LAS VEGAS - Rutgers men's basketball continues its road trip with a three-game tournament held in Las Vegas. This week, RU will face Notre Dame, Alabama, and a third opponent at the Players Era Festival at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.
The Scarlet Knights open play on Tuesday night against Notre Dame, a 10:30 PM Eastern Time tipoff on TBS. Game two is the next night, against Alabama at 10 PM Eastern Time Wednesday on TBS.
Rutgers enters the tournament at 4-1 overall. The Scarlet Knights were undone in the start to the road trap at Kennesaw State on Sunday afternoon in a homecoming game in Georgia for and . The Scarlet Knights outscored KSU 51-35 in the second half of a comeback bid, but fell short by one possession. led the way with 21 points along with nine assists and two steals, just the third Big Ten freshman since 2004 to reach that stat line in a game.
RU's top three leading scorers are freshmen. leads the team at 19.8 points per game on 54.3 percent shooting. He is closely followed by (19.0 ppg). joins the trio in double-digits at 10.0 ppg. RU's top five scorers, including and PJ Hayes, are all shooting 48 percent or better from the field. Harper is currently the second leading scorer among freshmen in the nation, trailing just Texas' Tre Johnson (21.2 ppg). does not meet NCAA minimums to qualify, needing to play in the team's next three games to qualify. If he were qualified, he would be third nationally just behind Harper.
Rutgers last played in Las Vegas in the 2015-16 season under then-head coach Eddie Jordan to play in a Thanksgiving Week event, the Men Who Speak Up Main Event. The Scarlet Knights went 0-2 in the event, falling to Creighton (85-75) and Clemson (76-58) in games held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.
This will be the first November non-conference tournament away from home that Rutgers has participated in under head coach , previously frequently hosting MTE events around Thanksgiving instead.
Notre Dame will be RU's first opponent on Tuesday night and will enter the matchup with RU with an identical 4-1 record under second-year head coach Micah Shrewsberry. The Fighting Irish just dropped a 84-77 decision to Elon after wins over Stonehill, Buffalo, Georgetown and North Dakota.
Shrewsberry previously was the head coach of Penn State on 2021-22 and 2022-23, during which time he was 1-3 against Rutgers. ND is 51th in the nation in field goal percentage (51.9%) and 27 in free throw percentage (78.8%). Sophomore Markus Burton leads the team at 21.4 points per game, 19 nationally.
Rutgers and Notre Dame were former BIG EAST conference members, playing annually from 1995 to 2013. The Irish lead the series 21-13. The lone meeting since splitting conferences in 2013 came in 2022, when the two teams met in the NCAA Tournament, playing in Dayton in the First Four, an 89-87 Notre Dame victory in double overtime.
Alabama, ranked ninth in both polls, enters the tournament at 4-1, with wins over UNC Asheville, Arkansas State, McNeese and Illinois with a loss to then-No. 13 Purdue. Alabama will open tournament play on Tuesday against Houston.
The Crimson Tide boast the No. 14 scoring offense in the nation at 89.6 points per game. Mark Sears, a Second Team All-American last season, leads Alabama at 17.3 points per game. Former Scarlet Knight averages 9.8 points and a team-best 7.8 rebounds and 10 blocks. The Scarlet Knights and Crimson Tide have met just once previously, an 80-69 win for Alabama on December 27, 1969 at a neutral site.
The Championship Day game matchup will be determined by the results of the first two games. RU will play a team from the opposite side of the bracket, either Oregon, No. 21/19 Creighton, San Diego State or No. 20/20 Texas A&M.
RU and Creighton have only met once previously, the 2015 matchup in Las Vegas.
Rutgers and Oregon, who will face off as conference members for the first time this year, have met previously twice, a RU win in 1982 and an Oregon win in 1985.
Rutgers has never faced San Diego State or Texas A&M.
By beating Notre Dame, Rutgers would: