was just with us in Minnesota, a road game that we won. It's just tough.

The guys gave everything they could to our program this year and more. The sacrifices that they made. You will never understand because you didn't live it every day. I know you guys have written about it and everything. It's a whole different world when you live it every single day and the sacrifices, what they had to do, the different protocols every time we traveled.

I'm just sad for us. I never wanted to put these uniforms away. This group has been awesome. Whenever we get knocked down, this group always got back up. Did an unbelievable job representing our great university.

After the game when they're sad like that, everyone is sad, you just tell them how you feel about them, tell them how appreciated they are by our staff, people that see what they do every single day, thank 'em. Just thank 'em. That's what we did.

Q. You touched on how challenging this year was for the players and you too. I know you wanted to go as far as you could. As a coach, is there a factor of relief that this season is over and behind you?

STEVE PIKIELL: No. I mean, I love this group. I wanted to coach them forever. I told all of them they could all come back, I'd be the happiest coach in America.

But, no, there's no relief.

Q. The Big Ten got nine bids into the NCAA tournament, six teams already going home. What do you make of how the conference has fared through this first weekend?

STEVE PIKIELL: Yeah, I mean, there's really good teams that are still playing. This league is terrific. I think we probably beat each other up during the course of 22, 23, 24 games, whatever teams ended up playing that played the last game of the tournament in the Big Ten championship.

This league is great. It was great all year. We beat each other up. Maybe that factored into this tournament. But we had our chances, too, today. I'm sure some of the other teams. There's great coaches. This league will always continue to be good. We got nine bids, I think we would have had nine last year. Most in the tournament. It's hard to get into this tournament. When you get nine bids, it says a lot about the conference.

Geo Baker

Q. Could you take us through what happened when you had the ball down one? Is it as simple as it looks, just bounced off your leg?

GEO BAKER: Yeah, I mean, it was just an iso play. We kind of faked two screens coming high, got the defender looking a little bit. I just attacked. Yeah, I mean, I was just trying to go to my left, in-and-out dribble. Usually it's a one-dribble step-back. Kind of hedged it a little bit, which I didn't really expect. I just lost it. It's a move I made like a million times. So that's probably the first time I ever lost it in that position.

Q. Can you talk about the emotion in the locker room, everything you've been through, final minute losing the game like that?

GEO BAKER: Yeah, just a lot of emotion. We've been through so much this year. Honestly, if you weren't inside you really just can't understand it, from isolating to wins to losses to being here in March. A lot of us were trying to go to March Madness last year, we didn't get that chance. For a lot of us it's been two years now. So just leading up to this moment, to lose like that was tough.

Just to add to it, Coach Boylan, me personally, he has been my biggest supporter since I first have been on campus. Just always talking, always calling me, not even talking about basketball, asking me about how my family is, how my mom is, how I'm doing. Just so much more than just basketball. To hear that, too, it only added to the emotion in the locker room.

Just a really tough day overall.

Q. You've been a leader and the face of this program for four years. What did you say to the guys? What was said afterwards in the locker room?

GEO BAKER: Just how much everyone loves each other. I didn't really say much, to be honest with you. But everyone just saying that we love each other, we're proud of each other. Proud of everything that we did, everything we've been through. Any single one of us could have opted out. There's been players all over the country who opted out because of COVID. But we all stuck with it.

Yeah, I mean, just saw a lot of emotion.

Q. In terms of where you brought this program from where it was when you started to now, it's fresh off a loss, but have you been reflecting? Do you take comfort in the fact of what you were able to do for this program and where it is now?

GEO BAKER: Not really, to be honest. Felt we could have gone farther. Came down to one possession. Felt we could have done something more. So I don't know, I mean, I just -- as a competitor, you just never really are satisfied. You kind of always just want more.

I felt like I let that slip away on the last play.

Q. How long do you think it's going to take to get over this? You're up 10, looks like the Sweet 16 is coming.

GEO BAKER: I don't know if people ever really get over tough times. You kind of just -- you have to live with it and bounce back. Losses are lessons. I've learned a lot of lessons through my life. This is probably just going to be another one of those.

How do you take it in? How do you react to it? How do you bounce back and make something positive out of it?

I don't know if I'm ever really going to forget today or get over it. But there's better days ahead. You just have to understand that and work through it, just continue on.

Q. Do you know yet if this is your last game at Rutgers? If it is, how do you want to be remembered?

GEO BAKER: No, honestly I haven't really thought about that. I don't know if any of the guys have thought about that. I've always wanted my legacy to be a winner. I don't really know where that stands right now, to be honest with you.

I mean, that's just what I've always felt like I am, is a winner. Yeah, I mean, that's just what I want to be known for. I don't really care about stats or individual stuff, any of that. We just want to be a winning team because that's always the most important thing at the end of the day. Basketball is a game of wins and losses. It's only one or the other, yeah.

Q. Coach was talking about how trying the whole year has been, everything you have had to deal with with the COVID stuff. Obviously you wanted to advance. Is there going to be a part of you when you wake up tomorrow or get back home that there's some relief this season is finally done?

GEO BAKER: No, I don't think so. There's tough times during the season where you may have that thought for a second, whether it's you're isolating, you're away from your family, or even just a hard day on the court. But at the end of the day we all play this game because we love it, we love to compete. March Madness only intensifies that, only makes you want it even more.

I don't think there's any relief for anyone. You always just wish you could just keep playing. I don't think so.

Q. I know you like to have a clutch shot throughout your career. Ron has been very clutch throughout his career. What do you say to him after his three-pointer missed the mark?

GEO BAKER: He's a really good shooter. Like I say, I really don't have much to say after the game.

Yeah, I mean, Ron is really confident. He's a special player. He's been a big part of what we've been doing here. He knows that. We'll continue to tell him that.

But, yeah, just stay confident I guess is what I'd tell him.