For a moment Tuesday night, as Rutgers was running away from DePaul, splashing in deep jump shots and owning the paint, Mike Rice took a deep breathe and smiled.
“When I looked at this team on paper,” the third-year Rutgers coach said, “this is what I envisioned.”
For one night, 11th-seeded Rutgers didn’t resemble the frustrating team that couldn’t finish off games and went 5-13 in the Big East during the regular season. It put forth a dominating second half to match a solid first half in a 76-57 rout of No. 14 seed DePaul in the opening round of the Big East Tournament at the Garden. The Scarlet Knights will face No. 6 Notre Dame in the second round tonight at 9:00. An upset would end their string of losing seasons at seven.
The Scarlet Knights (15-15) received production from virtually its entire roster, led by junior forward Wally Judge, who tied a Big East Tournament record — also held by Boston College’s Chris Smith and Villanova’s Ricky Wright — by making all nine of his shot attempts. The Kansas State transfer poured in 20 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and added two blocks.
“Wally and the whole team, no matter what happened this year, continued to work, and there’s not a doubt in my mind he’s improved every single day because of it,” Rice said. “It allowed him to have a night like this, a record-setting night like this. It shows you his potential.”
Guards Myles Mack and Jerome Seagears got wherever they wanted on the floor, combining for 34 points, 19 from Mack.
Mack also had four rebounds, four assists and three steals while Seagears contributed seven rebounds and four assists. Mike Poole, the junior from Queens, added eight points off the bench.
Rutgers led by one at halftime, but the lead would have been larger if not for 11 costly turnovers, several of them unforced. The Scarlet Knights shot 60 percent from the field and outrebounded DePaul, 17-8, yet their inability to play under control led to five fewer shot attempts than DePaul.
Their play was far crisper in the second half, in the form of a 16-3 run that broke open a tie game. Judge, Mack, Seagears and Poole each scored in the spurt, a symbol of Rutgers’ balance.
They were patient but aggressive, capitalized on fastbreak opportunities, but didn’t force them. They worked the ball inside and made DePaul pay when it collapsed in the paint.
Judge said he drew motivation from DePaul coach Oliver Purnell saying Rutgers’ forwards weren’t comparable to Pittsburgh’s. He also took inspiration from Rice’s telling the team, “March don’t care,” meaning their previous shortcomings can be washed away with a memorable week.
“Anything can happen,” Judge said. “You seen Connecticut do it, you seen George Mason do it. That’s how you have to play every game, like [your record is] 0-0.”
On Monday, Rutgers athletic director Tim Pernetti gave Rice a vote of confidence, guaranteeing he will return for a fourth season. Rice was appreciative of the gesture, but said he has been more focused on the next game, than his own job security.
Nevertheless, Tuesday night’s victory backed up the coach’s belief, that the immediate future — senior Dane Miller is the lone key loss and sophomores like Eli Carter, Mack, Kadeem Jack and Seagears are only getting better — is bright.
“I think he sees the potential in this team, the growth and development in this team,” Rice said of Pernetti. “As I’ve said time and again, it’s going to happen. Rutgers basketball is going to happen. [Maybe] slower than some people might’ve liked.”