Knight Watch: The Good, Bad, and Strange Vs. American

Rutgers men’s basketball improved to 4-0, rallying from an early 11-point deficit to defeat the American Eagles, 80-71, Tuesday evening at a sleepy Jersey Mike’s Arena. The Eagles bombarded the Scarlet Knights early with a barrage of made three-pointers before Rutgers settled down on defense and methodically attacked the rim to climb back into the game and eventually secure the win.

The Good

Impact Transfers

Tariq Francis dropped 19 points, with Denis Badalau, and Darren Buchanan adding 10 apiece.

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While Francis was only 2-for-7 from the three-point line, he remained solid at the charity stripe, making all five attempts, grabbed five rebounds, and dished four assists. Badalau shot the ball well – 4 for 8 overall and 2 of 3 on three-point tries, for 10 points total. It’s early in the season, but Badalau and Francis appear to be the best pure shooters on the squad.

Forward Darren Buchanan continued to do his best Montez Mathis impersonation: a hard-charging forward who makes up for erratic shooting by getting to the rim and drawing contact. Six of Buchanan’s ten points were from the charity stripe in a game where Rutgers needed to exert its size and physicality late to pull away with a victory.

Dylan Grant

The powerful forward continues to rack up early-season points, putting together another stellar stat sheet: 7 of 12 from the field, 7 of 9 at the free throw line, and making his only three-point attempt. Add in 11 rebounds, and he was clearly the best player on the court for either side.

The Bad

Poor Perimeter Defense Early On

American was hot early, making nine first-half three-pointers, accounting for 27 of its 33 first-half points. Rutgers obviously can’t afford these slow starts against better competition. Inserting freshman Chris Nwuli and sophomore Bryan Dortch into the lineup allowed the Knights to play with more physicality and length.

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Head Coach Steve Pikiell spoke about the slow starts during his post-game press conference.

“We have…

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Publish date : 2025-11-20 21:36:00

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