Wednesday Gumbo

Not all of the letters of intent have come in yet, so we're not going to look at the football class just yet. But, it looks like most of the incoming players have sent in their letters. A few haven't- I wouldn't worry about it if I was you- as in a ton of aspects of life, worrying will do you absolutely no good. If one of these kids gets woo'd away by a bright, shiny object, so be it. Let's hope the guys that end up in the program really want to be there and fulfill the needs at hand. We'll have more later.

Kohl is tough to Crack

Here's the deal- there's a reason Wisconsin wins so many games at home. First, they're great at home. They know the rims, their crowd is hostile and they have a good coach. But, having BT officials as part of the game surely doesn't hurt them.

Wisconsin plays a style of basketball that sets the game back to pre-1980, in my opinion. They slow teams down by grabbing, tugging, reaching over the back, shoving and reaching in. They've done it for longer than Bo was there. Back when Dick Bennett was there, they did the same thing...but those teams couldn't score. Bo's teams can.

Ryan simply dares the officials to blow their whistles on every possession...whether at home or away. The good thing for him is that guys like Burr, Hightower, O'Neill, Valentine and others love to be part of a good show. They love getting the crowd into a lather as they make up hand signals that have nothing to do with the game of basketball. They like hopping down the baseline, chirping their whistles as they try to figure out what they're supposed to call. I think more than half the time, they're just making sure they can come up with a believable story to help the home team (Wisconsin, Purdue or where ever). The clowns in stripes protect the homecourt as well as the team in light colored jerseys, in my opinion.

Jump Ball!

That's why, when travelling, a team has to be better, sharper, more resilient and more on-task than the home team...a lot more. We all know the deal. Road games are a chance for All-Conference players, or All-Americans even, to step up and become great...to surprise everyone in the arena...to silence the natives and fight through atrocious officiating and earn a victory. Purdue didn't do that yesterday. Two of Purdue's greatest players in the history of the program simply weren't able to get it done. The beating JJ had taken had seemingly worn him down so much that the shots he usually makes were way off. Similarly, Smooge was way off the mark down the stretch of the game. It could have been because of injury, but we'll never know. He's not the kind of guy to complain. After understanding the state of his shot, he started to see himself as a second option...but no one in Purdue's backcourt creates like 33.

By the way, the final foul count last night was 19 to 11. ELEVEN frickin' fouls for Wisconsin. That's not the reason Purdue lost, but there is simply no way in hell that the goons from Wisconsin were able to play that sort of squeaky-clean game.

Purdue couldn't overcome. Our Boilers couldn't put the Badgers away when they had them on the ropes with 11:00 left. That's why they lost this game...that's why they lost the WVU game. They've had the killer instinct versus the lower-half of the league, but simply haven't found it against the top-third on the road. How that translates at a neutral court in March, who knows. But, old habits die hard. And until Matty, JJ, Smooge and co figure out how to get over the hump away from the cozy confines of Mackey Arena, nothing's going to change.

J and I have had a hope since before this season- And it had nothing to do with Purdue winning the Big Ten. It was that they'd be playing their best basketball in March. It was a hope that they'd be a full-strength come tourney time and that one or both of the Big Two would be in rhythm, if not white-hot in the post-season. That way, as fans we wouldn't have anything to say other than, we got to see their best-possible game the last game of the season.

All of that is still very much a possibility. But, there's much to be learned prior to that. The BT conference race seems to be a chase for second place. Purdue and 'Sconsin are tiny in aOSU's rear view mirror...and I don't think there's enough help remaining in the conference for this race to be considered anything other than done. But the season's not lost. And I'm sure Matty's more worried about the problems at hand than the things he has no control over.

With four road games remaining, Purdue could win four, should win three, but (from what I've seen thus far) will probably win two. In that case they must go unbeaten in Mackey in order to have a chance to make noise in the tourney.

CCR

Purdue's computer ranking will probably be around 11 when the RPI comes out later today. I don't think a loss at Wisconsin is a bad thing in anybody's eyes. But I'm positive that the guys that play with Purdue on their chest feel like we do today- that game was winnable and should have been in the left column for our Boilers.

It Takes Moore to Win on the Road in the Big Ten (Boilers Fall 67-70)

As everyone in the college basketball world knows, Purdue is a team built around the premise that defense is the utmost priority and offense comes as a result of defensive stops. So, when our Boilers allowed 41 in the first half, we should have known that it'd be tough sledding from there...and it was.

Coming into the game, I thought Purdue would struggle handling Iverson, Sampson and Mbakwe, but I thought Purdue's four-headed defensive monster of LewJack, Barlow, Smith and Moore would be able to shut down the Golden Gophers guards. That wasn't the case as Hofharber dominated from the perimeter and Nolen chipped in 13/8.

Just as in the Richmond game in which Purdue gave up 41 in a half, and allowed an opposing guard to dictate the pace of the game, Purdue got away from what makes them great. And, in both cases the loss felt nearly-inevitable in the closing minutes.

We said it months ago, as the media beat the drum that Purdue needed a third scorer- Purdue has had the third scorer all-along. It's a committee of players- one night it'll be Smith, one night Jackson steps up, perhaps it's Barlow another it might be TJohn. Purdue can count on the Big 2...but the third is important for a successful season.

But wait, we've now seen three straight games in which Smooge has significantly fallen off in points production. In the PSU, Iowa and Minny games, he's averaged 6.7 points/game (his season average was nearly 20 before this stretch). Granted, he's still rebounding well and distributing, but as we all knew coming into the season, he's very important for Purdue on the offensive end. Purdue faired quite well in Empty Valley and at home v. Iowa, but it took Ryne Smith playing at an out-of-this-world level. Matty and co. simply can't expect that...but they should be able to expect Moore to consistently score. The biggest concern for me is that when he's not scoring, Moore doesn't seem to try to create contact and get to the line. Tonight, he had 0 free throw attempts.

We've seen this before, by the way. Last season, he had a stretch in which he just went cold...that happens for shooters, let's just hope this stretch is over. On the positive side of his game, he led the team with 7 assists.

And it wasn't all negative for our Boilers. Purdue won the rebounding battle, yet again, LewJack played at a fast pace and created problems for Minnesota. He finished with 15 points on 4 of 8 shooting, had 7 rebounds and dealt out 5 assists (while going 6 for 6 from the free throw line). TJohn looked good in stretches, played great defense and finished with 8 points. Smith came back down to earth, but wasn't getting any space on the perimeter. As teams take away the three from Smith and Moore, it should open up the middle for the drive and give JJ opportunities.

And JJ, once again, took advantage. He finished with 29 points, 11 rebounds, 2 blocks and was 5 for 5 from the stripe. What J and I question most from Johnson coming into this season, his will, has been not been in doubt. He's played tough, especially when facing 7 footers. His ability to make perimeter jumpers and post up creates problems that most big men simply cannot match.

Games like this are good for a team- to go into a hostile environment, not have things go your way, and play a game that can be won in the final minutes. The problem is, Purdue seemed completely unable to finish. On the last possession, before calling a timeout, Purdue's guards looked like the Globetrotters as they ran a weave and dribbled around at the top of the key. Without a confident Moore, there seemed to be no one who wanted to, or more importantly, was able to take the ball and win the game.

If I wanted to, I could focus on some of the most-inconsistent, one-sided officiating I've seen this season, that we witnessed tonight in the Barn. But, as we all know, that's part of the equation in the BT. These showy buffoons in black and white clown costumes love lathering up a home crowd. With dramatic hand signals that mean nothing, anticipatory whistles and overly-emphatic change of possession pointing, these guys are simply awful at what they were hired to do. But, if you rely on officials in any way to aid your success as a team, you're going to lose a lot of games.

Matty's boys simply must learn how to win the close game if they want to win the BT, get a high seed and end their season in Houston.

Next up, Purdue plays an odd out-of-conference road game against the unlikable Bob Huggins-coached WVU Mountaineers at 1:30 on Sunday on CBS.

Boilers Escape Blacksburg With a Win 58-55

As the closing minutes wound down in regulation, Lil' Boilerdowd assured me, "They're gonna win...they won't lose two in a row." The wisdom of a four year old proved correct as he and JJ seemingly willed them to victory in a hostile environment in the BT/ACC challenge. This was only Painter's second victory in overtime while at Purdue.

Once the clock hit 0:00 for the third time of the night, the Big Ten had a commanding 6-3 lead with only the Duke/MSU game left on the docket. Northwestern, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, aOSU and Purdue are all victors, at this point. For those keeping score at home (disregard this, EsPN), the BT has won two-straight of these made for TV extravaganzas.

But Purdue's portion of the pie was made difficult by lousy shooting. JJ made more field goals than the rest of the entire team...and shot at a higher percentage as well. He went 11/24...everybody else, 10/34.

T. Johnson and Smooge both fed the beast and finished with four assists. Moore finished with 14 points as well, but was struggling all night to find rhythm. VaTech's guard-heavy line-up and zone defense proved difficult for Purdue to counter...and the fact that Purdue players who weren't wearing #25 simply couldn't shoot only compounded Matty's squad's usual problems v. zone defense.

This game was similar to the Richmond game in the fact that Purdue struggled scoring the basketball. But, it was much different in the way Purdue played defensively. But, our Boilers were once again out-rebounded handily...tonight by 13.

But this game might be easier to figure out than Richmond. While JJ was dominant, finishing with 29 points in 44 minutes, Purdue's other bigs only totaled 6 minutes- Bade and Marcius played 3 each, Carroll didn't play. The good news of course, is that JJ scored at will, especially in the first half when he decided to post up. The bad news is he went away from that for minutes at a time and forced 18-plus footers regularly...he went 1/4 from behind the arc.

Byrd who finished with 8 rebounds, led our Boilers on the glass. He played tough defense and played through a stinger of some sort after taking a moving screen to the shoulder late in the second half. Knight (who was doing color for the game) spoke of how the shoulder injury took Byrd completely out of the offensive flow...but he didn't think that hurt Purdue as DJ was 0-5 from the field.

Barlow played great on defense and helped to hold Delaney, VT's lead scorer 12 points below his average. Jackson had an efficient day offensively going 2/2 and finishing with 5 points. But, unlike in the previous game, he looked sound defensively and made very good decisions with the ball.

This game felt a bit like the Alabama game last season...but, unlike the 'Bama team, VaTech had a crew of clowns on their bench that acted like they were playing their way into the Final Four tonight...on multiple occasions, the ref had to get them in their seats and off of the court. Atop of the exuberant bench, the crowd was lathered up. In fact, it felt like a fight might break out in the second half and VaTech really wanted it and things got a bit chippy a couple of times. The Hokies needed to avoid their third loss of the season, but couldn't because JJ was so dominant.

While I was glad Johnson was back to playing with a purpose, I'm still bothered by Moore's lack of production...but even moreso, at this point, the overall lack of shot-making ability by the rest of Matty's squad is just painful. Purdue's offense versus zone defenses has been shaky even going back to Keady's era...but these Boilers seem to settle for the three pointer waaaaay too often. And that's especially bad since they don't shoot it well.

This win was important for a number of reasons, but this team is clearly a work in progress and needed it. The depth we saw in the early seasons has all but evaporated- Painter doesn't seem to have enough faith in the big men to play them except in tiny spurts. And the backcourt, outside of Moore, can't score when they face solid defense.

Terone Johnson, John Hart and DJ Byrd have to score for Purdue to have a chance to stay near the top of the league. And more than just one guy has to rebound with a purpose. Let's Hope Purdue doesn't keep listening to the media's perpetual reminders that Hummel is the only person on the roster capable of doing these things...but it kinda seems like that's exactly what they believe. By the way, unlike scoring, rebounding is a choice...the scoring will come, in my opinion, if Purdue starts banging a bit more.

Next up, Alabama comes to Mackey on Saturday afternoon.

Perfect Ending of a Perfect Day: Boilers lose 65-54 in Smalltime Invitational

Spiders...Everywhere!!!

Perhaps my rage from the loss this afternoon played into this or maybe I was having flashbacks to the Minny game last spring in the BT tourney...Whatever the case is, I haven't been this angry while watching Purdue sports in a few years.

LewJack, Smooge and Barlow combined defensively to make Richmond's Anderson look like Allen Iverson...back in 2000. At the same time, JJ, Bade, Byrd and Carroll made Justin Harper look like Dwight Howard.

I loved that Hart and Barlow tried to make something happen...especially Hart. But everybody else...EVERYBODY else earned this loss.

Purdue's defense was outshined by Richmond's and the offense...what offense? Purdue shot 19% in the first half...then raised their game waaaaaaay up to end the game at 30%. Plus, as a team, our Boilers shot 25%. Nice work, gentlemen.

JJ continued his poor shot selection as he settled for three pointers and 18 footers time and time again. He finished with 13 points, 11 rebounds and 2 blocks- sounds good, huh? Well, he shot around 35% and was simply man-handled by Richmond's big & brawny frontcourt. We all know Johnson has a ton of talent...his lack 0f consistency has showed itself twice already in this young season. Purdue needs him to play like he's capable of playing, night-in, night-out...and honestly, so does JJ to help his financial future.

As JJ didn't play at full potential, Moore seemed to have a big cold turkey leftover sandwich right before tip-off...then at the half, he enjoyed all carbs- mashed potatoes, stuffing, yams and a big ol' slice of pumpkin pie. Yummy! The sad side effect was that he looked as sluggish as he has in the last two years on both ends of the court. Once the evening was over, he had 16 points, 9 rebounds- nice, right?? But he shot under 25% and simply didn't look like an all conference player...let alone All-American.

While the Big Two were lilting under the immense pressure of the Sears Centre crowd of 70 or 80 fans, Bade, Byrd, T. Johnson, Carroll and Marcius faded into the backdrop of empty seats and a black curtain dividing the arena...and disappeared all together.

Here's the really sh*tty biproduct of today's game- it makes the jerks in the national media look like geniuses. Purdue will surely drop 10-or-so spots in the polls. And honestly, until Purdue proves otherwise, the group of non-believers will only grow.

Purdue was beaten on the glass by 10...but it felt like 20. Plus, there was simply no offensive flow for the entire game.

The great news is Purdue plays a team that'll probably be ranked when they tip-off in four days...the bad news is Purdue plays a ranked team in four days. Did I mention that was on the road...on a bigger stage?

J and I have said it before- we want Purdue to be playing their best basketball in March...Thank God there's not much of a chance that they're using all of that mojo up in November!!

Other stuff that I'm angry about

-Notre Dame is winning against USC right now (it's the third quarter as I type). I hate days when ND wins, IU wins and Purdue loses (twice).

-Hope won't be fired in the coming days...weeks...months. So anyone stressing about that should just focus their angst on things that are more tangible and current...like the fact that Matty's boys having no offensive flow...and the defense isn't even that great at times this season. But, Hope has no excuses next season, regardless of who gets injured from now and next November.

I root for Hope to succeed because I like the guy. Plus, regardless of what you thought about the hire, he's Purdue's coach. I love his enthusiasm and positivity. But, the positivity crossed over from inspiration to delusional some time in October...and without proof of all things positive in the left column, his talk has become nothing more than fuel to the fire of those who are frustrated each Saturday in Ross Ade.

If Purdue doesn't win 7 or 8 games next season, the ground swell from Purdue fans combined with Hope's low buyout should force Burke's hand to make a change. In the meantime, here's to Hope assessing the staff and make changes where they're needed.

-This has been a very tough week as a Purdue fan...especially if you're in Indiana. Crean is getting commitments left and right, Painter's recruiting momentum seems to be gone. Our Boilers lose at Ross-Ade v. IU for the first time since I was on campus and now Purdue drops a game to a team that lost to Iona 9 days ago. We're all smarting right now.

I don't usually comment about verbals from 15 & 16 year old kids...I just don't think it's wise to get wrapped up in that stuff. That said, Painter needs a shot in the arm in the form of a verbal from Smotherman, Scott or somebody, just to help the psyche of the Purdue fanbase.

Before you go and jump off of that bridge you've had your eye on, keep in mind a couple things- first, John Hart was an unheralded recruit who some saw as a waste of schollie not long ago...He's now pretty good and will get better in the next 2.8 seasons. Plus, let's not forget that the class of '12 has three top-150 players in it. Sure, things could be better...we all know that. But, they could absolutely be worse.

It's easy to be a fan when everyone is in love with your favorite team and winning's coming easy...it's times like this that make winning big games, and dare I say it, championships really sweet. Keep your heads up!

Blah.

I was at Mackey for this afternoon's contest versus the 1-win ISU Sycamores. Unimpressive.

If you just saw the score and ESPN's ticker, a 14-point victory with Hummel pouring in 25 sounds pretty respectable...Don't ruin your image by watching highlights. While I'm always happy to see a win versus a loss (of course), this game was lousy. The emotion seemed non-existent and the killer instinct was absent as well.

Between Kramer and Grant being unwilling to shoot and not playing the defense that made them nightmarish for opponents in '07/'08 to Smooge not looking to create shots, but instead wait for a double-team to make decisions; this game was pretty sad. Lew Jack's energy was good as he pushed the ball well...but he made some Frosh mistakes- understandable. But, he also had 4 rebounds...just one shy of the tallest player on Purdue's roster, JJ, who seems to have lost the grasp on what the strengths of his game really are.

If you're like me, you waited to see what happened v. OK and Duke before making a call on these Boilers. Well, since losing the former in heart-breaking fashion, and not showing up for the latter, this squad looks to be a shell of itself. The ball movement isn't fluid and as a result, they aren't getting open looks from outside the arch. Calasan (who might be injured) & JJ don't flash to the top of lane and call for ball, instead, they just kind of move aimlessly. Moore, who looked like a world-beater versus OK (as well as some weaker foes too), has looked fair-to-poor in four straight games. All this is bothersome, but Keaton Grant is the worst story of all, up to this point in the young season. I've been giving Grant a stack of "get out of jail free" cards so far in '08...but after watching tonight's game, I think there's a reason to believe he's not going to be the player of last year, but instead the guy from two seasons ago. Perhaps the knee has ruined his confidence, whatever the case, he is making a bunch of mistakes that simply can't be chalked up solely to conditioning.

So do we worry? Not yet, in my opinion.

But, without a win versus Davidson next Saturday, I'd make the argument that this team isn't a ton better than last season's heading into the Big Ten season. Not bad, right? Near the top of the league...beating good teams on the road...getting better each week. The difference is, this year, everyone wants to beat Purdue...last year, no one saw them as formidable. The target on their back seems to be large and weighing down this team dominated by underclassmen. Another big difference is everyone, including Purdue's players and coaches, are expecting much more than last season. Unless the pulse of this team is found in a hurry, there will be no BT title...nothing more than a mid-seed in the tourney, a second, or first round loss...and finally, all of us simply looking to get this season behind us and to move on to next season.

On the brighter side of things, the Ostrich looked like the Ostrich for about the final 15 minutes by scoring 22 (of his final 25) and hoisting his team mates on his back as they (with the exception of the sole starting Freshman) floundered around pitifully, at home no less. My only question was- Robbie, why'd you wait so long? No matter...perhaps Hummel reminding himself why he's the BT pre-season POY is exactly what this team needs to get back on track...they sure need something. This is another chance for Painter to show us how good of a coach he really is and how good his team can be- I don't know if we've seen that this season.

The sky is not falling...but it's not nearly as high as it seemed a few weeks ago.