After suffering a crushing defeat to Ohio State last week to kick off the New Year, Rutgers Men’s Basketball redeemed themselves and pulled out a win at home against Oregon.
On January 5, the Rutgers Scarlet Knights hosted the Oregon Ducks for an intense Division I men’s college basketball game. The Scarlet Knights kept the upper hand for the majority of the game, yet the Ducks pulled through to send both teams into overtime. Despite this, Rutgers came back and ultimately clutched an 88-85 win.
The game began with Rutgers taking an early 5-0 lead, thanks to Jamichael Davis scoring a three-pointer and Harun Zrno scoring two free throws. Shortly after, the Ducks answered back; Nate Bittle successfully completed a layup and a free throw to put the Ducks on the board. Following that, Wei Lin scored a three-pointer, taking a 6-5 lead over the Scarlet Knights.
As the half progressed, a lot of action was seen with Oregon’s Kwame Evans Jr. and Takai Simpkins. In just the first half, Evans scored a total of 13 points. On the other side, Rutgers’ Jamichael Davis and Tariq Francis also had a strong presence on the court, with Francis scoring eight points and Davis five. As the half came to a close, Evans of Oregon shot one last three-pointer to put his team in front 45-37 at the end of the half.
Once the second half started, both teams were hungry for the win. Within the first five minutes, Rutgers pulled out seven points to begin closing the score gap between the two. In return, Oregon did not let them get away with this and continued to pursue the ball. With 10 minutes remaining, the score flashed 60-60, mimicking the intensity occurring in Jersey Mike’s arena.
While the clock ticked, both teams gave it their all in an attempt to take the lead. Francis of Rutgers and Bittle of Oregon both took charge this half, Francis scoring 14 points and Bittle scoring 13. The game drew to a close, and when the crowd thought Rutgers was about to take the win, Lin came in with four seconds remaining and scored a three-pointer to tie the game and send the teams into overtime.
Overtime began, and with only five minutes on the clock, tensions were rising by the second. Starting with a jump shot, the Ducks took the initial lead. Francis answered back with one of his own, but this didn’t stop Oregon. Lin made a free throw and Bittle a layup to put the visitors ahead 81-78. Nevertheless, in a span of three minutes, Darren Buchanan Jr., Davis, and Francis worked to score 10 points. With only four points scored in response, the clock ran out, and Rutgers clinched the win 88-85.
Tariq Francis played a key role in Rutgers’ win over Oregon, accumulating a total of 30 points. Following him, Lino Mark, Darren Buchanan Jr., and Jamichael Davis each accumulated 13 points. On the other side, Nate Bittle of Oregon had a game-high 33 points across the game. Following him was Wei Lin with 23, and Kwame Evans Jr. with 13.
If they can keep this level of play going, they could turn their season around. With this win, they fall into the 14th spot in the Big Ten Conference, with a current record of 8-7. They travel to face Illinois this Thursday and, hopefully, will bring home another win to New Brunswick. This may have been a strong win to put them on the map, but can they continue this further into 2026?
