Men's Basketball Recognized in Met Writers Awards
Apr 26 | Men's Basketball
Pikiell Coach of Year, Harper Jr. on First Team, Three on Second Team
PISCATAWAY, N.J. - Rutgers men's basketball was well recognized on Tuesday with the release of the annual Met Basketball Writers Association Awards. Head Coach Steve Pikiell was named the Peter A. Carlesimo Men's Coach of the Year. Ron Harper Jr. was named First Team All-Met and Geo Baker, Myles Johnson and Jacob Young were all named Second Team All-Met.
Pikiell earns the recognition for the second straight year and the fourth time in his career, becoming the first coach ever to earn the award four times since the accolade was first presented in 1981. Pikiell led the program to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1991, and guided the Scarlet Knights to an opening round victory over No. 7 seed Clemson that marked RU's first NCAA Tournament since 1983. While facing a strength of schedule ranked as the second toughest in the nation by ESPN.com, Rutgers went 16-12 overall, ensuring back-to-back winning seasons for the first time in 29 years. Under Pikiell's leadership, Rutgers won 10 Big Ten Conference games, and has earned 21 Big Ten wins over the past two seasons. RU finished tied for sixth in the nation's top-rated conference.
The team spent 11 weeks nationally ranked or receiving votes in the AP Poll, peaking at No. 11 in the nation. In the regular season, RU earned wins over five teams that qualified for the NCAA Tournament - No. 1 seed Illinois, No. 4 seed Purdue, No. 10 seed Maryland, No. 11 seed Michigan State and No. 11 seed Syracuse. The Scarlet Knights' win over No. 7 seed Clemson in the opening round marked the highest seeded team defeated in the NCAA Tournament since 1979, before falling to an eventual Final Four team in No. 2 seed Houston. Rutgers led the Big Ten in blocked shots, finishing ninth nationally with 5.1 blocks per game, and paced the league in total steals with 213, 31st nationally.
"I'm very excited about this honor," Pikiell said in his acceptance speech. "This is a team award, I'm very excited that I was able to coach a great group of guys that sacrificed during what I think was the toughest season for college basketball. I have great assistant coaches; this wouldn't have been possible without their work. I also want to thank Pat Hobbs for making this all possible. I'm very excited for next season."
Harper Jr. was a First Team All-Met selection, earning All-Met honors for the second straight year after being named Second Team All-Met last year. The Franklin Lakes, N.J. native led the team with 14.9 points per game, 13th in the Big Ten. He scored at least 20 points in seven games and had double-digit points in 21 of 28 games played. The Don Bosco Prep product posted career-highs in both scoring and rebounding (5.9 rebounds per game). He was also a Finalist for the Julius Erving Award.
Geo Baker earns All-Met for accolades for the third straight season, named to the Second Team this season after he was named First Team All-Met last year and Third Team All-Met as a sophomore. He was also named the Met Rookie of the Year following his freshman season. The Derry, N.H. native averaged 10.4 points while notching 79 assists and 30 steals. The team captain has played in 101 games as a Scarlet Knight and stands 5th in program history in assists (385), seventh in three-pointers (184) and 18th all-time in scoring (1,286 points).
Myles Johnson was named Second Team All-Met following a season where he led the Scarlet Knights with 8.5 rebounds per game. The Long Beach, Calif. native scored 8.0 points per game and shot 62.8 percent from the field. He was second in the Big Ten in blocks (2.4) and sixth in the league in rebounds (8.5), along with seven double-doubles.
Jacob Young earned Second Team All-Met honors. The Houston, Texas native finished second in the Big Ten in steals (1.71), 9th in field goal percentage (46.9) and 16th in scoring (14.1). The guard scored double-digits points in 24 of 28 games.
Pikiell earns the recognition for the second straight year and the fourth time in his career, becoming the first coach ever to earn the award four times since the accolade was first presented in 1981. Pikiell led the program to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1991, and guided the Scarlet Knights to an opening round victory over No. 7 seed Clemson that marked RU's first NCAA Tournament since 1983. While facing a strength of schedule ranked as the second toughest in the nation by ESPN.com, Rutgers went 16-12 overall, ensuring back-to-back winning seasons for the first time in 29 years. Under Pikiell's leadership, Rutgers won 10 Big Ten Conference games, and has earned 21 Big Ten wins over the past two seasons. RU finished tied for sixth in the nation's top-rated conference.
The team spent 11 weeks nationally ranked or receiving votes in the AP Poll, peaking at No. 11 in the nation. In the regular season, RU earned wins over five teams that qualified for the NCAA Tournament - No. 1 seed Illinois, No. 4 seed Purdue, No. 10 seed Maryland, No. 11 seed Michigan State and No. 11 seed Syracuse. The Scarlet Knights' win over No. 7 seed Clemson in the opening round marked the highest seeded team defeated in the NCAA Tournament since 1979, before falling to an eventual Final Four team in No. 2 seed Houston. Rutgers led the Big Ten in blocked shots, finishing ninth nationally with 5.1 blocks per game, and paced the league in total steals with 213, 31st nationally.
"I'm very excited about this honor," Pikiell said in his acceptance speech. "This is a team award, I'm very excited that I was able to coach a great group of guys that sacrificed during what I think was the toughest season for college basketball. I have great assistant coaches; this wouldn't have been possible without their work. I also want to thank Pat Hobbs for making this all possible. I'm very excited for next season."
Harper Jr. was a First Team All-Met selection, earning All-Met honors for the second straight year after being named Second Team All-Met last year. The Franklin Lakes, N.J. native led the team with 14.9 points per game, 13th in the Big Ten. He scored at least 20 points in seven games and had double-digit points in 21 of 28 games played. The Don Bosco Prep product posted career-highs in both scoring and rebounding (5.9 rebounds per game). He was also a Finalist for the Julius Erving Award.
Geo Baker earns All-Met for accolades for the third straight season, named to the Second Team this season after he was named First Team All-Met last year and Third Team All-Met as a sophomore. He was also named the Met Rookie of the Year following his freshman season. The Derry, N.H. native averaged 10.4 points while notching 79 assists and 30 steals. The team captain has played in 101 games as a Scarlet Knight and stands 5th in program history in assists (385), seventh in three-pointers (184) and 18th all-time in scoring (1,286 points).
Myles Johnson was named Second Team All-Met following a season where he led the Scarlet Knights with 8.5 rebounds per game. The Long Beach, Calif. native scored 8.0 points per game and shot 62.8 percent from the field. He was second in the Big Ten in blocks (2.4) and sixth in the league in rebounds (8.5), along with seven double-doubles.
Jacob Young earned Second Team All-Met honors. The Houston, Texas native finished second in the Big Ten in steals (1.71), 9th in field goal percentage (46.9) and 16th in scoring (14.1). The guard scored double-digits points in 24 of 28 games.
The MBWA encompasses 72 Met area college men's and women's teams across Divisions I, II and III. Rutgers was the only school to have four players earn All-Met honors.
Players Mentioned
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