Coach Matty Talks Big Three, Incoming Guys, Injuries and More

GBI has a story up right now about Matty's conference this morning with the media. It's a good read, but for those who are lazy, here are the highlights:

The coach has already talked to the Big Three about the potential of going to the NBA and will continue to talk to them and their families, as needed. Seems as though not much has changed: Hummel's knee guarantees he's back, Smooge has made no comments to indicate he thinks he's ready and JJ has publicly said he's planning to come back, though last week he hedged just a bit after the Duke loss. We'd be surprised if any of them left, honestly.

Donnie Hale's situation hasn't changed: if a scholarship opens up, he's getting it, but as of now none is necessarily expected to open up. While there's nothing to see here -- for now -- it's not the first time we've heard the remark that he gets a schollie if one opens. Is someone transferring? We haven't heard any specific rumors and any names we could come up with would be pure speculation.

Hummel's knee is progressing fine and he remains on a 4-6 month timetable, which would mean back to full use by late summer most likely, especially given Rob's work ethic. That's good to hear.

LewJack will have surgery next week to get the broken screw pieces out of his foot, and he "had damaged the screws to the point they caused him great discomfort." Yeesh. I'll bet. Painter also said that once Jackson is healthy, the coach wants to see him become a perimeter scoring threat (don't we all, coach):

"He's got to be able to make a shot," Painter said. "It's just that simple. Once he's able to make an open shot and get something to his intermediate game, whether it's a floater or a runner ... I think he has a chance to be one of the best point guards in our league."

Matty is excited about the size for next year, especially since it might allow Rob Hummel to play the 3 instead of the 4 and turn Purdue into a terrific rebounding team. I loved this quote:

"I don't care who it is on our team, you have to rebound the basketball. If you can't see that as a void on our basketball team, you've been blind-folded this year."

Coach Matty also isn't letting anyone get too comfortable, saying about DJ Byrd that while he's versatile, "he has to have a hell of an off-season, just like a lot of other returners."

Good stuff.

KU Wins; Somewhere Roy Williams Cries Softly

I can't even imagine what it feels like to see your school win a national title... so congrats Kansas fans. This must be amazing, especially to win such a terrific championship game.

I've always liked Kansas personally, and I think I've picked them to win it all about a half-dozen times (at least) over the last ten years. Their a consistently solid program that just isn't as inherently hate-able as Duke, UNC, UCLA, etc. Sure, there are those who hate them, but I think it's generally harder to. Maybe that's just me.

I have never liked Memphis, however, especially since the day back in about -- what? -- '96 or so, when Lorenzen Wright ghetto-balled the Tigers way past the Boilers in the tourney.

Still, as much as I've never liked Memphis, as this game got down to the final minutes, I really did find myself feeling bad that somebody had to lose. The game -- and the Final Four, really -- had what we all want: Exciting games between the best teams in the country. Can't ask for much more... unless you root for Memphis, that is.

Memphis' free-throw shooting finally did do them in, though I think it was more that Kansas was just a very resilient team. Either way, good show. Put Dickie V, Digger and Old Man Knight back into their formaldehyde jars now.

Midnight Madness in just seven months.

Quit Before They Can Fire Your Ass, Steve

Nice proactive move by Steve Alford over at Iowa. Deadspin and others are reporting that he's going to bolt from Big Ten Iowa to coach... wait for it... at Mountain West New Mexico.

Fact is, Alford's never done anything at Iowa to suggest he's the quality of coach that everyone seems to want him to be. Yet he has that air of entitlement, like all the writers assembled in the press room are but a mere annoyance. Sort of like his mentor, the man who may have pooped in his locked or something... Bob Knight.

I loved the quote from the story that says that Alford was more interested in being at a school that was not "football-first." So many jokes to make there; Deadspin chose to point out that he could have just gone to Indiana if he wanted a school with a football-last situation. But more to the point, what has Iowa football done in recent years that has pushed the basketball program there so far down the ladder of importance? Neither program is winning anything and, in reality, they're both underachieving constantly.

If Alford has any success at New Mexico and Kelvin Sampson staggers at IU, there is absolutely no doubt that Alford will be IU's head coach one day. And this way, he won't be jumping from one Big Ten school to another.

Enjoy the stopover in mediocre-land, Lobos.

This Is Fun

Purdue hasn't even played yet (tonight, 7:20 PM Eastern) but we're enjoying ourselves around here.

Yesterday, class act Bob Knight's Red Raiders washed out of the Tourney by about 2:30 in the afternoon. Today, the golden boys of Notre Dame managed to once again not prove themselves worthy of anywhere near the level of press they get (and in two sports, no less!) in their loss to 11-seed Winthrop.

The Golden Domers were down twenty in the second half and then went on a run to take a 63-62 lead... and then got outscored 12-1 in crunch time. Good stuff.

ESPN.com's headline as I type this is "Winthrop stuns ND."

Really? "Stunned"? I guess I'm stunning too, then, since I picked this in my bracket.

How does anyone out there not expect Notre Dame athletics to crap the bed in the postseason?

Lunardiology

Joe Lundari, he of "Bracketology," seems confused himself.

Yesterday afternoon, while on Michael Kay's radio show in New York, Lunardi said that the Big Ten was "weak" and he wasn't impressed with any of the teams, except for the top two. Oh, you mean, arguably the two best teams in the frickin' nation, Joe? Joe? Hello?

Joe went on to say that he thought the Big Ten should/would only get "four, maybe five teams." While he was talking -- while he was talking -- I brought up his Bracketology page on ESPN.com, which claimed to be updated on 3/9 (which was that day) and said he had six teams -- not four or five -- considered "in" the Tourney.

Then today, Lunardi made an appearnace on the ESPN tourney show that's currently wrapping up. Bilas called him out on a lot of his crap, specifically pointing out that if any of these major conference bubble teams (such as Kansas State, Illinois, etc.) lost to the teams that squads like Old Dominion and Drexel (who Lunardi has "in") have lost to, we wouldn't even be considering those major conference schools for the tourney. A solid point by the Bilastrator, I thought.

Lunardi's defense? He's not picking the teams he likes; rather, he's picking what he thinks the committee is going to do.

Well, now, Joe, then why is your opinion often injected into your interviews, usually accompanied by a haughty sneer when commenting on the "weak" Big Ten that has produced two teams who have held #1 rankings this season?

Also, Joe Lunardi still thinks Purdue needs to show well today to be considered a lock. Joe Lunardi is a bitch.

Game on in 15 minutes.

YES

Boilers Trounce Hawkeyes

The Purdue Boilermakers stamped their ticket to the big dance with a dominating 74-55 victory over the Iowa Hawkeyes in the 4/5 seed quarterfinal matchup in the Big Ten Tournament in Chicago today.

Carl Landry led the Boilers, as he's been stoicly doing all season, with twenty points and 11 boards. Carl looked like he wasn't going to give the Hawkeyes a chance to hang around in this game and the Hawkeyes did indeed look overmatched and out of sorts.

Truth is, this Iowa squad has some considerable talent but never seemed to be able to string together consistent outings. Chalk it up to the overrated Steve Alford, who has yet to do anything significant at Iowa, or credit it to the up-and-coming Matt Painter-led Purdue squad. Sure, the Boilers have no inside presence to speak of, but if Landry plays this way in future games this month, the Boilers can hang with almost anybody.

Next up for Purdue is the top-ranked team in the country, Ohio State, in tomorrow's semifinal matchup.

As for the NCAA Tourney, ESPN now has Purdue in the tournament as an 11-seed and facing Virginia, of all teams, a team they beat earlier this season. Let me just say now that there is absolutely ZERO chance of Purdue playing a team they've already played this year in the first round of the NCAA tournament. It just doesn't happen.

But it's irrelevant. The Boilers are going and that's what matters.

And it feels gooooooood.

Hubert Davis Explains Boilers Chances

Now, on Monday night, Digger said the Boilers weren't in. Then Tuesday night, Digger said they would get in. Then tonight on Sportscenter when they were breaking it down, whoever the analyst on SC was said that Purdue had two bad losses, to Minnesota and to Indiana State.


That brings us to tonight, after Purdue beat down Minnesota to move to 19-10 on the season and 8-7 in the Big Ten. This evening on whatever that ESPN college hoops show is called, Hubert Davis was asked about Purdue's chances of making the Tournament. And he's squarely in the middle, saying the Boilers need to win their last game (against Northwestern) and then "make some noise" in the Big Ten tournament. Of course, it doesn't help Purdue's case that they're having games disappear from the record. The below graphic was shown during Hubert's analysis:



Only "one win on their opponents' home floor"? Wait, did the February 3 win at Penn State not count? I mean, I realize it was Penn State but it still counts as a road win, right? I mean, I realize the Boilers don't have many road wins this year but don't take away half the win total, Hubert. Do a smidge of research before going on the air. Thanks.

More Reasons to Dislike ESPN and Digger Phelps

Just in case you needed more reasons to dislike ESPN, take a look at their Bracketology nonesense.

Last time I looked at it, Purdue was in the tourney field at 17-9 as an 11 seed. I look at it yesterday and now Purdue is not only out of the field but they're not even listed in the "Last Four Out." No, they're featured in the "Next Four Out" column as well as the "Off The Board" column. Wait, what the eff?

Purdue is now 18-10 with two winnable home games remaining and then the Big Ten Tourney. So with the chance to easily have 20-22 wins this season in the Big Ten (plus an over-.500 record in conference play), that won't be enough to get in? I mean, we're so sure of that that Purdue is "off the board"?

To compare, Indiana University is listed as a 10-seed. They are one half-game better than Purdue, record-wise, this year (at 18-9) and one game better in the conference. Yet they're in? I don't follow.

An even better one is Texas Tech projected as a 9-seed, despite being 18-11 overall and 7-7 in the Big Twelve...and an ugly five game losing streak two weeks ago. But hey, it's Bobby Knight, right?

Oh, and why is Digger featured here? Because he's easy to hate. He went on last night about how the Big East could get eight teams in the Tourney but that the Big Ten shouldn't get more than five. He said that it's likely no Big Ten team will advance to the Sweet 16 since the conference isn't "tough" enough and the good teams in the Big Ten aren't really "challenged" the way teams in other conferences (he cited Duke and UNC) are challenged throughout the season. Never mind that the top two teams in America played on Sunday and were both from the Big Ten. I guess they don't count. He actually even pointed to that game and said it was 49-48 and kind of made a face about how that doesn't bode well for those teams when they face stiffer competition.

Why, Digger? Do you think they couldn't score more than that because they were shooting at the wrong baskets all game or something?

Rece Davis, to his credit, then said, "Maybe they play good defense."

You, Mr. Davis, get a pass.

Boilers Reach 18-10 and Confuse Announcers

Despite Northwestern's comeback, largely fueled by stinky, white-man armpits, Purdue held on for another road win on Saturday to move to 18-10 on the season and doubling their win total from last season.

Towards the end of the game, Tarrance Crump went to the line. My parents were both at my house because we were doing some renovations and my mother suddenly says, "Why is he shooting a third free throw?"

I hadn't seen the play so I distractedly responded, "Maybe he was shooting a three."

"No, he wasn't shooting," mom replied.

"Maybe there was a lane violation," I immediately deduced.

This seemingly natural train of thought by an average college basketball fan like me shouldn't seem like much. But, apparently, it qualifies me to be a broadcaster for the ESPN Plus regional team. Take a look at this analysis from the broadcasting team of this game -- high comedy. Apparently, play-by-play man Wayne Larrivee just started making up rules.

Purdue now closes with home games against Minnesota and Northwestern, giving them a very legitimate chance to close the regular season with twenty wins heading into the Big Ten Tournament.

A Little Purdue History

Normally, we don’t engage in the sort of rival-bashing that goes on at a lot of sports sites that are particular to a specific team. Oh, wait, no, we do like to bash other programs… specifically, one other program. We like to slap IU around, mainly because they deserve it but also because we’re all Purdue alums and, hey, it’s in our DNA. (IU Mouth Breathers: DNA has to do with Biology, the class you spent sleeping through in high school. I mean, those of you who went to high school.)

After Purdue’s pretty thorough victory over the Hoosiers on Thursday night, a post was put up here at Boiled Sports being rather excited about our win. We didn’t go overboard pummeling the IU program (because we realize it’s competitive) since we really wanted to pay tribute to the winners that night. There’s really not much worse than the victors of a rivalry spending their victory time bashing their vanquished opponent, you know?

One of our regular readers, Purdue Matt, the author of Boilermaker Banter, let us in on an ongoing exchange he was having with a co-worker of his. Rather than force you to wade through it all, let’s go through it bit-by-bit just for fun, shall we?

Matt simply commented on how sweet silence was and got the following reply (bold text is the actual email – interspersed regular text is my rebuttal):

I hadn't gotten any of your propaganda yet today so I just figured you were up at the parade in West Lafayette.

Propaganda? I don’t think scoreboards exhibit propaganda. Just the truth, my friend, just the truth. And sometimes, the truth hurts.

I assume there is a parade today since beating IU once in awhile seems to be Purdue men's basketball's equivalent of the Super Bowl/ NCAA Championship?

Nobody said that. You just made that up to make yourself feel better. Nobody in the world thinks beating the 24th ranked team in the country at home is a monumental accomplishment. Just a fun one for a program on the rise.

Beating Purdue doesn't have nearly the same meaning to me that beating IU has to you and most Purdue fans.

Keep telling yourself that. Maybe it’ll make it hurt a little less. And, I have to ask, how much gloating do we all think this clown did when IU pounded the Boilers in Assembly Hall? Yeah, exactly.

I was hoping to win one of the next two games on the road and if we beat Michigan Saturday it works just as well for me.

You’re lying. If you had to choose, you’d want to be Purdue over anybody else except maybe for Kentucky.

We've beaten Purdue like a drum this decade so they have to win one sooner or later. You can't sweep them every year.

I thought you didn’t care? And you’re right, you can’t sweep them every year…and you don’t. Practically ever.

And no...you won't find me complaining about the officiating as most Purdue fans and their announcer do after a loss.

Just a completely random shot at everyone associated with Purdue with nothing to back it up. Solid.

Our friend Matt replies and simply tells him he’s spouting sour grapes and the anti-Purdue diatribe continues from the IU dude who claims he doesn’t care one iota about losing to Purdue:

It's not sour grapes. I'm consistent. I always laugh at Purdue basketball. You'd have to go back five decades to the 60's to find a time when Purdue finished with a better record than IU in the Big Ten. Obviously Purdue has never been significant on a national scale.

Okay, this is where we begin to get pissed off. First, the 60s were forty years ago, not “five decades,” so learn some math skills first. But more importantly, this guy is simply just making shit up again. From the Big Ten Website:

“Purdue dominated the decade’s middle years by claiming the 1994, 1995 and 1996 crowns, becoming only the second team to win three in a row outright since Ohio State (1960–62). The 1996 title gave the Boilermakers 21 League crowns, the most in Big Ten history.”

Read the last sentence again. The words aren’t very big, so even IU supporters should be able to sound them out. And for clarity, Purdue went 11-9 against IU in the 1990s.

And how about this from the same site:

“The Wolverines, Indiana, Purdue and Illinois held much of the spotlight during the 1980s with the Hoosiers winning two more NCAA championships in 1981 and ‘87. A Big Ten Final Four double took place at the decade’s beginning and end as Purdue and Iowa both made it to the 1980 Final Four, while in 1989, eventual champion Michigan defeated Illinois in the NCAA semifinals.”

Granted, IU gets props for being a power at times and winning a lot. Keep in mind we’ve never claimed they weren’t good twenty and thirty years ago. But Purdue is mentioned right there and the point is that Purdue has never been insignificant.

So, to recap thus far, Purdue hasn’t been good since the 60s… except for the 80s and 90s. Everyone clear so far?

Most Purdue fans aren't even old enough to remember them playing for a national title.

Not really true, but yeah it’s been a while. But to be fair, IU’s last national title was twenty years ago so today’s college kids were infants or unborn at the time.

IU has consistently beaten Purdue more often then they have lost to them going back to at least the 1940's.

Flat wrong again, knuckle-dragger. If you go to this link, you’ll see – shockingly! – that Purdue has a winning record against every Big Ten team for all of time! Curses! You’re foiled again!

How interesting… Purdue has a winning record against all Big Ten teams. The team closest must be IU, though, right? Oh, no, wait, it’s Ohio State. In fact, Purdue only has a better record over two other Big Ten teams than they do over IU! Interesting. After Thursday’s win, there’s a 24-win discrepancy between the two basketball programs. So, you know, sweep us for a dozen straight years and…you still won’t be ahead. (Facts are fun, aren’t they? Granted, not as much fun as making things up but, you know, still fun.)

But....they [Purdue] win one game against us [IU] for the first time in a long time and you'd think they just won a national title.

Right. No celebrating big home wins! Be classy, like IU fans and players, such as Matt’s co-worker who accuses Purdue of “having a parade” for beating IU, and Earl Calloway, who talks shit to opposing coaches.

Purdue basketball and it's fans define themselves on how they are doing vs IU more than anything else.

Because nobody ever evaluates themselves on how they do against their in-state, in-conference, historical rival. I’m sure Duke and Carolina never are concerned with how they do against one another.

I think the goal is more to beat IU, finish ahead of IU in the Big Ten (that hasn't happened in a long time), recruit better than IU, etc. than it is to get to a Final Four, play for a national championship, and maybe even win one someday.

As illustrated earlier, Purdue has finished ahead of IU plenty and has beat them down plenty. Not sure what else needs to be proved on that topic. And yes, the goal is to finish ahead of other teams. I thought that was obvious. And yes, we haven’t won a national title since 1932. A long time, we all acknowledge. But, again, IU’s title drought doesn’t look to be ending anytime soon, either.

It reminds me of the inferiority complex Red Sox fans have with the Yankees. By the way.... don't forget. Colts 29 Bears 17. Colts win a title. Bears don't. I'll trade the title for a meaningless regular season loss to Purdue.

Yes, IU is just like the Yankees. Keep telling yourself that. What an inane comparison.

And yes, throw in the Colts-Bears factoid. That has a lot to do with Thursday’s Purdue-IU basketball tilt.

Oh, and if that “meaningless regular season loss” gets the Boilers into the Tourney and IU just misses… well, that might give it some meaning, no?

In the spirit of fairness, the CSTV Big Ten Website also says the following:

“The Hoosiers put together two of the finest college basketball teams ever seen, in 1975 and 1976. In those two years, IU was 63-1 overall and became the only school ever to finish two consecutive Conference seasons undefeated. The 1976 team finished its season at 32-0, as the first unbeaten Big Ten team in 57 years. Since then, no team in Division I has gone undefeated. In the bicentennial year, the Big Ten became the first conference to send two teams to the NCAA finals, as the Hoosiers prevailed over Michigan in the national championship game.”

That’s ridonkulous. That’s a dominant program and an incredibly, not-to-be-questioned run. It was also:

Thirty years go (three decades)
Before the tourney had 64/65 teams
Before the advent of the three-point line

The point is, we’re not questioning IU was a spectacular program during those glory years. They’re just not now.

No, we don’t plan to rebut every Neanderthal IU fan or Notre Dame fan, etc., who bashes Purdue. This isn’t a full-time job and we don’t intend to make it so. But this one just felt like fun. You can’t stop people from making things up but when you feel like spending a few minutes looking things up, it’s just so easy to pick apart any IU fan’s argument. My guess is Matt’s co-worker didn’t even go to IU. Just a guess.

Huge Win

81-68, Purdue beats IU. This game's big, I said that a few days ago, but let's look at it one more time-

-It is another win over a ranked opponent (the tourney committee likes those).
-It's the biggest win of Painter's career @ Purdue
-It is a teaching tool for the young players about the importance of hustle and not giving up when the tide turns.
-It makes the IU series a rivalry once again.

I was impressed with the entire team last night. Granted, Teague and Landry gave great individual efforts, but there was more to this win. Every time IU would make a run, Teague would hit a shot, or Lutz would hit a three, or Kramer or Watt would come up with a steal or Landry would fight through two or three Hoosiers to score. Furthermore, Kramer pissing off White made me very happy. The only thing that bothered me about that play was that White wasn't teched up. All Kramer did was hold onto the ball and White (big tough guy) shoved him and threw an elbow. Kramer is the type of player Purdue fans love and will love and IU fans will hate wonder how long he's been at Purdue.

Earl Calloway got a boo boo on his shoulder after running into Carl Landry and finished the game with his shoulder in the same shape as his ego- bruised.

I never had any problem with Mike Davis despite the fact that he beat Purdue regularly. I strongly dislike Sampson and am happy the IU athletic department took the low road by hiring a proven cheater. Because of this move, I'm happy to say I hate IU again.

Boilers Skewer Spartans

Lost in the sports day yesterday was the Purdue Boilermakers absolute shutdown of the Michigan State Spartans in West Lafayette last night. (Pictured: Matt Painter signals touchdown, further confusing simple-minded analysts who keep referring to the football program as "basketball on grass" -- perhaps now they'll call the Boilers defensive basketball effort "football on hardwood." Wait, who am I kidding? Jay Bilas and Digger Phelps don't know Purdue exists.)

The Boilers only allowed twelve points in the second half of the game, outscoring the Spartans by 24 after a tied first half. For those of us used to seeing Purdue teams lose to well-coached teams (in both football and basketball), this win over a quality Tom Izzo squad from East Lansing is somewhat encouraging and when you consider the road win over the weekend, perhaps Coach Painter really does have this team hitting its stride at the right time.

The Boilers have six games remaining and currently stand at 16-8. If they can go 4-2 in the final three weeks and finish the regular season at 20-10, it seems hard to imagine them being shut out of the NCAA tournament but, you know, the Patriot League does need their entry.

That didn't take too long...

Carl Landry (as usual) led the way for our Purdue Boilermakers (26pts. 9reb.) yesterday in Happy Valley along with fellow senior David Teague (12pts. 4ast.). Every time the Boilers needed something- a basket, a rebound a defensive stop, it seems like one of these Seniors was Johnny-on-the-spot. Chris Kramer battled through the flu to frustrate the PSU offense with the scrappy hustle plays that have become his trademark. So what does this mean?

Well, it probably means that the Boilers need to win 5 of the last 7 to get into the NCAA tournament...in my opinion, all games are winnable, except the roadie to Columbus. Hopefully, this young team and the two Seniors will make the decision to put them in or leave them out very difficult for the selection committee.

What has happened during the course of the last 29 road losses for our Boilers?

-Terrorists attacked Madrid
-A tsunami devastated Indonesia, Sri Lanka & other countries
-Kobe Bryant's rape charges were dropped
-President Bush was re-elected
-Katrina devastated South Louisianna & Mississippi
-Terrorists attacked London
-Gene Keady resigned/Matt Painter took over as Purdue's coach
-Gene Keady hired by Toronto Raptors as assistant coach
-Gene Keady let go by Raptors
-My wife had a child
-J Money & Tim got engaged (not to eachother, but to separate women)
-Purdue's football program has gone from nationally respected to nationally unimportant

Let's hope our Boilers don't wait another three years to win a road game.

Purdue Taking Out Irritation on Defenseless Foes

After losing to a nationally-ranked team from Indiana that was not IU or Notre Dame, Purdue has pounded two opponents who really didn't have a chance.

The Boilers moved to 10-2 last night and remained undefeated at home with an 18-point win over Texas A&M Corpus Christi in West Lafayette.

This kind of victory over a major program from Texas clearly signifies that Matt Painter, left, is stalking a national ranking and will take no prisoners.