Moments after his team’s regular season ended, Rutgers coach Steve Pikiell turned his attention to the Big Ten tournament.
“A new season starts after this,” Pickiell said. “We’ll head to Chicago, and everyone has a chance.”
Both teams have a legitimate chance to extend their season when No. 11 seed Minnesota (15-16) tips off against No. 14 seed Rutgers (13-18) on Wednesday night in second-round action in Chicago.
Minnesota comes off a 67-66 win over Northwestern in its regular-season finale. The Golden Gophers finished the regular season with four wins in their last six games despite several injuries to key players.
Forward Jaylen Crocker-Johnson (13.4 ppg, 6.8 rpg) is expected to remain out for Minnesota in the conference tournament because of a foot injury.
Golden Gophers coach Niko Medved said he was proud of his players for winning eight conference games despite facing so much injury-related adversity throughout the season. They have relied on a six-man rotation for the last six games.
“I don’t think people really understand what some of these guys had to do even to get to the court tonight to just play,” Medved said after the win over NU. “Not just play, but play the whole game. They’re just warriors. So, to find a way to win again here tonight is just really, really incredible stuff. I’m just so proud of them.
“They’ve really set a standard here that I hope is going to live on. I know it will, as we keep building this program. I just have a feeling people are going to remember this group, and this team.”
Meanwhile, Rutgers will try to build upon a positive ending to its own regular season. The Scarlet Knights are coming off a 74-62 win over Penn State on Sunday as they wrapped up conference play with two wins in their final three games.
Pikiell also said he was happy with the status of his team heading into the Big Ten tourney. Tariq Francis (16.9 ppg) has led the Scarlet Knights in scoring each of the three games, but players such as freshman Lino Mark (5.4 ppg) have shown marked progress. Mark has averaged 13.5 points over the last six games.
“We’ve come a long way,” Pikiell said. “I’m proud of them. They just kept fighting through some obstacles.
“It’s a tough time in college sports, too, when things aren’t going your way — and all the distractions and all the nonsense they’ve had to deal with. They’ve stayed the course. They’ve gotten better.”
