Purdue had just grabbed a 64-62 lead against Rutgers on a 3-pointer by freshman guard Fletcher Loyer with 29.3 seconds left in regulation, giving a the top-ranked Boilermakers an advantage heading into the final moments of what was one of the best Big Ten games of the season to that point.
Senior guard Paul Mulcahy directed the offense on the ensuing possession for Rutgers, backing down freshman guard Braden Smith and drawing help from junior guard Ethan Morton. Morton’s help defense allowed senior guard Cam Spencer to break open for Mulcahy, who found Spencer for a 3-pointer. Spencer buried the shot, and Rutgers held on to win, 65-64, in West Lafayette on Jan. 2.
The game-winner on a big-time stage was a long time coming for Spencer, a native of Davidsonville, Md., who spent his high school years at Boys’ Latin and the first three years of his college career at Loyola.
“To be honest, I was just happy that we won the game,” Spencer said on Glenn Clark Radio Jan. 24. “Every possession matters in a game like that. Paul made a great pass to me and I just had to be confident and knock it down. I think it really set the stage for us as a team that we can go to place like Purdue, which is a tough place to play as the No. 1 team and deservedly so, but I think it just gave us a lot of confidence going forward that we could get a win like that on the road and take that with us.”
Rutgers is 14-6 overall, 6-3 in the Big Ten and No. 17 on KenPom. The Scarlet Knights are well on their way to a third straight NCAA Tournament appearance after previously not cracking the tournament field since 1991, though they would have likely made the tournament in 2020 had it not been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rutgers had to reload this past offseason following the departures of program stalwarts Ron Harper Jr. and Geo Baker. In Spencer, head coach Steve Pikiell found exactly who he was looking for to fill the void. The 6-foot-4, 207-pound guard is averaging 30.6 minutes, 13.1 points and 3.6 assists per game entering the Scarlet Knights’ game at Iowa on Jan. 29. He is also shooting 43.6 percent from 3-point range.
“I think because of Rutgers and Coach Pikiell, it’s just a match made in heaven,” Spencer said. “We’re very similar in blue-collar aspects, I guess. There are a lot of blue-collar guys at Rutgers, so coming into the program I saw it right away. The guys that Coach Pikiell recruits are the guys with the underdog mentality and competitive dudes that want to win. That couldn’t fit me any better. I’m just very thankful for the opportunity that Coach Pikiell gave to me to play here.”
Cam is the second Spencer to try his hand at Big Ten basketball. His brother, Pat, played at Northwestern during the 2019-20 season, averaging 29.4 minutes, 10.4 points and 3.9 assists per contest for the Wildcats. Prior to that, Pat authored a spectacular lacrosse career at Loyola, winning the 2019 Tewaaraton Award and finishing his career with 380 points.
Pat is now playing for the Santa Cruz Warriors of the NBA G League. He encouraged his brother to play at the highest level of college hoops.
“He was a big part of it. He obviously wanted me to challenge myself,” Cam said. “I got to see him have a great year at Northwestern and see what really the Big Ten is about. I thought he had a great year there. He kind of gave me the inside news into what that level is like. I competed against him in the summertime and stuff. He really pushed me to take on that challenge and just very happy that I did.”
Spencer entered his name into the transfer portal following Loyola’s 2021-22 season, but he left his mark with the Greyhounds prior to that. He saved his best for last, averaging 37 minutes, 18.9 points and 3.2 assists as a junior last season.
However, 2020-21 remains a what-could’ve-been season for Loyola. The Greyhounds’ campaign was delayed until after New Year’s Day due to COVID-19, and the team ended up playing just 17 games. Spencer only played five due to injury. That meant Spencer and stud big man Santi Aldama, now with the Memphis Grizzlies, barely got to play together. Still, the two led Loyola to the Patriot League title game.
Regardless, Spencer had a great experience playing college ball close to home.
“To be honest, when I first got there, we had some older guys that worked pretty hard and I kind of got to learn under them what college basketball is all about,” Spencer said. “It’s a different game, completely, from high school. It was an adjustment at first, and you’ve got to learn under those guys. Appreciative of the teammates I had at Loyola, and the coaches helped me tremendously build as a player, so just very thankful to all those guys and all of my experiences to get to where I am right now.”
Spencer has another year of eligibility due to COVID-19, so he could stick around at Rutgers for another season. That said, his long-term goal will remain the same — to play in the NBA.
“It’s a tremendous motivator. That’s the end goal,” Spencer said. “That’s the highest level of basketball in the world, so to say that you got there is a goal of mine and a goal of Pat’s. He’s very close, so I’m rooting like heck for him. I believe in him and I think he’ll do it, but that’s definitely a motivator for us.”
For more from Spencer, listen to the full interview here:
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Rutgers Athletics