Rutgers players and coaches voiced their support of suspended head coach Mike Rice yesterday.
The clearest sign of how Rutgers felt, however, was the rope — which symbolizes team unity and togetherness — that resided on the team’s bench for the first time after being previously used during practice or film sessions during the Scarlet Knights’ 88-79 victory over Alabama-Birmingham at the RAC.
“That rope was Mike Rice’s rope, that was his idea,” said interim coach David Cox, who was credited with his first career victory. “He brought that in the beginning of the year and made every player and every coach and every manager hold on to that rope, and he explained the importance of holding on to that rope, especially in difficult times. We wanted to hold on to that rope for Mike Rice today and for this program.”
Rice’s suspension, for allegedly throwing basketballs at players’ heads, using vulgar language and displaying inappropriate behavior during games and practices, came as a surprise to the Rutgers players. He is scheduled to return to the team Dec. 29 and his first game back will be Jan. 2, against Syracuse.
Sophomore guard Myles Mack, who scored a game-high 23 points in the victory, said he never felt Rice went over the line during practice. Whether the anger-management classes he is taking leads the intense Rice to tone it down is unclear, though Mack doesn’t think his coach needs to change.
“I’m fine with whatever he does, if he takes it a notch back or keeps it the same,” Mack said.
Rutgers (7-2) handled its first game without Rice as well as possible, leading wire-to-wire after an absurdly hot shooting start. Eli Carter scored 20 points and Dane Miller followed with 10.
“We were playing for each other, playing for our fans, playing for Rutgers,” Mack said. “We wanted to win for Coach Rice and us.”
The Scarlet Knights made their first 10 shots and 15 of 16, shot 60 percent from the field and made 29 of 33 free-throw attempts.
“I probably would call that divine intervention, because I certainly didn’t teach them how to shoot that well the last two days,” Cox joked.
Forward Wally Judge, one of the few Scarlet Knights who has dealt with controversy before, said the victory was proof what Rutgers is capable of when focused. He also thinks Rice’s suspension could galvanize the program.
“I’ve seen teams come together through controversy,” the Kansas State transfer said. “Now you have to find a way to take the next step instead of letting it linger on and become a problem.
“We started making 15 of [our first] 16 shots,” he added. “That just shows when we’re ready to play the type of force we can come with.”