Painter Owns Wisky at the Kohl yet again: 69-56

About midway through the first half, Painter burned two timeouts in an effort to simply stop the bleeding.  Purdue had let Wisconsin's lead grow from three points to eight to double digits...but the timeouts didn't work.  It felt familiar...Purdue's defense wasn't enough; Wisconsin was getting open looks...and Purdue couldn't keep up. Bo's Badger's extended the lead out to 12 and held it right around there for a few minutes until Byrd and TJohn got into their groove and made it interesting.

Our pal James, AKA Panda was made the trip yesterday to Madison as he's in his last semester in God's country...so he wanted to soak up one extra game in person.  He's a good fan.  I can't say I was of the same mind.  My family wanted to go get lunch after church, so I obliged...and figured I'd miss some of the game, but wasn't too bothered by that.  I sat my DVR remotely and listened to Cliz between stops.  For the second time this season, I made a bad decision by not deciding to watch the entire game.

By the time I got to a TV, it was around five minutes into the second half. Purdue had fought back into the game...and nearly had the lead...with Byrd and TJohn's help, Purdue was stunning the 17th ranked Badgers and the Kohl Center crowd.  Byrd hit a few threes...then TJohn got hot and suddenly Purdue was in control.  RonJohn got involved as he facilitated and fed Byrd and his brother...and Marcius became an absolute mother on the glass.  With 10:00 left, Purdue was in the driver's seat with a seven point lead...and they looked like they belonged in the lead.

Winning is fun.

One thing we know is when Byrd is on, Purdue generally plays well...and when TJohn is shooting well, Purdue at least has some offensive flow.  Both happened today, and Purdue looked like a different team than the one that got slugged around by Iowa earlier this week.

With the sub .500 Boilers actually playing basketball, Wisconsin's team got nervous and felt the pressure...so they took quick threes and made few of them.  When Purdue needed rebounds or points, Juniors TJohn and Marcius and Senior Byrd did what upper classmen are supposed to do: delivered.  RayDay also had a few clutch boards.

It wasn't all roses down the stretch though- RonJohn missed four straight free throws before he figured out that it'd be best not to have the ball in his hands in the closing minutes.  And his brother dribbled into the corner against a full court trap and booted it out of bounce.  But it didn't matter.  Purdue won, and did so going away.

Wisconsin needed a victory to stay in the B1G hunt...and Purdue effectively knocked them out of contention (you're welcome, Teflon Tommy as well as the Forehead).  Sadly, Purdue has been relegated to the role of Spoiler...and while I hate the moniker, it surely is applicable, Matty's boys were Spoilermakers this afternoon.

Bo Ryan has lost about 11 games in the last 100 at the Kohl Center...and three of those losses have come by the cold, calculated hand of Matty Painter.  Painter is Wisconsin's kryptonite, at least in Madison.

Fightin' Sandi was a difference maker at Kohl.

Painter continued with the premise of playing the guys who looked like they worked...so Marcius played more minutes, especially down the stretch, than Hammons. He finished with 10 points, 5 rebounds and 3 steals.

Byrd led all scorers with 22 points (tying his season high; Clemson) and added 8 rebounds...TJohn had 16 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists. Ronnie had 8 points, 5 rebounds, 8 assists...and only two TOs.  RayDay only had 3 points...but grabbed 7 key rebounds.

Purdue's woes from the free throw line continued- they shot under 65% from the line; better than many games this season...but typically not well-enough to help a team pull an upset on the road in the B1G.

BUT, and this is a big one, Purdue shot the lights out from behind the arc; they went 6-12...or should I say, Byrd went 6-for-9...and the rest of the team went 0-for-3. Regardless of how you slice it, Purdue's shooting from the field won the game...they also shot 45% from the rest of the court.  They also controlled the glass versus the big, mostly-white and red-headed beasts from the tundra of the Northern US.

Purdue shot well, played solid and beat Wisconsin at their game...and in doing so, they kept the faint glimmer of the NIT flickering.  Next up, the Forces of Good play on Wednesday at Mackey versus UM...who, after licking their wounds from the upset of the college basketball season at the hands of lowly Penn State, got a much-needed win v. MSU in Ann Arbor last night. As Keady always said, it's not who you play, but when you play them.

Purdue needs to get back to .500 to play in the NIT.  I'm the first one to say the NIT is really an inconsequential event...but, with Purdue having a bit of a heartbeat and a ton of youth on the roster, the more games they play, the better they'll be next year...and playing in a tournament atmosphere, even the NIT, is never a bad thing for a young team.  Part of me thinks we won't know the importance of this game for a year or so...the other part of me is kinda ready for this season to be over.  That said, I'd love to see Byrd play six or seven more games like this one...and more than that, love seeing my Boilers play team basketball and have a good time while doing it.  Upsetting teams along the way is just a byproduct of doing things the right way.

Choo choo, muthas.

Boilers Get On Wisconsin; Refuse To Get Off

Jon Leuer anxiously hopes the Boilers don't grab the wrong one.

Purdue did what they're "supposed" to do in order to make analysts happy and beat a quality team, the tenth-ranked Badgers, 70-62 in Mackey tonight. Of course, some will minimize the impact of the win because:

A) It happened on Purdue's home court.
B) Wisconsin suffered a letdown after beating OSU.
C) Analysts are wankers.

Make no mistake, tonight's win was a big one, and is yet another sign that this team is coming together. They still have their moments where they slip or make some poor decisions on shot selection, but by and large they're good enough to overcome those lapses. Wisconsin is a solid opponent and one who just beat the #1 (and undefeated) team in the nation a few days ago.

However, Purdue quite simply owns Wisconsin in Mackey, as the Badghuhs are now 2-37 all time in our favorite gym. JJ and E'Twaun wind up 6-2 against Wisconsin, including 4-0 at Mackey.

I'd have to find a literate Wisconsin fan to find out if this is true or not, but I get the sense that Bo Ryan does not have confidence coming into West Lafayette. He seemed far less animated than usual, his pregame interview seemed very much of the opinion that they'd need a lot of breaks to beat Purdue, etc. Is it possible Matty, the evil genius, is in the Grinch's head?

I have a special dark place in my heart for Wisconsin fans, mainly because they're among the most obnoxious I've ever come across in any sport at any level. They're kind of a dark horse in that category, much like their football and basketball teams often are. You don't think of them immediately -- unless you've dealt with them a bunch. And I know I'm not alone in this. Many people I've talked to agree that Wisky fans are among the toughest to deal with. So I guess what I'm saying is that I always enjoy it a bit more when Purdue puts a boot on Wisconsin's throat.

Clean play!

As for tonight's game, Wisconsin employed their usual goonish tactics, clutching and grabbing like Boilerdowd at a spring formal in 1995. The officials were once again awful, sometimes calling fouls tightly while other times allowing guys to scrambling over one another after loose balls like an on-sides kick in the fall (in that other sport).

This was also the first time this season that anyone broke 70 points on Wisconsin. Pretty impressive, both that they're managed that and that Purdue accomplished it while being tackled. It also illustrates why Bo Ryan's teams win. When you lock teams down in the 50s and 60s, you always have a chance. And as B-Dowd said on the Handsome Hour last week, the old Wisconsin formula of good point guard play plus a bunch of goons leads to wins in the Big Ten, year after year.

Bret Bielema likes the form on that tackle!

As we continue to wind down the careers of JJ and Smooge (hard as that is to believe), the boys continue to play well and lead. JaJuan continues to put up numbers and efforts worthy of Big Ten player of the year status, and honestly of national player of the year consideration. Tonight was yet another outstanding effort, with 20 points, 10 rebounds, 4 blocks and two steals. Oh, hey, did you know he leads the conference in blocked shots? No? Oh, maybe because nobody says it. The guy is a complete player and knuckle-dragging mouth-breathers like Seth Davis need to watch more than three-year-old game tape, or whatever he bases his worthless opinions on. Yes, I'm pissed. JaJuan is putting up an incredible season and he's leading this team in ways a guy who goes on to the next level should.

Whenever Purdue needed a rebound, he got it. Whenever a bucket was needed, as in so many other games this year, there was JJ, either knocking it down or cleaning up the glass and laying in a needed basket.

Smooge got in on the act, too, scoring 19, with none more critical than his late three to put the Boilers back up 7 after Wisconsin had closed a 13 point gap to 4. I had hoped the seniors would come through in those final minutes and they did.

Another guy who came through yet again was the man Gus Johnson was calling "Little Louie," which, sorry Gus, we do not approve of. He's LewJack. Get used to it. He'll be perhaps the best PG in the Big Ten next year. Lew scored 18 tonight, including layups over guys a foot taller, a big three, and five assists...with zero turnovers. One of the dimes was a no-look to E'Twaun who hammered down a dunk over one of the Wisconsin farm boys in his path. Hammer down, indeed.

So tell me, doubters... where will the points come from? How will they get by with only two senior leaders who will be all-Big Ten? Who will step up to put in points when needed? You know, other than LewJack, Ryne, DJ, Terone, Hart....besides all them. WHO?? Oh, right.

One thing I did not like tonight was, again, Purdue's inability to fire the kill shot. I thought when they had a ten point lead at 48-38 and there was a timeout....and then immediately after the TO, the Boilers hit a three to go up 13, that was it. It was a little over ten minutes to go in the game and it looked over at 51-38. However, Wisconsin has shown many times that they're not concerned with being able to come back, and they did their thing, whittling it down to four points. Fortunately, though, the honkeys weren't able to hit the big shots in the end, with that doof Bruesewitz firing away. Sure, he hit a big one against OSU, but he's 15 of 43 on the year from behind the arc. Keep firing away, pal. I especially like the ones that make the rim reverberate so loudly we can hear it over the crowd.

In the end, the Boilers withstood the comeback and, really, there is no shame in having the #10 team in the nation give you a game. The truth is, the Boilers took the lead early in the first half and never gave it back. And hey, let's be honest, there are some teams in the Big Ten whose students would riot on campus if they beat the #10 team in the country. For the Boilers, it was simply a win they had to have as they continued their slow march towards...well..March.

So often, teams get caught looking ahead. It would have been very easy to be thinking about the rematch with Ohio State on Sunday. But this team is focused and that remains one of Coach Matty's strengths -- keeping their minds on the task at hand. I like that trait in a team.

The Boilers are now two games behind Ohio State with five games to go. The Bucks come to Mackey on Sunday, for Smooge and JJ's second-to-last home game.

It's time to play hard.

Juan To E'Twaun Moore Badger?

That was one they needed. Plain and simple.

A lot of things happened tonight that you should be somewhat optimistic about as a Purdue fan. Sure, the Boilers went long stretches without scoring, seemed befuddled by the officiating at times, and allowed Wisky to almost pull a late come-from-behind. But despite those things, the Boilers rose to the occasion and pulled this one out. Let's assess some of those issues...

Marginal offensive output -- You might be concerned about the offensive output. But let's be honest; they were playing a Bo Ryan team. Let's give credit where it's due and acknowledge that Bo Ryan knows how to coach and knows how to slow down the Boilers. This happens almost every time they play. The great part, though, is that Purdue is able to slow them down, too.

Officiating confusion -- No, you weren't seeing things. And neither were Musburger and Lavin. This game was inexplicably called very differently in the second half. I cannot figure out what happened, except that maybe someone got into the zebras' ears and convinced them to start calling every bump and hand check. It was ridiculous -- there's not much else to say about it. Probably as pissed as Matty's been at the refs this season.

Closing the game -- Purdue was not their usual second half selves tonight. They started the second half by letting Wisky go on a run.... well, okay, it was more like a jog.... but the Boilers didn't score a point in the second half until almost six minutes in. That's ludicrous. But the steady defense and solid rebounding by our boys (Ostrich cashing in with 13, as the Boilers outrebounded one of the best Big Ten rebounding teams, 34-20) kept it close, as per usual, and in the end the scoring came back. Yes, they had trouble at the end -- again -- but Smooge sliced through the lane in the final minute and put them ahead, where they stayed after withstanding a couple of late attempts from the Badgers.

On to some other thoughts....

The return of LewJack -- Lewis Jackson returned tonight to a loud ovation and he got things moving immediately. He didn't play very many minutes and only hit one shot, but he showed flashes of the guy we all remember. You know, a true point guard... but a flawed player, as well. Lewis still only has one season of college hoops under his belt and he had a couple of his trademark moving-too-fast turnovers....but all-in-all, we're happy to see him back. I spent his whole time in the game worried somebody was going to "accidentally" step on his foot. Not that Wisconsin players would do anything like that.

Nankivil out of his gourd -- Let's also keep in mind that Wisconsin was in this game because of an unreal performance out of the other Keaton in the Big Ten. Nankivil, who averages under 8 points a game, went berserk, hitting 7 of 8 threes and scoring 25.

Smooge = Mr. Consistency -- Once again, the most consistent guy on the team this year, E'Twaun shot 9 of 15 for 20 points, including the game-winner.

Boilers from three -- Only five attempts. Yes, you read that right. Hummel was 0-1, Smooge was 1-2, KG was 0-1 and Johnny Hart was 1-1. So 2-for-5 overall. 40% isn't bad, of course, but....only five attempts? Was this a concerted effort to try something different? Hard to say. We'll see if it continues.

JJ misses a start -- Yes, the word on the street is that JJ was late to the game tonight and docked one start. In his place was Bade. Yeah, let's be on time from now on, okay JaJuan?

CK very quiet -- How much is the ankle still bothering him? Hard to say. He looked like he was moving alright, but had no points, 3 rebs, 1 assist and 1 steal. Have to assume he's moving gingerly and isn't himself. No noticeable floor-burn hustle plays come to mind, either, so that's a good indicator that all is not well in Kramerica.

Purdue Owns Wisconsin -- Let's just say it, folks. The Boilermakers are now 5-1 against Wisconsin in the Smooge-Ostrich-JJ era.

The Boilers remain three games back of Michigan State, with two still to play against the Spartans. Someone needs to knock them off so that Purdue at least has things in their own hands.

Can our guys run the table? That might be what it takes... and a big hurdle was overcome tonight.

Boilers Bounce Badgers (and other notes)

Thanks to Travis from Off the Tracks for selling Boilerdowd & the Mrs. these fine seats

Staring 0-3 dead in the face, Matty's squad needed a solid effort and a return to their old form to get off of the snide...And the principles that have made this team great reared their collective heads on Sunday afternoon as Bucky fell from atop the Big Ten at the hands of our Boilers.

The obvious story was JJ's 20/10 game. He looked stellar as his defense was solid...but more than that, he was actually rebounding and creating opportunities for himself and his team mates. JaJuan is deceptively quick, because his long arms and legs make it look like he's not moving...but he can create space with his first step and his rangy length played a big role in the fact that Wisconsin's scorers couldn't get a clean look inside 15 feet. But, JJ's rebounding bug was contageous as Purdue's entire team crashed the glass...and get this- actually won the rebounding battle. I've said this all along- blocking out and rebounding is a decision. Purdue decided, versus a bigger opponent to exert their will on the glass; and they won because of it.

Robbie Hummel & Chris Kramer's returns were both a huge boost. While Kramer doesn't quite have the quickness that we're accustomed too, he made life difficult for UW's Hughes & Bohannon and didn't allow them to get into rhythm. At the same time, he looked for his shot (kinda) and hit two key buckets in the second half off of the dribble. Hummel also is not quite himself yet, but his first shot, from about 24 feet set the tone that he was not just coming into the game as a token...he was going to take advantage of his lower minutes. His presence drew out the defense and created space in the middle...he shot 50% from 21 ft. and further and ended the game with 16 points/ 5 rebounds.

While there wasn't a ton of noise from Keaton Grant and Lewis Jackson I liked what I saw from both of them. Grant didn't seem to force things, same with Jackson...and both played solid defense which is the calling card of this team. Smooge didn't shoot well, going 1-12, but didn't turn the ball over and played quietly sound on the defensive end. Green had two big three pointers...and two airballs from the same range. But he rebounded well, pulling down seven and added two assists and a steal. I think it's best for everybody when he's looking to rebound first, not shoot first, but you can't fault a guy for a 50% shooting night. Calasan started alongside JJ to creat a twin-tower tandem, which was a good idea v. Wisconsin's lenght. While it didn't yield a ton of points for Nemmy, he had three assists...but, he went oh-fer from behind the arc (not too surprising). I don't know what Painter says to Calasan, but I think he tells him- you get two chances to miss from behind the arc per game...when those are gone, no mas.

We didn't see Smith or Riddell...I'm OK with that, but I'd like to see a bit more of Smith since his shooting might be important late in the BT season.

One thing that bothers me about Mackey is the old people. No, I'm not bothered that they come to the game, I'm bothered that they simply don't cheer. The Paint Crew was doing its damned-est to make some noise...but wasn't getting much help from the rest of the joint (sans boilerdowd, of course). Plus, when Hummel and Kramer came in, the ovations were luke-warm, which surprised me. One of the loudest points of the game was when JJ came out of the game in the first half...problem was, it was during a dead ball. Hey Paint Crew, don't think you're getting away unscathed- There were waaaaaaay too many empties in Paint Crew, especially for an afternoon game just 18 hours before classes resume. The students should have been salivating to get out of their parents' homes and get back to campus...some were, hats off to you...the rest of you get an "F" for this game.

It seems, if Hummel can come along slowly and get back to health and Kramer can do the same, our Boilers might get back into rhythm in the next week-or-so as they play a couple of fellow-conference-bottom-feeders before heading to the barn to play a stout Minny team. They need the next two wins to keep building toward 20-plus wins and a solid seeding. I'm not talking about the Big Ten race at this point...

Notes
-I watched Matt Howard in person v. Detroit on Saturday at Hinkle...he's good...so is Heyward...they would have been handsome in gold and black.

-Speaking of big men, I saw Purdue signee Patrick Bade out to dinner after the game in West Lafayette. I'm stoked to know he and Robinson will be filling the shoes of Chris Reid and Nemmy next season.

-I love upsets...It was great for me to see both the Panthers and Titans lose this weekend. While both the Giants (J's team) and the Colts (my team) are out of the playoffs, there's still plenty to be interested in as the conference finals quickly approach.

-Three of my least-favorite officials were at the game Sunday (Hillary, Valentine & Burr)...but they weren't a factor as Purdue took care of business (thank goodness).

Big Win...

More later.

Carl's better.