Rutgers Basketball

Turns out that the third-grade teacher who promised her class some hot chocolate if she made a deep basket—and promptly sank the shot, in a video that has since gone viral—has some serious game.

As in, she's former Rutgers basketball player Kathleen Fitzpatrick. 

Fitzpatrick played her redshirt senior season for Rutgers, starting 16 games in the 2017-18 season, after transferring from St. Joseph's. 

She appeared on SportsCenter Thursday to talk about the moment:

"I usually do play basketball with them at recess, and I don't really take it lightly," she said. "I play as hard as I can. And I just picked up a ball, and I said if I make this—it was a Friday afternoon—and I said if I make this shot we'll have hot chocolate on Monday as a class. ... I just launched it and it went in."

Fitzpatrick added that she was equally excited to kick off Monday with a hot chocolate treat. Which, yeah—a hot chocolate party sounds amazing this time of year. Good job, Ms. Fitz.

Ron Harper Jr. sank a buzzer-beating three-pointer to propel the unranked Rutgers men's basketball team to a 70-68 home win over No. 1 Purdue on Thursday.

Harper Jr. had made a two-point jumper with 14 seconds left to give Rutgers a 67-66 lead.

Purdue retook the lead after a Trevion Williams layup with four seconds left, but Harper capped his 30-point, 10-rebound night with the game-winning three for one of college basketball's biggest upsets this season.

The Boilermakers led for much of the second half and took a 57-47 lead with 8:37 remaining after a Sasha Stefanovic three-pointer, but Harper and the Scarlet Knights chipped away at the edge before earning the win over their Big Ten opponent.

Williams had 21 points and 11 rebounds off the bench for the Boilermakers, who made just 7-of-26 three-pointers.

Caleb McConnell complemented Harper's effort with 12 points, five assists and five rebounds for Rutgers.

The Scarlet Knights had lost four of five games leading into the Purdue matchup, including an 86-51 defeat to Illinois on Friday. However, they bounced back in a big way to move to 5-4 on the year (1-1 Big Ten).

Purdue, which is now the third No. 1 team to fall after Gonzaga and Duke each fell from the top posts earlier this year, dropped to 8-1 (1-1 Big Ten).

Rutgers women's basketball coach C. Vivian Stringer will miss the 2021-22 season with continued concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic.

Stringer didn't participate in the Big Ten's media day in October for the same reason.

The Scarlet Knights confirmed Monday that associate head coach Tim Eatman will continue running the 73-year-old's day-to-day duties.

Rutgers had to postpone seven straight games last year due to the Big Ten's health and safety protocols. The team still finished 14-5 overall and 10-3 in the conference before losing to BYU in the opening round of the NCAA tournament.

The school announced in April it had extended Stringer's contract through the 2025-26 season.

The Pennsylvania native is one of the greatest coaches in women's basketball. She has collected 1,055 wins over her Hall of Fame career and reached the Final Four with Cheyney State in 1982 and Iowa in 1993 before making two more trips with Rutgers. 

The Scarlet Knights were runners-up to Tennessee in 2007. Their success on the court has leveled off a bit in recent years, though, as the program's last Sweet 16 appearance came in 2009.

In addition to the absence of Stringer, Rutgers has to replace last year's leading scorer Arella Guirantes, who moved on to the WNBA. Diamond Johnson also transferred to North Carolina State. Together, Guirantes and Johnson averaged 38.9 points and 10.2 rebounds per game.

The Scarlet Knights host Saint Peter's in their opener Tuesday.

Looking to hitch your wagon to a gutsy Cinderella squad? In that case, let's ride on the Jersey Turnpike and root for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights.

Rutgers' Tourney History

Rutgers has gone three full decades without a men's NCAA tournament appearance. When the Scarlet Knights last made the Big Dance in 1991, The Silence of the Lambs topped the box office. Nobody on the current team went to the theaters, seeing as they weren't born yet.

One would have to go back even further to 1983 to pinpoint the Scarlet Knights' last tourney win. This also marked the first time since 1978-79 that they opened the season ranked in the Associated Press Top 25.

At 20-11, Steve Pikiell's squad looked poised to end that drought in 2020. After missing that opportunity, most key players returned. Although it's been a tumultuous season, a key win over Big Ten powerhouse Illinois highlighted a 6-0 start that showed what the Scarlet Knights can achieve at their finest.

This Year's Best Players

The ancient lore of March Madness bracketology places a premium on experience, depth and a strong backcourt. Rutgers checks all three boxes.

The upperclassmen backcourt of Ron Harper Jr., Jacob Young and Geo Baker lead a methodical offense in scoring. Juniors Montez Mathis and Myles Johnson don't trail far behind.

There's not much star power, and Rutgers' perimeter shooting certainly lag behind most modern offenses. But this gritty squad gets its hands dirty by attacking the basket and playing hard-nosed defense. 

Why They're Going to Win

Look, we don't have any fancy numbers to convince you Rutgers will win it all. The best we can do is live on a prayer like Bon Jovi and hope the Scarlet Knights, like Bruce Springsteen, were born to run the bracket.

Having plenty of experience punching up in a major conference, Rutgers is a scrappy underdog capable of persevering.

Rutgers got a huge addition to the basketball program Sunday with the commitment of center Cliff Omoruyi:

The New Jersey native is considered a 4-star recruit and No. 41 overall player in the 2020 class, according to 247Sports' composite rankings.

According to Jeff Borzello of ESPN, he is the highest-rated recruit in ESPN's ranking database to join the Scarlet Knights since 2008.

The 6'10" player is a true difference-maker in the paint, using his athleticism to make plays on both ends of the court. He should be especially valuable defensively as an elite rim-protector and rebounder.

Omoruyi will also be able to help offensively as a reliable finisher at the rim.

While he picked Rutgers over finalists Auburn and Arizona State, the big man got offers from about two dozen programs, including Kentucky, Louisville, Arizona and more.

Joining the Scarlet Knights will help the team's meteoric rise under head coach Steve Pikiell.

The squad had a losing record in 14 straight seasons until finishing 20-11 in 2019-20 with an impressive 11-9 mark in the Big Ten. The NCAA tournament was canceled due to the coronavirus, but all 97 predictions on Bracket Matrix had Rutgers in the March Madness field.

It would have been the school's first appearance in the men's NCAA tournament since 1991.

The latest addition will help Rutgers remain competitive in the Big Ten and nationally.