Update (11:30 p.m. ET): Rutgers coach Steve Pikiell addressed Dylan Harper’s absence in his postgame press conference following his team’s 84-74 loss to Indiana. Read what he said here.
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Rutgers will return to Big Ten play without its best player.
Freshman guard Dylan Harper is out for the Scarlet Knights’ meeting with Indiana on Thursday night, a person with knowledge of the situation told NJ Advance Media. He was not listed on the pregame availability report, but he was wearing street clothes when he emerged from the visiting locker room at Assembly Hall.
A school spokesperson declined comment when approached by NJ Advance Media, and no official reason for his absence was given. Multiple people told NJ Advance Media that Harper is under the weather, which head coach Steve Pikiell confirmed in his pregame radio interview with Jerry Recco, noting he has not practiced since their win over Columbia on Monday and did not participate in the team’s shootaround on Thursday afternoon.
“Zach (Martini) will go in the starting lineup (in his place). It puts a little more pressure on our other perimeter guys, obviously,” Pikiell said. “(Harper) is one of the leading scorers in the country but he’s feeling a little under the weather. This is the journey of the season. I always tell guys, you don’t know. You better prepare yourself to be ready. You never know what the situation is going to be. He hasn’t practiced, he didn’t go to our shoot around today, he’s feeling under the weather. Hopefully, he gets back soon, but we still have to keep moving and ticking, it just makes a different kind of challenge for our perimeter guys.”
This marks the first time the five-star phenom misses a game in his college career.
Harper’s absence is a massive blow for Rutgers (8-5, 1-1), which was hoping to earn an all-important Quadrant 1 win against the Hoosiers (10-3, 1-1) to bolster their fledging NCAA Tournament résumé.
Through 13 games, Harper is averaging 22.8 points (fourth nationally) on 52.5% shooting, 5.3 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 1.2 steals in 34.3 minutes per game. The five-star phenom’s All-American form was punctuated on Monday when he became the first Scarlet Knights in nearly 42 years (Roy Hinson, 1982) to notch a triple-double, finishing with 16 points, 12 assists and 11 rebounds in a romp of Columbia in Piscataway.
Harper will miss a chance to build on his families legacy at Assembly Hall, the site of his older brother Ron Jr.’s epic game-winner and celebration during the 2021-22 season.
“They’re a great team, they have a great roster, great coaching staff, so I’m just looking forward to playing a great basketball game,” Harper said. “We are just going to go out there and compete like we always do, the same way.”
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Brian Fonseca may be reached at bfonseca@njadvancemedia.com.
