Rutgers men’s basketball head coach Steve Pikiell hosted his usual post-game press conference after the team’s dramatic 70-69 win over Penn on Saturday. At the end of the game, the Scarlet Knights found themselves in a two-point hole with five seconds left on the clock until guard Tariq Francis nailed a three-pointer to give Rutgers the lead with less than a second left on the clock.
Pikiell began the press conference as he usually does, praising the opposing team’s skill and talent. He pointed out that Penn is the tenth-best team in the country at shooting threes, but they were able to limit them to just five out of 21 shots from beyond the arc.
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The first question Pikiell was asked was what do you think of the response of Tariq Francis after being taken in and out of the starting lineup. Pikiell responded by saying how proud he was of him for responding after they had been challenging him in practice all week. Francis finished the game with 34 points and the game winning three pointer.
The next question that generated a pretty interesting response had to do with how Pikiell can explain the fact that his team lost to and was in a major dogfight with two low-major teams in their last two home games, and if he is concerned heading into Big Ten play.
“You always ask the concerned question. (Addressing Brian Fonseca of NJ.com, who asked the question) I think as a coach you are always concerned. Every game counts the same. You gotta win by one. Penn is the 10th best three point shooting team in the country…. They can play anybody, they have veterans, they got seniors, they got a Duke guy, so I am proud of our guys, they bounced back, we won the basketball game tonight, and we are going to enjoy this. But I appreciate you asking. Am I concerned? Yeah. You are always concerned, and I’m concerned about the next game.”
The Knights were able to force 11 turnovers in the second half against Penn. One question that was asked had to do with how they were able to rattle the Quakers with their pressure later in the game. Pikiell talked about how they have been working on their full-court pressure in practice and how more guys are getting comfortable doing it throughout the entire lineup. He also pointed out that their constant full-court pressure likely wore the Quakers down and how that fatigue helped them grab turnovers.
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After the game, Pikiell went over and talked to a few fans who attended the game. When he was asked what he said to them by a few of the reporters, Pikiell started to talk about the great atmosphere the game had that night and how he is always thankful for the atmosphere that Rutgers fans bring to the arena.
To view the entire press conference, click here.
