Derry鈥檚 Geo Baker shining in senior season with Rutgers
DERRY, N.H. (BVM) — Derry native Geo Baker has been a massive part of building up the Rutgers basketball program into what it is today. After not being recruited as a top guard in his class, the overshadowed mindset was a perfect fit for what the Scarlet Knights鈥櫬� program was building to at the time.
鈥淚 think Rutgers has had a negative perception for a really long time and I think with Coach Pikiell as the coach, he really wants to create something positive,鈥� . 鈥淢y whole life I鈥檝e kind of been underrated and I think that Rutgers is underrated right now. I love to prove people wrong and I think that’s what we are going to do here.鈥�
For Baker, growing up in Derry didn鈥檛 always bring the most recognition. As a 5-foot-7 15-year-old, Baker had some growing to do not only on the court. A growth spurt to 6-foot-3 would later progress his game to the next level.聽
After starting at Buckingham Browne & Nichols in Massachusetts his freshman season, Baker would leave for a chance to play at Pinkerton Academy in his hometown. He would help lead the school to an NHIAA state championship game before transferring to Proctor Academy the following year. In his junior season at Proctor, the rising guard averaged 18 points, six assists and five rebounds per game.
After a stellar senior season, Baker would go on to take on his next challenge at Rutgers. Since starting for the Scarlet Knights his freshman year, Baker has seen the program go from two straight losing seasons to two straight winning seasons. After missing out on an NCAA Tournament appearance last season because of the pandemic, Baker鈥檚 10.1 points and 3.2 assists per game have the Scarlet Knights in the thick of the action.
As the team gets ready for an NCAA Tournament bid, the Scarlet Knights senior and his coach can look back at just how far the program has come.
鈥淲e were really the doormat of the Big Ten and we knew that,鈥� Baker told the . 鈥淏ut we all had one mindset to change the culture and I think we鈥檝e done that.鈥�
鈥淗e鈥檚 seen the whole process here,鈥� Rutgers head coach of Baker. 鈥淗e鈥檚 seen the 鈥楻AC鈥� (Rutgers Athletic Center) be half-empty and now he鈥檚 seen where you can鈥檛 get a ticket for our game.鈥�
With an early victory against Indiana in the Big Ten Tournament, the Derry native will be looking to continue the Scarlet Knights鈥� run through March Madness.
