Rapid reaction to Rutgers’ 69-45 win over BU

Originally posted on The Scarlet Faithful
By Aaron Breitman | Last updated 11/11/23

At the 3:53 mark of the first half, Rutgers was tied with Boston University at 22-22. The Scarlet Knights had committed an alarming 12 turnovers and looked out of sync once again. Steve Pikiell continued to tinker with lineups and at this stage of the game had Gavin Griffiths, Austin Williams, Oskar Palmquist, Antonio Chol and Noah Fernandes. And then the game changed as Griffiths, the highest signed recruit of the Pikiell era for one more day, emerged in the first home game of his Rutgers career.

Griffiths hit on a hookshot, made a layup and made two free throws to spur an 8-0 run to end the first half. Rutgers led BU 30-22 at the break. Things were just getting started for the heralded freshman.

Rutgers extended its run to 15-0 with a 7-0 start to the second half thanks to all seven second chance points from Aundre Hyatt. BU never recovered and the Scarlet Knights pouted it on en route to a 69-45 victory.

For a team looking for an offensive identity in its second game, they found a legitimate scorer in Griffiths. While the freshman was clearly overmatched on the defensive end against Princeton, he flourished in extended action on Friday. He will certainly be a work in progress as the competition ramps up. However, he showcased his versatile skill set as a scorer on his way to 25 points on 9 of 15 shooting. Griffiths was 3 of 7 from three-point range and 4 of 4 from the foul line. He added 4 rebounds and a block but did commit 5 turnovers. He’s going to take time to develop but it was clear his skill level on offense is sky high.

Hyatt also bounced back with 17 points on 6 of 11 shooting including 3 of 7 from deep.

Rutgers held a +20 rebounding margin, an 18-3 edge in second chance points, and a 23-5 advantage in transition points. They did struggle with 17 turnovers and only shot 44% from the floor, 28% from three and 53% from the foul line. This team is a work in progress but it was a healthy bounce back performance and some encouraging developments as well.

Here is my rapid reaction which includes discussion on improved guard play, the changing lineups and more.