Tariq Francis was named Co-Big Ten Player of the Week alongside UCLA’s Skyy Clark, which was announced by the Big Ten Conference earlier on Monday. The honor comes fresh off of Francis’ 34-point performance as the NJIT transfer guard almost singlehandedly willed his team to victory.
Francis had started the season strong, but struggled through the past few games, being held to single-digits against Purdue, Michigan, and Seton Hall. He had a particularly poor performance against the Pirates, with just
six points, one rebound, and one assist, but bounced back in a big way against the Quakers.
Steve Pikiell discussed Francis’ performance after the game, saying, “What a response for Tariq in this game. We challenged him after that Seton Hall game, and he had a great week of practice. He didn’t turn the ball over, really bounced back, and played really good basketball on Saturday night.”
Francis showcased his ability to score at all three levels, attacking the rim with crafty layups and scoring in the midrange with fadeaway jumpers. He finished with 34 points on 9-of-14 shooting from the field and supplemented that with a 15-19 performance at the free throw line due to his relentless rim pressure.
He played a team-high 28 minutes and came up with two steals, including one in the final minute that resulted in a quick basket. Although Francis went 1-4 on three-pointers, he hit the biggest shot of the night from distance, a pull-up three to put Rutgers ahead of the Quakers and seal the game.
Francis is the fifth Scarlet Knight to earn Big Ten Player of the Week honors. He joins Dylan Harper, Jeremiah Williams, Cam Spencer, and Geo Baker, who won the award twice. With Francis scoring 34 of the Scarlet Knights’ 70 points against Penn, his performance may have been even more impressive and critical than those.
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