Rutgers Scarlet Knights forward Mawot Mag. Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

No. 24 Rutgers lost 'ultimate glue guy' for the season

By Andrew Kulha | Last updated 2/7/23

Rutgers junior forward Mawot Mag hurt his knee in the first half of this past weekend's game against Michigan State.

The Scarlet Knights, ranked No. 24 nationally, won that game against MSU but suffered a potentially greater loss in the process.

It's being reported that the 6-foot-7, 216-pound junior forward from Melbourne, Australia, suffered a right ACL tear and will miss the rest of the season.

"We're going to miss Mawot greatly," head coach Steve Pikiell said, via ESPN. "He's a high-energy player, a veteran presence and the ultimate glue guy. He's one of our best team defenders and one of our best offensive rebounders. There's not a better person in our program."

This is a huge loss for Rutgers not even considering Mag's personal impact on the locker room.

He had started every game this season for the Scarlet Knights before his injury and the team will undoubtedly miss his 7.8 points and 5.3 rebounds per game.

That may not be an offensive output on the level of Purdue center Zach Edy, who's averaging 22.4 points and 13.2 rebounds per contest — but the impact of losing a starter for a team just inside the Top 25 can't be understated.

Rutgers will replace Mag with junior forward Aundre Hyatt, who has averaged 9.4 points and 4.2 rebounds per game as a bench player this season.

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