PISCATAWAY, N.J. – There are a few ways that head coach Steve Pikiell has consistently described his 2023-24 Scarlet Knights team heading into the new season.

“We're fast” and “We have depth.”

Rutgers men’s basketball looks forward to kicking off a highly-anticipated 2023-24 season on Nov. 6 against Princeton in Trenton as the team has pushed an emphasis on those two characteristics.

The eighth-year Rutgers head coach, who has continued to push the Scarlet Knights to new heights each season at the helm, has had plenty of time to evaluate his current group. RU started practicing together in June and took on an 11-day foreign tour consisting of three games in Senegal and Portugal in August. Pikiell and Rutgers then competed against St. John’s on Oct. 21 in Queens in a double overtime exhibition thriller ahead of the new schedule. 

"I like the fact we can go 11-or-12 players deep this year," Pikiell said at the podium during Big Ten Media Day in Minneapolis earlier this month. "We really haven’t had that kind of depth in recent years, so when we had an injury, it could hurt us. 

“This offseason was so important for us,” Pikiell added. “We already have great chemistry. I like to take my time in the portal. I bring in great kids who fit our culture and want to be Scarlet Knights. We got some of those, and we're excited about what they can bring."

The offseason was certainly an important one, as RU graduated the nation’s Defensive Player of the Year in fifth-year captain Caleb McConnell. 2022-23 starting guards Cam Spencer and Paul Mulcahy departed for new opportunities in the transfer portal. 

But the Scarlet Knights program is one that is built to combat the punches thrown by the current landscape of college basketball. Pikiell’s staff constructed its new squad by continuing to develop the seven contributing players that stayed in Piscataway, adding one of the best freshmen classes in school history, and carefully selecting players in the transfer portal to supplement the roster. 

"I have three players on this trip who have been with me for three-plus seasons, and I am thankful they stayed,” Pikiell said of his players who accompanied him to Big Ten Media Day. “ Clifford Omoruyi is back for his senior year. He came back to graduate too, which is refreshing. I think he is one of the best big guys in the country. Mawot Mag is one of the best defenders in the country. He'll be back from his injury, which he suffered in the middle of the season last year. Aundre Hyatt averaged almost nine points a game last year. He will have a breakthrough senior year. Those are my captains."

The clearcut face of the program in 2024 will be Omoruyi, who, after a season of garnering a first-team All-Big Ten defensive selection and a second-team All-Big Ten selection in 2023, decided to return to Rutgers to fulfill a promise he made to his mother to get a degree from RU. In his return announcement, Omoruyi cited his belief in his head coach of achieving his dream of winning a National Championship in New Jersey.

Omoruyi is joined as a leader of the program this year by two teammates who have started their fair share of games in a Scarlet Knights uniform in Mag and Hyatt. Hyatt was the team’s leading scorer on the foreign tour and has come back stronger and more experienced. He says he is a much-improved passer and has focused on becoming one of the best catch-and-shoot players in the country this season.

“Every year I have gotten better and learned more about my game,” Hyatt said. “I have become really acclimated to the system here and being a leader is very important to me. I want to be held accountable and I want to stay consistent. I learned from Geo Baker, Ron Harper Jr., and of course Caleb McConnell. They continue to be in my corner as I take this next step. They inspire me to be a leader by example.”

Mag, the fourth-year Scarlet Knight, went down with a torn ACL at the apex of the Scarlet Knights 2022-23 season during the victory over Michigan State at Madison Square Garden on Feb. 4. At the time, the Scarlet Knights were ranked No. 23 in the AP Poll and held a 16-7 record. Mag has pushed his rehab all offseason and the senior plans to be back on the court as soon as possible alongside his teammates.

“Going down with an injury was very hard and very unfortunate, but everything happens for a reason,” Mag said. “Ever since then, I have been rehabbing every day, working my butt off to get back on the court, and doing everything in my power to be back. I’ve missed these guys and can’t wait to go to war with them. Rutgers Nation, I will be back soon.”

One of the goals for Mag is to return as a better defender than ever before. Mag has personal goals to become the defender that his teammate McConnell was for RU and guard the opposing team’s best player each and every night.

“Watching Caleb, the reigning two-time Big Defensive Player of the Year, it’s going to be a privilege to take on his role,” Mag said. “He was a phenomenal defender, and I am ready to become what he once was and build what I can be from there. I have what it takes to do it and I will work towards it. I appreciate him laying out the roadmap for myself.”

Rounding out the veteran returners on the Scarlet Knights roster is Oskar Palmquist, a player who is entering his fifth year in the program. Palmquist started multiple games and hit huge shots in big moments in 2022-23. The Kinna, Sweden native has been a reliable leader for Coach Pikiell in the locker room and on the court.

“We are lucky to have Oskar back this season,” Pikiell said. “He’s a sweet lefty shooter, who’s in great shape and is athletic as ever. He’s going to help our depth a great deal. He did a lot of great things for us last season, starting a lot of games for me when we needed him and hitting some big-time shots.”

If you want to see proof of the program’s development of its players, there is no better place to look than the 2022-23 freshmen class. 

"Everyone wants to talk about the players that leave in the portal,” Pikiell said. “I think development has still really been huge for us at Rutgers. We currently have three guys in our sophomore class. Guard Derek Simpson, Antwone Woolfolk, a big guy out of Cleveland, and Antonio Chol, a player out of Buffalo standing at six-foot-ten. If you saw them last year at this time and now when you come to our practice to see them, they are completely new players, and we pride ourselves on that."

Simpson excelled during the latter half of his freshman season, playing in all 34 games with six starts, and averaging 20.1 minutes per game. He finished his first year strong, averaging 13.7 points in the final six games of the year. The Jersey native who’s drawn a striking resemblance to RU legend Geo Baker says he’s been working the most on improving his jump shot from the outside. 

“I have watched a lot of film and learned a lot from my first year,” Simpson said. “It was a great year, but this year is a new year. I’m trying to get better, push new stats, and make new memories. This should be a fast-paced team this year. We will do a lot of running up and down. It will be very fun to watch. You will see dunks, three-pointers, and all types of fun activities.”

Woolfolk has gotten into elite shape and has lost 20-plus pounds this offseason, following his first full offseason focusing on basketball as his sole sport. Pikiell has described the 6-foot-9 forward as one of the most improved Scarlet Knights, who has great ball-handling skills for a big man on the floor.

“The fans will love our style of play out there this season because we already love it so much,” Woolfolk said. “We’ve put in so much work, so it’s unexplainable what the feeling will be like when we take the floor on opening night. We’re all sharing the ball really well. It will be so much fun playing so fast-paced. I personally hope to have a lot more dunks this season that’s for sure.”

Chol, who recently had his redshirt year in his first season at RU approved, looks forward to using his first-year experiences to benefit his play in 2023-24. The 6-foot-10 forward, who Pikiell describes as one of the best outside shooters in the program has pushed himself to get stronger physically and mentally this offseason and in turn gained over 20 pounds of muscle. 

“This offseason with the coaches really meant a lot,” Chol said. “I spent so much time with them at Rutgers and at home. The relationship I’ve built with them is excellent. They tell me little things here and there which makes me very excited for games. The leap I will make this season is being more confident in myself. A lot of people will question who I am, but I will shoot the ball and play hard. My goal is really to stand out this season.”

As far as the newcomers are concerned, no player has excited Rutgers Nation more than Gavin Griffiths. The 6-foot-8 wing is the second highest-rated freshman recruit in RU history and the first five-star rated player to commit to Pikiell. Griffiths has an elite shooter’s touch from the outside and his pure athleticism made him the highest-ranked high school player out of the state of Connecticut. 

Griffiths was the second-leading scorer for the Scarlet Knights on the foreign tour and scored 14 points in his exhibition debut against St. John’s. Pikiell thinks Griffiths has the skillset to be one of the best freshmen in all of college basketball.

“It’s been great getting in our facility early, especially at any time that I want to, getting in the weight room and training with the guys. One of the biggest parts of my decision to come here was getting to know this coaching staff. I have loved working with them this offseason. The last time I played at Jersey Mike’s Arena was in high school, so I can't tell you how cool it will be when the arena is full on opening night.”

Joining Griffiths in the freshmen class is point guard Jamichael Davis. The Chattanooga, Tenn. native has shown blazing speed and ball-handling skills. The Scarlet Knights love the energy, intensity, and athleticism Davis brings on both sides of the floor. The 6-foot-2, 165-pound point guard scored 16 points and had six assists in the exhibition against St. John’s.

“I want to bring a lot of speed to the team, along with my ability to get my teammates involved and create my own shot off the dribble,” Davis said. “I want to try and be a pest on the defensive end like Coach Pikiell teaches to really get my teammates going.”

Pikiell and the staff were able to add high-caliber talent via the transfer portal in adding four players this offseason. UMass transfer point guard Noah Fernandes will be one of the leading ball handlers for the Scarlet Knights in 2023. 

The 5-foot-11, 180-pound guard from Mattapoisett, Mass. shot 45.2 percent from three-point range last season at UMass Amherst and a career-high of 48 percent from the field. Fernandes averaged a team-leading 13.4 points, 4.1 assists and averaged 2.5 rebounds. The grad transfer has high expectations with this new group in his final year of college basketball.

Along with Fernandes, the Scarlet Knights added more ball handlers from the portal creating more depth in the backcourt.

Fifth-year guard Austin Williams transferred to RU this offseason to provide Pikiell with more backcourt depth. The New Jersey native joins Rutgers for his final season of collegiate basketball. He has previously played at FIU (2022-23), Hartford (2019-22) and Marist (2017-19). In his career, he has played in 111 games, starting 54, and averaged 9.8 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.8 assists. He has scored over 1,000 points for his collegiate career and was a two-time all-conference selection. 

“You can expect a guy who’s going to go out there and be scrappy, physical, and does whatever it takes to win,” Austin Williams said. “I will give a full effort throughout the entire game. Most importantly, all of our new guys have great character. We already have great chemistry and we’re getting along well. These guys can shoot, they can run fast, and they’re athletic. I think Rutgers Nation should expect a lot from these new guys coming in.”

Jeremiah Williams was the last player to join the program a few days before the foreign tour. Williams, a 6-foot-4, 177-pound guard from Chicago, Illinois will enter his fourth collegiate season, following two seasons (2020-21 and 2021-22) at Temple and spending the 2022-23 season on the roster of Iowa State. The Chicago native will need to receive a waiver from the NCAA to suit up this winter. 

The fourth addition this offseason will provide depth for RU at the center position. Emmanuel Ogbole is a 6-foot-11, 242-pound center who joins the squad after a year at the junior college level at Monroe College. The Scarlet Knights are excited for Ogbole’s size and raw athleticism to translate at the Big Ten level. Ogbole was a dominant force in the paint and on the boards in junior college in 2022-23. The Aune-Adoka, Nigeria native is working his way back on the court from a torn ACL he suffered toward the end of his season at Monroe last season. 

“My expectations are to get healthy, come back, and immediately make an impact on this team,” Ogbole said. “I expect to give it all, win games, and I’m going to bring the energy and the support however I can.”

Rounding out the roster are walk-ons Aiden Terry, Daniel Vessey, Jacob Morales, and Zach Hayn.

This unit has lofty expectations for the new season after reaching the NCAA Tournament in two of the last three years. The 2022-23 Scarlet Knights finished 19-15 and were one of the last teams left out of the tournament with a NET ranking of 40 in the nation. 

“I just want to win,” Omoruyi said. “We want to add more trophies to this school and win in the Big Ten Conference. Really, I just want to be the best player I can be, show my skills in front of the entire country, and next year represent Rutgers in the NBA Draft.”