Enough of playing 13 guys ….enough

[Scarlet Shack]

This is ridic

Marc is having his best game …and we don’t see him the final 13 minutes ????

Playing for 2026-2027 must start now ….and that means these 6 guys , who we need to retain , must play 25 minute a game each

Grant
Dortch
Mark
Nuwuli
Powers
Zrno

Then play the other 50 minutes for the rest ….

anything else , isn’t going to help us have a chance at .500 next year

 

[Bob Chaewsky_rivals]

I would say decide who you think will come back next year and play them. That said, I don't think half the team has any respect for him and will come back.

 

[Mholinko]

I don’t think anyone at all will
Be back at this rate

this is becoming Increasingly likely to be a completely blank slate for whoever takes over

 

[RutgersClassof2004]

This is ridic

Marc is having his best game …and we don’t see him the final 13 minutes ????

Playing for 2026-2027 must start now ….and that means these 6 guys , who we need to retain , must play 25 minute a game each

Grant
Dortch
Mark
Nuwuli
Powers
Zrno

Then play the other 50 minutes for the rest ….

anything else , isn’t going to help us have a chance at .500 next year

Pike said at presser Mark cramped up and couldn't go second half

 

[Fat Koko]

Denis Badalau started then played only 3 minutes.

Baye Fall played 3 minutes for no reason.

None of it makes sense.

Keli and Tate must be asking themselves, this guy has been a head coach for decades, WTF is he doing and why is he still here at Rutgers?

 

[dark_check]

Denis Badalau started then played only 3 minutes.

Baye Fall played 3 minutes for no reason.

None of it makes sense.

Keli and Tate must be asking themselves, this guy has been a head coach for decades, WTF is he doing and why is he still here at Rutgers?

I wonder what Fall cost from our NIL budget? The staff just has a poor eye for talent.

 

[-RUFAN4LIFE-]

I wonder what Fall cost from our NIL budget? The staff just has a poor eye for talent.

Next to nothing, there was not much of a market for him which fit the NIL budget perfectly.

 

[fatsam98]

Pike said at presser Mark cramped up and couldn't go second half

That's crazy. Not sure I've ever heard of a basketball player cramping.

 

[RUgal]

That's crazy. Not sure I've ever heard of a basketball player cramping.

Cramping was a big discussion topic last season, particularly with Duke but also other teams.

Jon Scheyer Calls Recurring Duke Basketball Issue 'Concerning'

Duke basketball can't afford to lose key players to cramping on a nightly basis.

www.si.com

I haven’t heard it talked about as much this year.

 

[RCBeta]

Pike said at presser Mark cramped up and couldn't go second half

Do any of the coaches know about Gatorade and hydrating before/during the game?

 

[Atlasxal]

This is ridic

Marc is having his best game …and we don’t see him the final 13 minutes ????

Playing for 2026-2027 must start now ….and that means these 6 guys , who we need to retain , must play 25 minute a game each

Grant
Dortch
Mark
Nuwuli
Powers
Zrno

Then play the other 50 minutes for the rest ….

anything else , isn’t going to help us have a chance at .500 next year

Jerry Recco mentioned Lino heading to the tunnel on the radio app broadcast. There was no mention on the FS1 broadcast.

 

[RUBlackout]

Just TERRIBLE coaching. Sorry but we have seen the same crap over the years with player substitutions and lack of awareness by the staff

 

[dark_check]

Next to nothing, there was not much of a market for him which fit the NIL budget perfectly.

I can see why

 

[BigRnj]

Do any of the coaches know about Gatorade and hydrating before/during the game?

Let’s hire Chris Ash as a hydration consultant. He’s not busy for the next few months

 

[-RUFAN4LIFE-]

Let’s hire Chris Ash as a hydration consultant. He’s not busy for the next few months

He's currently advising ND's winter sports and spring teams on the benefits of hydration.

 

[goru7]

Now that we are 11 games in, there are some obvious truths . We have the worst guards not just in the big 10 but maybe the country. The start of the game with Francis was embarrassing . Subbing JMike was more embarrassing. 5 and 4 turnovers . Jmike might never hit a shot again. Except for 1 game a year where Jmike decides to shoot and make threes the other 10 games are just lousy. Francis kept on being trotted out there by Pike which makes you question his sanity. Not sure what was worse, his ball handling , his shooting , or his defense . Pretty clear that Mark and Powers are better now as freshman but they are freshman and do freshmen things. So hard to compete without guards with a pulse.

Not sure what or where Nwuili was yesterday but I am starting to wonder if Pike is tanking. Then I remember there is no first round draft choice and this is not the NbA. How in the world does he have both Zrno and Badalau starting and worst yet how is Francis starting over JMike ? Badalau has to be the player who plays the most minutes and never scores , zeros in the Boxscore. Francis ‘s time has to be reduced and reduced. Dylan Grant gets relegated to the bench too often and for long stretches and for some reason he seems to have become neutered by Pike into deferring instead of getting to and taking his shots. He is our best shooter and along with Zrno and his 3 point ability gives you a semblance of scoring. Buchanan and Nwuili have to be on the floor. No more Fall , it should be obvious to anyone and no Ware , he is not ready. So immediately no Fall, no Ware , no Badalau and less Francis. That leaves a rotation of 9 guys . Pike seems to be personally sabotaging any attempt to win or even compete by screwing up these rotations thru 11 games. No one knows why they play , how long , in what role ? You cut the lead to 18-17 and then you sub Fall in the game ? Seriously ? Pike is making this worse.. Know he has limited talent but he is not even putting the limited talent in a position to succeed. Puzzling and really frustrating to see from our coach in his 10th year here.

 

[whofrewdatmataRU13]

He always made boneheaded subs and can never figure out a rotation

 

[Mholinko]

Now that we are 11 games in, there are some obvious truths . We have the worst guards not just in the big 10 but maybe the country. The start of the game with Francis was embarrassing . Subbing JMike was more embarrassing. 5 and 4 turnovers . Jmike might never hit a shot again. Except for 1 game a year where Jmike decides to shoot and make threes the other 10 games are just lousy. Francis kept on being trotted out there by Pike which makes you question his sanity. Not sure what was worse, his ball handling , his shooting , or his defense . Pretty clear that Mark and Powers are better now as freshman but they are freshman and do freshmen things. So hard to compete without guards with a pulse.

Not sure what or where Nwuili was yesterday but I am starting to wonder if Pike is tanking. Then I remember there is no first round draft choice and this is not the NbA. How in the world does he have both Zrno and Badalau starting and worst yet how is Francis starting over JMike ? Badalau has to be the player who plays the most minutes and never scores , zeros in the Boxscore. Francis ‘s time has to be reduced and reduced. Dylan Grant gets relegated to the bench too often and for long stretches and for some reason he seems to have become neutered by Pike into deferring instead of getting to and taking his shots. He is our best shooter and along with Zrno and his 3 point ability gives you a semblance of scoring. Buchanan and Nwuili have to be on the floor. No more Fall , it should be obvious to anyone and no Ware , he is not ready. So immediately no Fall, no Ware , no Badalau and less Francis. That leaves a rotation of 9 guys . Pike seems to be personally sabotaging any attempt to win or even compete by screwing up these rotations thru 11 games. No one knows why they play , how long , in what role ? You cut the lead to 18-17 and then you sub Fall in the game ? Seriously ? Pike is making this worse.. Know he has limited talent but he is not even putting the limited talent in a position to succeed. Puzzling and really frustrating to see from our coach in his 10th year here.

Makes you wonder if pike is trying to end his contract early to collect that buyout

 

[goru7]

Makes you wonder if pike is trying to end his contract early to collect that buyout

Doubtful that is the reason but what he is doing is counter intuitive to normal coaching and rotations . Very very bizarre. How much more do you have to see to make the correct sub and have the 5 best players out there a majority of the time.

 

[shields]

Nwuli was sick yesterday, read that several times.

 

[rob kight]

I wonder what Fall cost from our NIL budget? The staff just has a poor eye for talent.

Could have used the money to go after Hines who was 10 minutes away at Plainfield HS. We didn’t even try. He is a game changer all by himself.

 

[Simce91]

You cut the lead to 18-17 and then you sub Fall in the game ? Seriously ? Pike is making this worse.. Know he has limited talent but he is not even putting the limited talent in a position to succeed. Puzzling and really frustrating to see from our coach in his 10th year here.

The team recovers from Pike starting Francis that "gifts" SHU an 11-0 lead, then he totally demoralizes them by subbing in Fall which leads to a 15 point SHU run.

Ballgame over

 

[-RUFAN4LIFE-]

Could have used the money to go after Hines who was 10 minutes away at Plainfield HS. We didn’t even try. He is a game changer all by himself.

Because there were academic concerns. He had two offers, one from the Hall and the other from NC State for next year per Richie in another thread.

 

[Nycrusupporter]

Because there were academic concerns. He had two offers, one from the Hall and the other from NC State for next year per Richie in another thread.

Instead we signed Dorian Jones, with all the same academic issues, and who we have been told is not physically ready to play, even if those issues get resolved . . .

 

[-RUFAN4LIFE-]

Instead we signed Dorian Jones, with all the same academic issues, and who we have been told is not physically ready to play, even if those issues get resolved . . .

 

[Mr. Magoo1]

Instead we signed Dorian Jones, with all the same academic issues, and who we have been told is not physically ready to play, even if those issues get resolved . . .

Why are we still taking about academics in college sports?

 

[Simce91]

That was a question I had to Richie earlier, are players even going to classes if they don't want to?

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

Lino Mark should’ve played more based on how the game went. No question about that. Starting only Francis who isn’t even a natural PG against one of the best on ball defenders in the country was just bad coaching. Not adjusting in any way after the first pick pocket even worse, but then again the 3rd time??? At that point, how do you do exactly the same thing allowing Francis to be greeted at halfcourt by the defender? Forget not subbing him there. He was clearly sending J Mike a message sitting him I guess - but how do you not bring a screen to get him across halfcourt? Inexcusable. We did the exact same thing 4 times in a row with zero adjustments - substitutions or otherwise. Horrible.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

The team recovers from Pike starting Francis that "gifts" SHU an 11-0 lead, then he totally demoralizes them by subbing in Fall which leads to a 15 point SHU run.

Ballgame over

We have to see if Lino Mark can keep progressing and assume the bulk of the minutes at PG. That would be a big help because unfortunately, J Mike looked equally as horrendous as Francis. 0-5 shooting and 5 turnovers.

Was Nwuli hurt or out sick? Wonder why he didn’t play. Dortch deserves some run at the 4 IMO in addition to backing up Ogbole. It’s not like anyone else playing there is producing so much more offense.

 

[Mholinko]

Why are we still taking about academics in college sports?

They still have to be eligible even if they transfer so one way another they have to pass their classes

 

[wheezer]

The team recovers from Pike starting Francis that "gifts" SHU an 11-0 lead, then he totally demoralizes them by subbing in Fall which leads to a 15 point SHU run.

Ballgame over

Things change I guess
The first five games, Francis scored 20, 12, 4, and then 19 and 19

granted against weaker competition, but I would wager we had plenty of positive posts, and positive opinions of his play

It took going deeper into the season for a few others to.start to emerge

As far as Fall, he has yet to show much regardless of the strengths of the opposition

 

[bac2therac]

Mark and Zrno will be taking alot more minutes than the fading never weres who started earlier this year

 

[BillyC80]

Mark and Zrno will be taking alot more minutes than the fading never weres who started earlier this year

In our last 6 games, all against legit competition, Zrno has led the team in scoring 4 times.

Considering he’s classified as a freshman, Pike needs to give him more and consistent PT going forward.

Shooting 40% from the arc with a quick release, he forces opponents to account for him at all times and to never give him an inch of space.

Mark has shown he can progress quickly when given the opportunity. Definitely want to see more of him at the PG spot.

Powers has also shown flashes, with surprisingly good court awareness and passing ability, to go along with his ability to elevate and square up for a good look at any time.

Those three freshmen along with Nwulli need to be given more opportunities to play through mistakes in this lost season.

Lastly, not sure why Pike has seemingly given up on Badalau, considering he too is only a freshman. I’m rooting for him to show some grit on defense and rebounding so he can stay on the court, as he can be effective offensively as well.

 

[Mholinko]

Things change I guess
The first five games, Francis scored 20, 12, 4, and then 19 and 19

granted against weaker competition, but I would wager we had plenty of positive posts, and positive opinions of his play

It took going deeper into the season for a few others to.start to emerge

As far as Fall, he has yet to show much regardless of the strengths of the opposition

I think a lot of people warned about the warts in his game even then. Including me. He wasn’t super efficient and wasn’t an unselfish player to warrant the usage. He also exhibited defensive issues in those games

nobody doubted he could volume score against bad teams he did that against NJIT it was when he played against big ten competition which he’s now showing he’s not capable of

the biggest issue of all is his effort and attitude stink for a kid who should be thankful he’s not still at NJIT

 

[richthedentist]

Lino Mark should’ve played more based on how the game went. No question about that. Starting only Francis who isn’t even a natural PG against one of the best on ball defenders in the country was just bad coaching. Not adjusting in any way after the first pick pocket even worse, but then again the 3rd time??? At that point, how do you do exactly the same thing allowing Francis to be greeted at halfcourt by the defender? Forget not subbing him there. He was clearly sending J Mike a message sitting him I guess - but how do you not bring a screen to get him across halfcourt? Inexcusable. We did the exact same thing 4 times in a row with zero adjustments - substitutions or otherwise. Horrible.

Forget about zero adjustments we had a week to prepare for this!!!!! What the hell do they do in practice they certainly don't practice any offense or offensive sets

 

[goru7]

Lino Mark should’ve played more based on how the game went. No question about that. Starting only Francis who isn’t even a natural PG against one of the best on ball defenders in the country was just bad coaching. Not adjusting in any way after the first pick pocket even worse, but then again the 3rd time??? At that point, how do you do exactly the same thing allowing Francis to be greeted at halfcourt by the defender? Forget not subbing him there. He was clearly sending J Mike a message sitting him I guess - but how do you not bring a screen to get him across halfcourt? Inexcusable. We did the exact same thing 4 times in a row with zero adjustments - substitutions or otherwise. Horrible.

You are the one who told me Francis needs to play over Zrno. I told you then that Francis shoots too much , doesn’t pass to the bigs or Dylan and plays lousy defense. Let me add terrible ball handling to his resume. Not starting JMike and starting Badalau and playing Fall at all will be Pike’s demise. Granted he has a team with little talent but he has done a ton to sabotage putting a competitive product on the court. His cluelessness on who his best players are and why they have to play more , shoot more , and not be subbed out because he wants to randomly give playing time to Fall or Ware is beyond comprehension .
Did not know Nwuili was ill. But JMike and Mark , despite JMike being terrible but less terrible than Francis , are your guards. Zrno is the 2 guard / wing and Powers comes in for him. Buchanan and Nwuili are your wings with Nwuili playing the other team’s best wing , Dylan is your 4 and plays a lot like 32-36 minutes. Manny and Dorsch are your 5. You run with that and play them for longer stretches and stop making random subs. Give your team a fighting chance.

 

[whofrewdatmataRU13]

Mark/Jwill - Powers - Grant - Zrno - Ogbole (crazy pike doesnt have a better center)

 

[RUDiddy777]

Denis Badalau started then played only 3 minutes.

Baye Fall played 3 minutes for no reason.

None of it makes sense.

Keli and Tate must be asking themselves, this guy has been a head coach for decades, WTF is he doing and why is he still here at Rutgers?

Baye was in because Big E was in foul trouble very early.

 

[RUDiddy777]

I wonder what Fall cost from our NIL budget? The staff just has a poor eye for talent.

Not much. But Hines from Plainfield was a miss.

 

[Zebnatto1!]

Pike can't put out a good lineup because he doesn't have the players. Now, I think he's gotten frantic in terms of making moves just HOPING . . .
Agree with OP that we need to give young players the minutes. I'd add Badalau.
No one on our team ever gets an open shot--that's coaching and scheming. Making the shot is talent.
Zrno has no time to get off his shots.
If he and Badalau have pesrsonal managers, they've got to be salivating at the prospect of playing next year for a team that actually runs a system offense.