Because the "Bucknuts" would blow us out by 20 if we played them now... frankly, I think the pollsters were very generous to Purdue. We are NOT a Top Ten team anymore.
OSU with Turner is a talented team; if it weren't for a formerly-top-5-quality team beating them in Columbus, they'd probably be ahead of Duke like most of the other good teams are.
Purdue has a poll cushion this week; a week late, unfortunately. Wins over IU and Penn State should keep them in place or maybe gain a spot back if someone close and higher ranked falls ... I think it'll take a tournament title to get Purdue into consideration for a 1 seed, and I wouldn't be surprised if they end up as a 3 if they lose badly in Indianapolis (on Friday or by a big margin on Saturday or maybe even Sunday).
Unfortunately the MSU game simply supported what some people think about Purdue. Until they correct that perception, the absence of Hummel will drag the Boilers down wherever people have a say in it.
J Money, I am a football and basketball season ticket holder and a huge Purdue fan, but you guys are crazy stupid talking about this team as a #1 seed. I'd love it if I'm wrong and you are right, but I'm quite certain I'm right. I hope JJ, Smooge and Kramer are reading this... prove me wrong guys. Prove me wrong. We'd have to have a career night from all three to beat another Top 10 team.
I agree that this variant of the team isn't capable of beating a top-10 team. What's more concerning is if they are capable of beating Indiana or national-champ PSU. They have to find a way to win these games to preserve a good BTT seeding.
Agreed, let's just hang on these next two games and we are Big Ten Champs. Nobody cares if we have to share it. Case in point, we shared the 2000 Football Big Ten Championship with 2 other teams, and nobody cares.
Ohio State is top ten because 4 of those 7 losses came when Evan Turner was out. Since then, their only losses were to us and on the road at WV. I don't think we would have lost yesterday with Hummel, and if he were to return, I'd expect the pollsters to give us a little leeway for some losses in his absence. That's all they've done for ETU.
Watching The Journey last night at 10pm was so depressing. I couldn't stop thinking about what this season could have been if Hummel were healthy. 3 years of hard work and preparation down the drain. MSU didn't stand a chance yesterday if we had #4. And that kills me.
That's pretty much how I feel. With Hummel, Purdue wins easily at Minnesota (even if it's one of those where they build a big lead and let the other team back into it) and pulls out the MSU game in Mackey ... Syracuse may still have jumped them to #1, but nonetheless the Boilers establish themselves as Big Ten leaders and favorites for a #1 seed.
One of the few times in my lifetime we have a legitimate chance to see Purdue in the Final Four, and instead of being a reasonable bet, it suddenly looks shaky. I really, really, really want them to work out the problems (thus the idea that the NCAA tournament is the goal this year; maybe there just wasn't enough time to figure out the MSU game and salvage an undisputed title, but there is still time to fix things before the dance), but the old fear is coming back.
Prior to 1988, I had unbridled optimism, the belief that no matter what, Purdue would play well. That was the first kick in the nuts ... now I've been trained to fear the worst. I still hope for the best, but ...
I agree that the polls today have been favorable to Purdue given the way they played against MSU and the propensity for the pundits to have already written the Boilers' obituary.
Now looking ahead, the team has to continue to look at each game one at a time. The season is done if they start thinking NCAA. They still have a Big Ten regular season championship to worry about first.
One of the players that really disappointed me yesterday was Grant. I think Painter should have him come off the bench as he was doing before. It allows him to see the game better when he does so. That would mean starting Lewis Jackson. Grant would spell Barlow on that first substitution.
I'm also looking at the fact Kramer, despite everything else he does, didn't grab a single rebound against the Spartans. You'd think he new assignments would have given him more opportunities to do so. That needs to be fixed.
Moore is in a two game slump. He also shot poorly at Minnesota. Part of that was defenses clamping down on him more with Hummel out, but he's always been able to create a shot, and crisp passing can open things up. I think that's fixable.
JJ had his hands full with MSUs bigs yesterday. Spacing was poor because they were able to sag down on him since Grant wasn't taking shots to pull the defense out. Hart also missed his shots which didn't help. Again, this is fixable. These guys need to take shots. Grant should have taken 8 or 9 shots, but he took 2 jumpers the whole game. Hummel is very mobile when he's playing and has a quick release. Grant doesn't come around screens for shots like that. That may be harder to fix so late in the career of a player.
Purdue should be IU, but Penn State is going to be tough. They are playing well and they beat Purdue last year with Hummel and JJ out and will be smelling blood. The Boilers can still win a piece of the title for sure. For now that should be their only goal and focus. They can worry about the next games when those come.
Having Barlow and Jackson on the floor at the same time is not a good idea. If we start Kramer, JJ, GDB, LewJack, and Moore we'll have a grand total of one person on the court who can hit from ouside the arc. The book is out on Barlow and Jackson, they are not a serious threats from outside, so defenses now just sag back anytime they have the ball. We need Grant, Smith, and/or Wofford to step in order to force opponents to defend us straight up.
Otherwise teams will be able to zone us to death by collapsing on JJ and doubling Moore.
J - I think you jumped the gun a little bit by calling ChicagoBoiler's fandom out. I think it is certainly reasonable to have your confidence/optimism in this team greatly shaken by yesterday's performance. Until we are shown they can play better than they did yesterday I will remain guarded in my hopes for this team. The Boilers on 2/23 were a finely tuned machine that had arguably its most important cog removed. It remains to be seen how much of that performance can be regained.
Eh, toughen up. This is something we're all emotional about, and the last week has been rough on everybody. I too would take more offense to having my fandom questioned than being called "crazy stupid".
My comment was far more innocuous than you drama queens are making it. I say everything here with a sarcastic, lovable, smart-ass tone... and those of you who've been reading a while know that (I think).
When someone bashes down the program and says:
"the "Bucknuts" would blow us out by 20 if we played them now... frankly, I think the pollsters were very generous to Purdue. We are NOT a Top Ten team anymore."
....I'm allowed to make a sarcastic, wise-ass remark. To say the pollsters are "generous" to give Purdue the benefit of the doubt when Purdue is 24-4, has won 14 straight and 10 straight in the same season, and just lost a game in which their defense STILL played stout and their offense clearly is in the process of adjusting to life without Rob... well, I think that's jumping off the bandwagon too quickly. And I'm entitled to call you out on it...
All that said, let's calm down a bit (me included). We're all on the same team.
But let's remember that unless you do something really, REALLY obnoxious (like a few other sites have done), it's unlikely my comments are of a "serious" nature.
Thanks for the shout out Ryan. Nobody on here is a bigger fan than me... that I can promise you all. J Money, we are all on the same team. Anyway, I've got four tickets for Wednesday's game and I can't make it. They are free to the first person who wants them. Email me at purdue@gmail.com and I can Fedex them out tomorrow.
20 comments:
Because the "Bucknuts" would blow us out by 20 if we played them now... frankly, I think the pollsters were very generous to Purdue. We are NOT a Top Ten team anymore.
OSU with Turner is a talented team; if it weren't for a formerly-top-5-quality team beating them in Columbus, they'd probably be ahead of Duke like most of the other good teams are.
Purdue has a poll cushion this week; a week late, unfortunately. Wins over IU and Penn State should keep them in place or maybe gain a spot back if someone close and higher ranked falls ... I think it'll take a tournament title to get Purdue into consideration for a 1 seed, and I wouldn't be surprised if they end up as a 3 if they lose badly in Indianapolis (on Friday or by a big margin on Saturday or maybe even Sunday).
Unfortunately the MSU game simply supported what some people think about Purdue. Until they correct that perception, the absence of Hummel will drag the Boilers down wherever people have a say in it.
ChicagoBoiler -- you sure you're a Purdue fan?
You don't have to always believe your team is the best to be a fan. Frankly, I'm having a hard time disagreeing with anything ChicagoBoiler said.
J Money, I am a football and basketball season ticket holder and a huge Purdue fan, but you guys are crazy stupid talking about this team as a #1 seed. I'd love it if I'm wrong and you are right, but I'm quite certain I'm right. I hope JJ, Smooge and Kramer are reading this... prove me wrong guys. Prove me wrong. We'd have to have a career night from all three to beat another Top 10 team.
I agree that this variant of the team isn't capable of beating a top-10 team. What's more concerning is if they are capable of beating Indiana or national-champ PSU. They have to find a way to win these games to preserve a good BTT seeding.
Agreed, let's just hang on these next two games and we are Big Ten Champs. Nobody cares if we have to share it. Case in point, we shared the 2000 Football Big Ten Championship with 2 other teams, and nobody cares.
Ohio State is top ten because 4 of those 7 losses came when Evan Turner was out. Since then, their only losses were to us and on the road at WV. I don't think we would have lost yesterday with Hummel, and if he were to return, I'd expect the pollsters to give us a little leeway for some losses in his absence. That's all they've done for ETU.
Forgot to add - Go Illinois!!
Watching The Journey last night at 10pm was so depressing. I couldn't stop thinking about what this season could have been if Hummel were healthy. 3 years of hard work and preparation down the drain. MSU didn't stand a chance yesterday if we had #4. And that kills me.
/having a hard time with this
That's pretty much how I feel. With Hummel, Purdue wins easily at Minnesota (even if it's one of those where they build a big lead and let the other team back into it) and pulls out the MSU game in Mackey ... Syracuse may still have jumped them to #1, but nonetheless the Boilers establish themselves as Big Ten leaders and favorites for a #1 seed.
One of the few times in my lifetime we have a legitimate chance to see Purdue in the Final Four, and instead of being a reasonable bet, it suddenly looks shaky. I really, really, really want them to work out the problems (thus the idea that the NCAA tournament is the goal this year; maybe there just wasn't enough time to figure out the MSU game and salvage an undisputed title, but there is still time to fix things before the dance), but the old fear is coming back.
Prior to 1988, I had unbridled optimism, the belief that no matter what, Purdue would play well. That was the first kick in the nuts ... now I've been trained to fear the worst. I still hope for the best, but ...
Indy Star has put up a story that both Johnson and Moore have said they expect to return to Purdue next year. So there's that.
I agree that the polls today have been favorable to Purdue given the way they played against MSU and the propensity for the pundits to have already written the Boilers' obituary.
Now looking ahead, the team has to continue to look at each game one at a time. The season is done if they start thinking NCAA. They still have a Big Ten regular season championship to worry about first.
One of the players that really disappointed me yesterday was Grant. I think Painter should have him come off the bench as he was doing before. It allows him to see the game better when he does so. That would mean starting Lewis Jackson. Grant would spell Barlow on that first substitution.
I'm also looking at the fact Kramer, despite everything else he does, didn't grab a single rebound against the Spartans. You'd think he new assignments would have given him more opportunities to do so. That needs to be fixed.
Moore is in a two game slump. He also shot poorly at Minnesota. Part of that was defenses clamping down on him more with Hummel out, but he's always been able to create a shot, and crisp passing can open things up. I think that's fixable.
JJ had his hands full with MSUs bigs yesterday. Spacing was poor because they were able to sag down on him since Grant wasn't taking shots to pull the defense out. Hart also missed his shots which didn't help. Again, this is fixable. These guys need to take shots. Grant should have taken 8 or 9 shots, but he took 2 jumpers the whole game. Hummel is very mobile when he's playing and has a quick release. Grant doesn't come around screens for shots like that. That may be harder to fix so late in the career of a player.
Purdue should be IU, but Penn State is going to be tough. They are playing well and they beat Purdue last year with Hummel and JJ out and will be smelling blood. The Boilers can still win a piece of the title for sure. For now that should be their only goal and focus. They can worry about the next games when those come.
"Purdue should be IU"
Ummm... of course I meant that they should "beat" IU!
...and correction, I think it was Hummel and KRAMER out last year when they played Penn State on the road, not Johnson.
Having Barlow and Jackson on the floor at the same time is not a good idea. If we start Kramer, JJ, GDB, LewJack, and Moore we'll have a grand total of one person on the court who can hit from ouside the arc. The book is out on Barlow and Jackson, they are not a serious threats from outside, so defenses now just sag back anytime they have the ball. We need Grant, Smith, and/or Wofford to step in order to force opponents to defend us straight up.
Otherwise teams will be able to zone us to death by collapsing on JJ and doubling Moore.
ChicagoBoiler -- where were we still discussing Purdue as a #1-seed?
Also, do you know what's an awesome way to conduct a dialogue with someone? Calling them stupid.
Well-done. Thanks for visiting.
J - I think you jumped the gun a little bit by calling ChicagoBoiler's fandom out. I think it is certainly reasonable to have your confidence/optimism in this team greatly shaken by yesterday's performance. Until we are shown they can play better than they did yesterday I will remain guarded in my hopes for this team. The Boilers on 2/23 were a finely tuned machine that had arguably its most important cog removed. It remains to be seen how much of that performance can be regained.
Eh, toughen up. This is something we're all emotional about, and the last week has been rough on everybody. I too would take more offense to having my fandom questioned than being called "crazy stupid".
My comment was far more innocuous than you drama queens are making it. I say everything here with a sarcastic, lovable, smart-ass tone... and those of you who've been reading a while know that (I think).
When someone bashes down the program and says:
"the "Bucknuts" would blow us out by 20 if we played them now... frankly, I think the pollsters were very generous to Purdue. We are NOT a Top Ten team anymore."
....I'm allowed to make a sarcastic, wise-ass remark. To say the pollsters are "generous" to give Purdue the benefit of the doubt when Purdue is 24-4, has won 14 straight and 10 straight in the same season, and just lost a game in which their defense STILL played stout and their offense clearly is in the process of adjusting to life without Rob... well, I think that's jumping off the bandwagon too quickly. And I'm entitled to call you out on it...
All that said, let's calm down a bit (me included). We're all on the same team.
But let's remember that unless you do something really, REALLY obnoxious (like a few other sites have done), it's unlikely my comments are of a "serious" nature.
Fair?
Thanks for the shout out Ryan. Nobody on here is a bigger fan than me... that I can promise you all. J Money, we are all on the same team. Anyway, I've got four tickets for Wednesday's game and I can't make it. They are free to the first person who wants them. Email me at purdue@gmail.com and I can Fedex them out tomorrow.
Post a Comment