8 — Tuesday, February 5, 2019
Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Steve Pikiell and the unenviable task of building Rutgers basketball
Back in October, when the Big
Ten was a mystery and Rutgers’
place in it a foregone conclusion,
Steve Pikiell sat at a round table
near the edge of a hotel ballroom
in Rosemont, Ill., trying and
failing to dissuade reputation.
The Scarlet Knights, who had
won a combined nine conference
games in their first four Big Ten
seasons — two of them under
Pikiell’s tutelage — had no
traveling reporters at Big Ten
Media Day. Their coach had no
choice but to project optimism
to every stranger he came across.
“I
don’t
know
what
the
perception
is,”
Pikiell
said,
earnestly. “I know for two years,
we’ve been a program that has
competed against everybody in
this league. We went from seven
wins before I got here to 15 and
15. We’ve beaten teams that we
had never beaten before in the
conference, and I think we’re
getting better.”
The perception, to put it
bluntly, would be that Rutgers
is a laughingstock — a joke of
a program heaped onto the
Big Ten for the sole purpose
of TV subscriptions in the
New York market. The Scarlet
Knights
haven’t
made
the
NCAA Tournament since 1991,
28 years and three conferences
ago. In March 2016, they turned
to Pikiell to spearhead a near-
impossible rebuilding project.
At his introductory presser,
Pikiell said he would’ve walked
across the New Jersey Turnpike
to get the job.
A 51-year old Connecticut
native who went to college near
home and has coached in the
tri-state area his entire career,
Pikiell projects honesty into
absurdity. That’s why, when he
ends his roundtable by saying,
“I’m excited about where we’re
headed and hopefully that’ll help
us get out of last place, which is
where we’ve been for the last
two years,” you are, too.
When he runs down a roster
that finished 270th in adjusted
offensive efficiency the season
prior, you start to think his tenets
— rebounding, defense, hard
work and a slow, methodical
build — might just work if given
enough time. And when you hear
the stories about Pikiell, you
start to think he embodies those
tenets.
For example, the 32 times he
has dislocated his shoulder, if
Jim Calhoun’s estimate is to be
believed.
The first of those came on
a loose ball at a Connecticut
practice. Pikiell dove, then came
up with his shoulder out of his
socket.
The
scene
repeated
again and again over Pikiell’s
four years as a player with the
Huskies.
“You could tell he was in
incredible pain,” Calhoun said.
“And then every time he did it,
we took him to the orthopods at
UConn Medical Center, and they
(said), we can operate, he’ll be
out in seven months, and Steve
wanted no part of it. He wanted
to play the year.”
Over
four
years,
as
that
shoulder
kept
subluxing,
Calhoun started to build a
powerhouse in Storrs. In Pikiell’s
freshman year, which doubled
as the coach’s first, the Huskies
went
9-19,
finishing
at
the
bottom of the Big East. By 1990,
UConn was 31-6, making it to the
Elite Eight.
“My first year was the first year
of the Big East conference,” said
Glen Miller, a longtime Calhoun
assistant who coached Pikiell
at UConn. “And a lot of people
didn’t think UConn belonged in
the Big East conference.”
Sound familiar?
Pikiell’s task is larger, more
daunting
than
his
mentor’s.
The rebuild he undertook over
11 years at Stony Brook before
getting the Seawolves to the
NCAA Tournament in 2016 pales
in comparison. The identity that
Rutgers has unwittingly built in
the last 30 years makes it so as
much as any of its more recent
history.
To make the Scarlet Knights
relevant, Pikiell has to convince
recruits that the Scarlet Knights
can be relevant — a particularly
hard task when they have not
been so since the coach was
still in school. He has to do that
in a talent-rich state where the
talent wants to be anywhere but
Piscataway. And he has to do it
while competing against a league
that, as Pikiell dutifully noted on
Big Ten Media Day, might be the
best in America.
That
doesn’t
just
mean
Rutgers getting better, it means
a couple other programs falling
by the wayside. Sum it all up,
and the task in front of Pikiell is,
well, intimidating.
There is room for optimism,
if
notching
a
three-game
conference win streak for the
first time since the Scarlet
Knights joined the Big Ten
counts as such. When Michigan
comes to town on Tuesday,
Rutgers will have a chance to win
its fifth conference game for the
first time since joining for 2014-
15 season. That’s progress, even
if progress is measured like the
success of a row boat paddling
upstream.
“They’re
gonna
have
bad
days, trust me,” Calhoun said.
“Because I went through three
or four years before we got to a
significant place in the Big East.
But I just think people — the
biggest thing I think watching
his teams play and watching him
work, I think people realize they
got a guy on the job 24/7. And a
guy who’s motivated his kids to
be really good. No one says — if
it’s going to be easy, no one would
ever get fired.”
Pikiell, after signing a three-
year extension last January, is
likely in no danger of losing his
job. When the UConn job came
open last year, his close ties to the
Huskies were seen as more likely
to end his tenure in Piscataway
than
anything
performance-
based.
It would be wrong to say
success
has
eluded
Pikiell.
Whether the timetable to achieve
success will mean the clock ticks
out before he does so remains to
be seen.
“How I measure success is the
goal I had two years ago. Go to the
NCAA Tournament, that’s how I
measure success,” Pikiell said in
October. “I look at what we’ve
done in two years and we’ve
improved in every area. I believe
that. And we’re building new
practice facilities, almost done,
nine months away. We put down
a new court. Like I said, season
tickets are up. Enthusiasm in our
program’s up. Recruiting up. Our
players getting better is up.
“We play in the toughest
league in the country. So, to get
to the NCAA Tournament is not
easy. We gotta do a lotta things to
do that. I know where everyone
picks us. Until we get out of that
position, that’s where they’re
gonna pick us. But I think we’re
pretty good.”
Right now, and for the slow
build still to come, he’ll be given
every chance to prove those
words true.
ETHAN SEARS
Managing Sports Editor
FILE PHOTO/Daily
Rutgers coach Steve Pikiell is optimistic despite facing a long rebuilding project for the Scarlet Knights, who have not made the NCAA Tournament in 28 years.
For the seniors, there and back again
Joseph Cecconi and Brendan
Warren sat silently and thought
for a moment.
Three years removed from
their first trip to New York, the
seniors could barely remember
how the game in Madison
Square Garden went during
their first collegiate season.
“I don’t remember the game
at all,” Cecconi said, laughing.
“But if I had to take a snap at it,
we were down a few goals and
then we threw out the CCM
line, and then we came back, so
I’m going to go with that.”
He
wasn’t
wrong.
The
CCM line — consisting of JT
Compher, Kyle Connor and
Tyler Motte — accounted for
five total points, scoring three
goals and two assists. Two of
the goals were part of a third-
period comeback during a 6-3
win.
But the game itself was the
least memorable part of the
trip. They were two freshmen
with the city that never sleeps
at the palm of their hands. And
for Warren, it was his first
time.
“That was a really cool
experience,” Warren said. “I’ve
never been to the city, or at
least Madison Square Garden,
around there, so it was cool
being with the team.
“Got a little bit of time
sightseeing, and we played
in MSG, which is obviously
iconic and historic and we
got to watch the basketball
game before that, and that was
really cool. It was a really fun
experience.”
With a little bit of time
on their hands, they walked
eight blocks north, venturing
through Times Square on their
way to the arena to watch the
basketball
game
preceding
theirs — before Michigan faced
off against Penn State on the ice,
the Michigan men’s basketball
team tipped off against Penn
State on the hardwood. For
the
two
freshmen,
playing
at Madison Square Garden
fulfilled a lifelong dream.
“It was fun. Up until then, I
don’t think I’ve played a game
in an NHL rink,” Cecconi said.
“Except if we did the ‘Duel
in the D’ or the Great Lakes
Invitational so I guess I did,
but it’s always fun to play in
an NHL rink because it’s your
dream one day to play in rinks
like that. So when you can do it
in college, just a fun different
experience
than
a
college
atmosphere.”
The excitement wasn’t all
in the sightseeing, the city
exploration or even the game
itself. As Cecconi noted, once
you start playing, you don’t
“remember how many fans
were there, or how long the
goal horns are.” What stood out
to him was the build up.
“Everything
is
there
(at
Madison
Square
Garden):
basketball, hockey, concerts.
Everyone
knows
Madison
Square Garden for all the sports
and all the music festivals and
things like that, so just the
hype around New York City and
Madison Square Garden, that’s
what I remember the most.”
Fast forward three years
— an eventful three years
that encompassed a Big Ten
Tournament
championship
and a Frozen Four appearance
— and Cecconi had a chance
to relive the hype. Three years
ago,
they
were
wide-eyed
freshmen looking to tour the
city. Ten days ago, they were
focused seniors who already
experienced some incredible
memories.
The team arrived in the city
on the afternoon of Jan. 25.
With no practice, everyone had
downtime to do whatever they
wanted.
“We got to do a lot more
sightseeing,”
Warren
said.
“First day we got there, we
got there early. We walked
around Times Square, went
into a bunch of stores. And then
walked around 5th Ave., went
to some of the designer stores
just to see some of the stuff we
can’t afford.”
Only a few hours were to
themselves, though, as the
team got together for a team
meal at Carmine’s and then left
for the hotel. Just like they did
three years ago, Cecconi and
Warren were able to take in the
mystique of the city that never
sleeps.
But while Michigan had a
fantastic Friday once again, the
team to have a super Saturday
was the one hailing from State
College. The Wolverines once
again fell to an early deficit
against Penn State, but with
no CCM line to stage a rescue,
Michigan ultimately lost 5-2.
“On the ice, not the outcome
we
wanted,”
Warren
said.
“Probably worse than freshman
year because we won the first
one.”
Win or loss, the experience
the two had was something
that
resonated
with
them
through their collegiate career.
As much as it was for hockey, it
was for much more.
Depth key to Michigan’s success
Friday
afternoon
it
was
Akienreh Johnson and Kayla
Robbins. On Sunday, it was Naz
Hillmon. The common thread: two
wins, two strong performances
from the Wolverines’ bench.
At
the
beginning
of
the
season, much of the conversation
surrounding a revamped Michigan
women’s basketball squad centered
around its depth, which looked
to be one of this team’s greatest
strengths. That notion has been
supported a number of times this
season, but especially of late.
Prior
to
Friday’s
matchup
with No. 13 Iowa, Michigan had
lost consecutive games and sat
in tenth in the Big Ten with their
tournament hopes teetering on the
brink. Additionally, senior guard
Nicole Munger hadn’t practiced
that week due to an ankle injury
— despite eventually playing 35
minutes against the Hawkeyes. All
signs pointed to the Wolverines
dropping their third in a row.
Thanks in large part to bench
players like Johnson and Robbins,
the Wolverines didn’t. Instead,
on the back of a combined 32
points and 15 rebounds from the
junior guard and junior forward
respectively, they won. Hillmon,
too, chipped in eight points.
“Munger and Hallie (Thome)
were a little beat up so they haven’t
been practicing as much as the rest
of us,” Johnson said. “That means
players like me, Naz and Kayla
had to step up a lot in practice. So I
think their absence made us grow
more because we’re like, ‘If they
can’t play then they expect us to
play better.’ ”
In
a
quick
turnaround,
Michigan traveled to Madison the
next day to take on Wisconsin on
Sunday. Despite the Badgers’ .500
record, the Wolverines’ struggles
away from Crisler Center this
season suggested the game would
be anything but straightforward.
The inclination was correct,
but Michigan still came away
with its first Big Ten road win of
the season. Once again, some of
the best performances of the day
came from the Wolverines’ bench.
Hillmon scored a team-high 20
points, while Robbins posted a
solid stat line, with six points, four
rebounds and two blocks in just 16
minutes.
“I think our bench has proven
itself all year long,” said Michigan
coach Kim Barnes Arico after the
game. “We were really confident
that Kayla and Naz could really
help us today.”
The games against Iowa and
Wisconsin are just the latest
examples of how important the
Wolverines’ depth has been in
their success this season. Though
Michigan has extended its rotation
when necessary, the usual three-
deep rotation of Hillmon, Johnson
and Robbins has come up big
during some inconsistent spells
from starters.
The Wolverines likely wouldn’t
have picked up wins against
Washington
and
Ohio
State
earlier this year if it weren’t for the
play of their bench. Against the
Huskies, Hillmon, Robbins and
Johnson combined for 21 points
and 16 rebounds — including six
on the offensive glass — while both
sophomore guard Deja Church and
sophomore forward Hailey Brown
went scoreless. In the four-point
victory against the Buckeyes, when
the starters shot 37-percent from
the field, Hillmon finished with 20
points and eight rebounds — one of
her six 20-plus performances this
season.
In terms of scoring, no one
player has carried the load for
Michigan this season. Thome
leads the team, averaging just 12.9
points per game. Right behind
her is Hillmon with 12.7. The
Wolverines’ balance and depth
are some of their greatest assets.
On any given night, anybody can
shoulder the offensive burden.
It should go without saying,
though,
that
Michigan’s
best
chance for success in the last seven
games of the season comes when
the starters and bench excel in
tandem.
“If we have two or more players
playing exceptionally well off the
bench and our starters are on their
game, we’re a tough team to beat,”
Barnes Arico said.
In the meantime though, the
Wolverines’ bench play has helped
get their season back on track.
CONNOR BRENNAN
Daily Sports Writer
MILES MACKLIN/Daily
Junior wing Akienreh Johnson was a key contributor off Michigan’s bench in the Wolverines’ two wins last weekend.
TIEN LE
Daily Sports Writers
ALEXANDRIA POMPEI/Daily
Brendan Warren visited New York City for the first time as a freshman.