Rutgers basketball: Dylan Harper, Ace Bailey make an impression; 5 media day observations

PISCATAWAY – Here’s a sign of how much interest there is in Rutgers basketball for the 2024-25 season: They ran out of seating in the media area for Tuesday’s practice.

More than 30 reporters and scouts showed up for the program’s annual media day, the highest turnout in recent memory. Most of those folks were there to see freshmen Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey, both McDonald’s All-Americans and projected NBA Draft lottery picks, and they were not disappointed.

After standing out during a 90-minute practice, Harper and Bailey fielded rapid-fire questions from the media throng with ease.

“Obviously the hype around them is immense,” postgrad wing PJ Hayes said. “But from the way they handle themselves in practice, I’m not worried about them. I think they’ll overcome all the pressure that’s on them and I think they’ll honestly blow everyone out of the water with how skilled they are.”

FIVE OBSERVATIONS

1. The big two looked the part.

You can see why NBA scouts are frequenting Piscataway these days – some were there Tuesday – to size up Harper and Bailey.

“They’re not sleepers, that’s for sure,” Rutgers coach Steve Pikiell said.

Pikiell has been raving about their passing skills, and that was on full display Tuesday.

In five-on-five scrimmage action, the 6-foot-9 Bailey executed a pick-and-roll with fellow freshman Lathan Sommerville with a perfect dump-down pass that created a layup.

“We all share the ball,” Bailey said afterward, adding the Pikiell’s No. 1 mantra for him as been “being a team player and getting my teammates involved.”

Harper showed the same willingness. At one point he drove left and skipped an on-target bounce pass to backcourt-mate Jeremiah Williams for a reverse layup – not an easy pass to make because Williams was backdoor cutting through baseline traffic.

“That’s just feel for the game,” Williams said. “He’s a bigger guard who can see over the defense. He can see things smaller guards can’t see. And he knows the game pretty well.”

Williams said signaled Harper by making eye contact. That’s the kind of teamwork you see from upperclassmen who’ve played together for years.

“I tell the guys, when I got the ball, cut and I’ll find you regardless,” Harper said. “I know I’m a quote-unquote ‘scorer,’ but I’m looking to find these guys at all times.”

Speaking of scoring, Bailey made a variety of mid-range shots, including an eye-popping, step-back 20-footer.

“It was very pro-like of him,” Harper said. “The way he gets his shot, you see flashes like Paul George, Kevin Durant, people like that.”

Added Sommerville: “That’s pretty tough to guard, I’m not going to lie. When he’s shooting over the top of you, that’s tough. Hopefully I’m on his team most of the time when he’s doing that.”

It seems like everyone on the team has a “wow” story about Bailey already.

“I’ve seen him go for a block on the ball and grab it with two hands before it even gets released,” center Emmanuel Ogbole said.

Harper, meanwhile, got to the rim seemingly at will and consistently set up shooters for good looks along the perimeter. When Pikiell was asked about handing the keys to his offense to a freshman, he didn’t mince words.

“He’s the No. 1 point guard in the country, so giving him the basketball is kind of an easy decision,” the coach said.

When you have two NBA lottery picks leading your offense, Pikiell said, “The ball goes in a little bit more, as you saw today. Talent does that sometimes.”

What’s most impressive about Harper, though, is his maturity. Most freshmen are not comfortable in a giant media scrum, questions being fired off left and right. Yet he seemed like could have talked for an hour. Obviously the Don Bosco Prep graduate was prepared for this moment by his family, including his NBA dad Ron Harper, his AAU coach/mom Maria Harper and his older brother, former Rutgers star Ron Harper Jr.

Rattling off a list players who resurrected Rutgers’ program under Pikiell, including his brother, Geo Baker, Caleb McConnell and Cliff Omoruyi, Dylan said he long envisioned himself taking the torch.

“Watching them play, I always had that look in my eye like I want to be like them one day,” he said.

It’s Dylan’s turn, along with Bailey’s, and unlike their predecessors — who walked around campus anonymously as freshmen — everyone is tuned into these guys. Is there pressure? You bet. But they’re having some fun with it, too.

“Walking to class, me and Ace play a little game with each other,” Dylan said. “I’ll say, ‘Oh look, it’s Ace Bailey!’ And everyone will look.”

They’re going to keep looking, all winter long.

2. Sommerville vs. Ogbole

The 6-foot-10 freshman Sommerville, who has lost 24 pounds since arriving on campus, looked like a different player from June. He scored over 6-foot-10, 270-pound junior Emmanuel Ogbole multiple times as they matched up against each other in the 5-on-5 scrimmage, and mostly stymied Ogbole on the other end.

Ogbole, who projects to start at center, had good moments defensively and rebounded well, but Sommerville finished against him through contact, beat him down the floor in transition for a layup and held his own physically.

The base teams Pikiell rolled out in the 5-on-5 scrimmage were Dylan Harper, Jeremiah Williams, PJ Hayes, Zach Martini and Ogbole against Jamichael Davis, Jordan Derkack, Ace Bailey, Dylan Grant and Lathan Sommerville, with Bryce Dortch subbing in for Sommerville.

3. Free throws

Rutgers shot 14-of-22 (63.6 percent) from the free-throw line during the full-court team portion of practice. Three of those came during the 10-minute scrimmage; the rest were “pressure” free throws – everybody runs a wind sprint on a miss.

Pikiell chose Bailey to take the first pressure free throw (he made it) and Sommerville to take the last (he made it).

All told, Bailey shot 5-of-6 from the line and Sommerville shot 3-of-4. Harper made 1-of-2. The eight misses were spread around.

4. PJ Hayes: surprise speedster

Hayes, who is down to 214 pounds after reporting to campus at 232 in early summer, led every single wind sprint, most by a wide margin.

“That’s him being an older guy and showing how much he cares about the game,” Williams said.

The 6-foot-6 transfer from San Diego also showed his skill using the shot fake, at one point deceiving Bailey into leaping off the court. Hayes made more than he missed from beyond the arc in the 5-on-5, and his shot mechanics on each were impeccable.

Perhaps most tellingly, during the post-practice interview session, Hayes was seated at the captains’ table alongside Martini and Williams. Pikiell even indicated that he’s considering naming a third captain, and Hayes certainly looked and sounded the part on Tuesday.

5. Tyson Acuff injury update

Postgrad guard Tyson Acuff, who is recovering from a broken foot suffered in mid-June, spent the practice on the sidelines doing dynamics (running, jumping, stretching) but did not participate in any on-court drills. His original prognosis was 3-4 months on the sideline.

“I’m a few weeks out, working on a few more things because I can get fully cleared to get back on the court,” he said. “I’ll be back before the first game.”

Based on how active he was on the sidelines Acuff, who averaged 21.7 points per game last season at Eastern Michigan, looks like he’s dying to return to action.

“I am,” he said. “But it’s not as bad as the first few weeks (after the injury) when you’re in a cast and you can’t do anything at all.”

Jerry Carino has covered the New Jersey sports scene since 1996 and the college basketball beat since 2003. He is an Associated Press Top 25 voter. Contact him at jcarino@gannettnj.com.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Rutgers basketball: Dylan Harper, Ace Bailey make an impression