This one hurt and while the final result was extremely disappointing, some perspective is needed in evaluating this game. Rutgers took on the best team in the Big Ten and while they felt painfully short, they played tremendous defense and showed how much progress they’ve made in a relatively short time frame. While the offense continues to struggle, Rutgers almost won the game based on guts, guile, and of course, gritty defensive play.
They led for 25 minutes of the game 41-32 with 3:22 to play, which was their largest lead of the contest. Wisconsin big man Ethan Happ took over the game and Rutgers could not stop him.