Rutgers Basketball: Compensating for loss of Eugene Omoruyi for 2019-20
The unexpected departure of forward Eugene Omoruyi will hinder the ability of Rutgers Basketball to climb the Big 10 ladder next season.
Eugene Omoruyi will not be contributing to one of the most promising Rutgers Basketball teams in recent memory.
Just a couple of weeks ago, it became clear that Omoruyi wanted to leave Piscataway and flex his basketball muscle elsewhere. Last week, he took to Instagram to announce that he was transferring to Oregon, where he’ll be ineligible for the 2019-20 season due to NCAA transfer rules.
In less than a month, one of the key expected returnees left for (literally) greener pastures.
This is unquestionably a big loss for Rutgers. Steve Pikiell has built a guard-oriented team, led by Geo Baker and the rising underclassmen. They were already thin on the front lines before Omoruyi’s departure.
It doesn’t help that Omoruyi was the team’s best player a year ago. He led the team in scoring (13.8 points per game) and rebounds (7.2 rebounds per game). His 29.1 minutes per game won’t be easy to replace.
There are no returning big men that averaged more than five points per game. The next closest to that number is rising sophomore
, who averaging 4.8 points per game. He showed promise on the boards, though, grabbing 5.7 rebounds per contest.
Ironically, the transfer market may actually help Rutgers in this respect. Earlier this spring, they secured a commitment from grad transfer Akwasi Yeboah, who will be eligible to suit up right away. He averaged 16.7 points and 7.7 rebounds per game for Stony Brook last season.
Otherwise, options for the frontcourt are few and far between. There’s just one incoming member of the Class of 2019, and Paul Mulcahy is a decent-sized small forward, not a big man ready to throw his body around.
The best move for Pikiell is to continue down the path of guard-oriented play, hoping to dominate Big Ten teams with speed and skill, rather than size and brute force.
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Eugene Omoruyi’s departure cuts the Rutgers faithful to the core. It doesn’t need to hamper the chase for a postseason berth – at least not yet.