Takeaways from Illinois Win, Dylan Harper returns

On By Littum

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Piscataway – The first sign that Dylan Harper could return to court came about three hours before Rutgers Basketball tilted No. 23 Illinois when Star Freshman Point Guard was listed as questionable in the team’s accessibility report.

The ushered in Don Bosco Prep product has fought for a high-angled displacement and left his status.

Less than two hours before the Tipoff, Harper Jersey Mike’s Arena Court took the warm -ups before the game, moved well and looked like his usual self.

Then the news officially came down 45 minutes before the Tipoff, where the team announced on social media that Harper would actually be back.

In half it seemed that Harper’s return would be that all the scarlet knights would need. Second half told another story.

In the end, Rutgers survived a lively battle from the second half from Illini and showed up with an 82-73 win on Wednesday night at Jersey Mike’s Arena.

Harper ended with 28 points, six rebounds, five assists and four steals in his return. He also went 11-of-12 from the Free Castle Line.

Jeremiah Williams, which ended with 13 points, drained two huge free kicks with a minute back to set up Scarlet Knights with eight, all of locking a bad need for victory.

Rutgers built a lead in the first half that swelled to 17 points before Illinois slices it to eight who went into the break.

The rest of the game was a match.

Nothing came almost as easy for Scarlet Knights in the second half as it did in the first -‘s defense, mostly suffocating before the break, began to slip, and Illinois hit some key-three-pointers after an icy 17 from the perimeter) First half.

But Rutgers made key pictures and free throw too late to secure the victory. It also regained its foot on the defensive end to make some big stops.

The Scarlet Knights, not a good shooting team with free kick, ended 28-of-34 from the bad line. Each brand was crucial.

Rutgers also scored 18 points from 13 Illinois revenue.

“Give Rutgers all the honor,” said Illinois coach Brad Underwood. “They deserved the victory. They played much, much harder and more focused than we did.”

Five takeaways

1. Dylan Harper’s return

First, give the credit to Harper for getting the work to return so quickly. It is not easy to do-Ils from what Pikiell said was a high-angling sprain.

This is especially true in view of Harper’s status as a projected lottery pick in June’s NBA draft. It would have been easy for Harper to shut it down to preserve his healthy, especially considering the way this season has gone.

But Harper didn’t.

Franklin Lakes natives certainly delivered a spark against Illinois. He hit a jumper early on with six, then with just less than eight minutes to walk in the first half he spiked a three from the left wing that set up Scarlet Knights 27-11.

Harper, who made two free kicks just before the break to put Rutgers up 37-29, had 13 points, five rebounds and two assists in the first half.

It was a welcome sight for Rutgers – and Scarlet Knight fans.

Harper in the second half kept it going and drained a triple from the right corner that set up his team with four with 6:30 back. On an evening like this it was a big shot.

“I thought we fought for him the first half,” Underwood said. “Then he did a good job in the second half, especially and was buried.”

In the event that you wonder about the influence Harper has is Rutgers 4-1 with him on or close to full strength against Big Ten teams.

2. Ace Bailey’s performance

The other half of Rutgers’ Star Freshmen Duo also had a pretty good night.

Ace Bailey ended with 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting with 11 rebounds and two assists.

Bailey had an impressive sequence in the first half and blocked a three-pointer from the hands of Illinois’ DRA Gibbs-Lawhorn. Jamichael Davis came down with the ball and threw a long care to Bailey, who threw a thunderous thump that caused a roar from the crowd, giving Rutgers a nine-point lead.

3. Illinois’ offensive rebounding in the second half

An important reason why Illinois was able to climb back in the second half came from his efforts on the offensive glass.

Illini had 10 offensive rebounds in the second half, led to 16 second chance.

They had only four such points before the break.

4. What it means

Right now, Rutgers’ chances of earning a great bid for the NCAA tournament on life support to put it mildly.

That said, it’s not out of the opportunity. But it will take a lot of work.

Bracketologist Brad Wachel said on an episode of Jersey Jumpshot earlier this week that if Rutgers can win seven of his last nine games, it would be in the discussion of earning a great bid. The fact that the bubble is relatively weak also helps.

Beating Illinois was an important step in this process, but the road ahead is challenging-inclusive a West Coast trip with a game in Oregon.

Scarlet Knights has chances. Whether they can actually benefit from these chances is still watching.

5. The Raucous Rac

The season has been disappointing, but Rutgers fans still showed up for a late Tipoff on Wednesday night.

It was another packed crowd, including a student’s section packed for capacity.

Fans roared a lot of the game and gave Scarlet Knights the home Court advantage they have come to trust.