Purdue Basketball: A New Hope

It is a period of transition. Pursued by the Empire's sinister forehead, Terone Johnson races home aboard his starship, custodian of the game plan that can save his people and restore freedom to West Lafayette ... 

If I'd told you a week and a half ago that the loser of this game would probably get the #9 seed in the conference tournament, you'd have probably agreed, muttered something about Painter, and probably made a note not to watch any Thursday games that week ... because there would have been little doubt that it would be Purdue who'd come out on the short end of the stick.

Instead, coming off a huge win in Madison and a close but hard-fought loss to Michigan at home, Purdue made it clear which team was going into the tournament on a high note, never falling behind in an 89-73 win that was never in doubt. A Terone Johnson 3 gave the Boilers the first points of the game; A.J. Hammons broke a 3-all tie with a basket that would give Purdue the lead for good.

Even this guy would have struggled
at Mackey on Saturday.

Minnesota had struggled mightily on the road in conference play – their only conference win was a 17-point win over an Illinois team that looked, well, like the Gophers do now – and they played no better in West Lafayette. They found themselves down 20-5 and 30-9 in the first half; a D.J. Byrd layup put Tubby's crew in a 17-point halftime hole. It was all Minnesota could do to get the lead back to single digits, and each time they did, Purdue would answer ... the fact that the last three-point basket of the game belonged to Ronnie Johnson, of all people, should tell you all you need to know.

Defensively, the Boilers were adequate on the outside. Andre Hollins led all scorers with 24 points, 18 of those from long range, yet the early hole that the Gophers dug themselves meant that most of those shots didn't have nearly the impact you'd guess; his last basket cut a 21-point deficit to 18 with just over 3 minutes to play, at a point where there was no reason to believe anything he did would make a difference.

Inside, things were a different story. Trevor Mbakwe scored just 6 points on 2 for 9 shooting, his fourth-worst outing in conference play. Rodney Williams had 13 points, but that included a three and 4 free throws; no other frontcourt player had more than 4.

Purdue forced "only" 13 turnovers (a high number for them, but not really enough to be a problem for Minnesota), and allowed 39% shooting from three-point range ... but for a change, the offense was good enough that nothing on the defensive side was going to be a problem. All five starters scored in double figures, led by Byrd and Rapheal Davis with 18 apiece, and team shooting was remarkably accurate: 56.8% from two, 46.7% from three, and a whopping 75% from the line, 18-24. The 89 points was a season high, and it had to be encouraging for Painter that they were as evenly distributed as possible (44 first-half points, 45 after the break) ... this wasn't a case where Purdue jumped out to an early lead and held on for dear life.

I have altered the standings.
Pray I don't alter them further.
(AP photo)

We won't know for another week or so if this was D.J.'s last game in Mackey, but if it was, it was about as good as you could ask. Along with those 18 points, he had a team-leading 7 rebounds (only Mbakwe had more, with 10), 5 assists, and 2 steals, both of which led directly to points (2 on a Davis layup and 2 on Hammons free throws after a foul).

Speaking of Hammons, he had a perfect day: 6 of 6 from the field, plus the two free throws, for 14 points ... not bad for just over a half of work. Without seeing the game myself, I can't say if this came from more effort on his part, but I will assume that the fact that he played as much as he did indicates that he's earned those minutes. Hopefully we'll continue to see hard work on his part: as noted in this space before, he's got too much talent to let it go to waste.

Davis had a solid game as well: 6-8 from the field and 6-7 from the line for his 18. I'd really like to see Davis continue to get major minutes as we go up to Chicago and then hopefully steal a postseason slot somewhere ... Anthony Johnson seems not quite ready for starter's minutes, and Davis' play against Michigan and Minnesota this week has been really good.

Something else I couldn't tell from the box score was Marcius' health: he got 14 minutes against a quality big in Mbakwe, so I don't know if he was largely unproductive because of his ankle or Mbakwe's presence or both.

As you'll know if you've been following The Most Confusing Post Ever, this win ensured that Purdue wouldn't drop to #9, because it gave them a tiebreaker advantage over Minnesota no matter who else was tied with them. Iowa's win means that Purdue will be seeded #7 if Illinois loses to Ohio State or #8 if they win, and the Illini will have the other seed. The #7 seed will face Nebraska, and the #8 will play Minnesota*. Minnesota is much better than the Cornhuskers, and I don't know if Purdue needs another quality win as much as they simply need a win, but if the Boilers play like this on Thursday, the opponent might not matter. (On the other hand, the #8 seed will almost certainly play Indiana on Friday if they win; the #7 will get not-Indiana. As much as I'd love to see Purdue knock IU out of the Big Ten tournament, there are ... other potential outcomes.)

*there are scenarios where Minnesota would finish #8 and Illinois #9, depending on who ties Indiana for first; an IU win over Michigan gives Illinois the tiebreaker against the Gophers.

Anyway, the Good Guys have won 3 of 5 in conference play, including two wins over tournament-bound teams.

Choo choo, muthas.

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.

What Makes a Team Great?

I've spent way too much time analyzing this year's Purdue squad...why they seem to be getting worse since early January, why this many 4-star players play like a 2-star team and why they simply don't compete at times.

I think the answer to this question has a ton of facets...but have said it before, continuity is the very base of all of team's problems.

All that said the ripple effects of one player's effect on the program have been costly and I'll tell you why.

A few years ago, when Kelsey Barlow was being recruited to Purdue, I went to watch him play to get a first-hand account of the player.  At that point, I didn't understand his recruitment.  He played lazy basketball...he didn't move on offense, was inconsistent on defense and didn't seem to use his length and athleticism effectively-enough on that level. But Painter liked the guy. He probably liked his ability to get under other people's skin...Ironically, that's part of the reason he's no longer on Purdue's team.

At BS, we liked that too...but just as Barlow pissed off IU fans with his antics his Freshman year, Barlow pissed off his teammates at Purdue. If you read him on Twitter, it's tough to tell at times if he's an evil genius, a troubled individual or just an immature kid...might be a little of each.  There's no doubt Barlow could have been very good (if not great) for Purdue had he developed differently...but hypotheticals don't matter...things are what they are.  Barlow didn't buy into Painter's philosophy and never was a fit.

After a few troubled years, Barlow was officially kicked off of the team one year ago this week. The void he left sent Painter scrambling to find another point guard to fill the void...one which he couldn't fill in time.  A few Seniors who were looking to transfer for their final year of eligibility didn't pan out...and this year, Purdue has had one true Freshman PG on the roster and a bunch of shooting guards in disguise trying to direct an offense that has no direction.

How important would another Senior been, especially a versatile, athletic point guard, been on this year's Purdue team? We don't really need to answer that question, do we?

But, Painter simply had to do what he did last winter.  The fallout from the tough decision left Barlow in transition as he sat out a year...and Purdue's program in transition as it had no identity.

Ronnie Johnson leads all Freshman in the nation in assists...that's a pretty good stat. Sure, he has a ton of turnovers and shoots at the wrong times...but he's a Freshman...one surrounded by an incomplete, discombobulated team.

Barlow's loss was and is important...but Barlow's dismissal was overdue. Painter couldn't have had a captain that continued to abandon the team when he was needed most...and more importantly, couldn't have a Senior creating disciples with the same philosophy.  The long-term effects of leaving a player, ANY player, on the roster for four years who is divisive, can kill a program.

The recruitment, signing and subsequent abridged career of one player was/is important...not because that guy was a super star, but because timing is everything.  Purdue's program needs to know what defines it as it moves forward. And everyone who is part of the program needs to be on-board with that definition.

So what makes a team great...or even good?
On paper, the team from '07/'08 was OK...but in three dimensions, they were pretty darned good.  Why?

Here are some things that I believe make teams great.  Nothing earth shattering...and I'm no rocket surgeon...these are just a few thoughts.

DEVELOPMENT
Hard work in the off-season makes a player better and helps build chemistry as everyone focuses on the same goal.

LEADERSHIP
Having players that define the team in positions of earned respect go a long way in making a team a force.  Whose team is it?  The answer to that question says a lot about a team.

BUYING IN
Do players believe the coaches plans and vision for the program? Are they executing these plans, not just in games, but during practice and off the court? Players need to feel like they're fortunate to be playing where they are, with whom they are, right now.

TALENT
Elite talent obviously covers up a ton of problems...but having talented people in the right places; in key areas, makes everyone else better.

CONTINUITY
Do the parts mesh? Much of chemistry is about time together- players that have played together and have been together become cohesive.  Teams that don't have history often aren't teams at all (what we've seen this year from Purdue).  Teams that have great continuity believe in the guy next to them and are willing to play hard for/with him.

________________________________

Look at the really-good teams in the nation...and those that are on the other side of the coin.  Teams like UNC and Kentucky have talent, but have a dearth of leadership...so they have no identity.  Leadership doesn't have to come from Juniors/Seniors (but that helps)...but it has to come from someplace; and a coach isn't enough.  Coaches need to put leaders in the position to succeed to help them be a focal point for the guys that need to develop.

Sorry...you probably didn't think you were coming to a motivational site, but this stuff has been rattling around my head for a bit and I wanted to put it down someplace.

BS Predicto: The Other Indiana School vs Purdue

Good times

Panda says:
It is that time of year again when the hatred starts to spew and the message boards are lighting up, must be time for the Purdue Basketball game against that school to the south.  If you haven’t heard yet, that school from the south is pretty decent this year at basketball, at home anyway.  One could argue that this is there first true road environment that they have played in all season, minus Iowa and Nerdwestern.

After their loss to Butler, Tom Crean decided to make the dumbass comment of the year saying that it was a road environment in Indy.  Sure Tom, that 2/3s of the stadium that was wearing red was surely cheering for Butler, just like the NCAA Tournament.

Anyway about Mackey Arena’s atmosphere tonight... It’s going to be deafening. There is a buzz about this game that I haven’t felt since being on campus for the game against aOSU in 2011. The fans are fired up and it would be a great program building win for this team to knock off the number three team in the country.

Show up, get there early and cheer loudly the whole game; I know BDowd and I will be. 

The game itself is going to be a struggle if Purdue expects to win.  Oladipo is going to be the toughest match-up for Purdue.  The cocky guard had a coming out party of sorts last weekend against MSU and with his length and quickness, it’s going to be hard for Purdue to handle him, but he can be contained.

Although some IU fans might have given up on Zeller, I haven’t.  The guy is a stud and might kind of be in a slump right now, but that’s debatable as well.  Crean doesn’t get him the ball enough and that isn’t Zeller’s fault, it's Tom’s lack of basketball knowledge. 

The most intriguing match-up of the night will be Kevin Ferrell against Ronnie Johnson.  Both know each other well and it’s surely a start of another great on the court rivalry among these two.

Overall if Purdue can contain Zeller, Oladipo and Watford while they are on the court at the same time I think the Boilers have a shot at winning this game. The key is going to be getting Terone isolated on Hulls who isn’t a good defender, at all.

I’ve been wrestling with this prediction for a while, but I think Purdue loses a close one.

IU 72
Purdue 68

Bdowd says:
IU's got horses and is as talented as any team in the nation. Period.

As poor of a game coach as Crean is, he's that good of a recruiter...and the fruits of his labor are a well-rounded team that can beat their opponent in a myriad of ways.

Last year, Purdue had no answer for Zeller.  In the game at Mackey, Carroll was doing everything he could versus Zeller...but after getting whistled for a bogus foul as Zeller arm locked Carroll, Purdue was forced to try other things to stop the seven footer. Hummel and Marcius weren't any more formidable that day.  In Bloomington, it was worse- Purdue had to double- team Zeller; that left Roth open for much to long and he made Purdue pay...over and over again.

This year, both teams are different.

Hammons is definitely a bit better of a match-up...But guarding the premier big man in the nation as a Freshman will be a learning experience for Purdue's rising star.  Hulls is no longer running the point, now, IU has a true PG in Ferrell doing the job; his game is much more polished than RonJohn's; at least at this point. But the wings are the toughest match-ups for Purdue.

TJohn will have the nearly-impossible task of trying to slow down Olidipo...then off the bench, Sheehy will probably be guarded by AJ or Byrd.  Both of these guys are tremendous athletes that can play above the rim and shoot from the outside.

Basketball is about match-ups...and I don't like this match-up at all.

aOSU kept Purdue at an arm's length with their talented youth and timely scoring.  IU is a better scoring team...and a more complete one, at that.  We saw Purdue fight for a half versus UM before getting manhandled in the closing ten minutes of the game; I think we'll see a similar outcome here.  Purdue's inability to score will kill them first...and their struggles in transition defense will be their ultimate demise.

Hope I'm wrong...But I would be shocked if my Boilers can keep this one as a single-digit defeat. The only thing that might keep them in this is Mr. Harbaugh's ineptitude. I firmly believe he's one of the worst in-game coaches in the nation.  If Matty can cheat off of his pal's (Brad Stevens) notes from earlier in the season, it could stay close...but Byrd will need to be knocking down his shot.

Forehead's Squad  77
Purdue  62

J says:

In memoriam

Rivalries bring out silliness in all of us. We're lucky at Purdue to have such a truly hated rival -- not every school really has this. Oh, they may think they do, but until you've lived this one or one like UNC-Duke, you don't really get it. And that one is just a bunch of rich kids against another bunch of rich kids.... it's kind of evil vs. evil. This one is midwest, Indiana, where basketball belongs... between those who want to rub decades old titles in your face and those who are proud of their program no matter what.

As for the silliness I mentioned, I find myself thinking that I'd make the tradeoff that I'd give up any and all postseason possibilities for Purdue this year in exchange for an ass-whipping of IU tonight. I really would. And I wouldn't make that trade for any other win, in any other sport. Beat up ND but go 2-10 in football? No way. But here, I'll take it. I hate them. I want them to lose. Them and their ignorant, uneducated, mouth-breathing, parroting fans....and their poor sport, talentless jackass coach.

However, I'm also usually a realist and I don't have a good feeling about tonight. It's not that I think a win is out of the question -- it's not. But Purdue is still a young team making young team mistakes at times and going through odd slumps... like letting Iowa close a double digit lead in the final minutes. I mean, honestly, what kind of lead would Purdue need to have to make you comfortable? What if it was 52-27 in favor of the good guys at halftime? I don't know about you, but I'd still be scared to death. This team hasn't been able to consistently close, so I continue to worry.

The good thing is these guys already hate IU and I love that. They also have very little to lose and IU has everything to lose. If you're IU, you cannot lose to Purdue this year -- because you are going to lose to the Boilers in the coming years. So the pressure is on the goobers in the candy striped pants. Here's hoping AJ Hammons makes Zeller begin to doubt himself -- seeing the lemming fans pile on would be wonderful. And here's hoping Tom Crean makes an ass of himself in the handshake line again. Tom, you're so easy to dislike.

I want to see this all happen, but in my heart I think IU pulls it out. (So this post was a great, rah-rah idea!)

IU 77
Purdue 67

50 Shades of Gray -- Boilers Manhandle WVU in Silver Unis

The love affair continues...

The Boilers penetrated the Mountaineers and forced their will upon them. WVU was pinned down all game long and, at times, maybe they liked it just a little bit. The Boilers dominated and owned the Mountaineers, and the thrashing lasted for several hours. In the end, they parted ways with little more than a bro-hug.

Sorry, that was my best attempt at a 50 Shades of Gray passage. Which, given that I've never read them but have only heard about them from my wife, I think wasn't half-bad.

The Boilermakers certainly did have their way with WVU today in West Laffy, winning 79-52 in a game that actually wasn't even that close. The Boilers got up by as many as 32 (66-34 was what I noted as the high water mark) and quite simply did a lot very well today. They played good defense, they forced the Mountaineers into shots they didn't make, they shot the ball very well, they rebounded, they moved without the ball and they didn't let up... for a change, Purdue took a big lead at the half and made it even bigger in the second half.

We've talked before about the recipe being even simpler than we often think -- shoot the ball as well as or better than the other team, make your free throws, rebound the ball and don't turn it over too much. Those are -- obviously -- always keys, but making sure you do most of them better than your opponent will almost always lead to victories.

Today, the Boilers show a tidy 49.2% from the field (to WVU's dreadful 29.3%) and a blistering 73% from three (to WVU's sickly 17%). The Boilers outrebounded WVU 39-27 and out-assisted them 17-6. The Mountaineers had more steals than the Boilers (11-6) and turnovers were almost even at 17-16. From the line, Purdue seemed to regress slightly, shooting 62% to WVU's 75%.

Purdue had a 14 point lead at the half that they quickly extended to start the second stanza and the Boilermakers truly never looked back. Once the game was way out of hand, Coach Painter began giving lesser-used guys more minutes and ultimately emptied the bench at the end. Neal Beshears had a three attempt miss but Dru Anthrop drained his.

The Boilers did a nice job of spreading the scoring around today, with four players getting into double figures. Byrd led the way with 17 points on 5/8 from the field, 4/6 from three and 3/3 from the line. He also had five rebounds, four assists and a steal, if you're into that sort of complete game.

Raphael Davis continued to mature before our eyes and had 16 points on 5/6 shooting, including 2/2 from long range, and 4/6 from the line.

Anthony Johnson had 12 points off the bench on 5/9 shooting and 2/3 from the line, and Terone had 11 points on 5/9 shooting.

It wasn't all roses for the Boilers as AJ Hammons had an off-day, scoring just four points on 2/6 shooting from the field. He did contribute with five rebounds and three blocks, though. I'll chalk this up to the fact that Purdue's shooters were shooting and AJ's inside presence wasn't as needed today, but I hope to see him continue to clean up with 18-20 point games as we go through the Big Ten season.

There will be those who disparage this win for Purdue, since WVU is clearly not having a typical Bob Huggins type season. However, you play the games on your schedule and, like it or not, this is a team from a power conference. Purdue now has this decisive home court win to go along with their beatdown of Clemson in December and a win over a top 11 team in Illinois earlier this month. The Boilers are clearly growing up and playing better basketball together and it's something you can see every game. The confidence among these guys is also growing and it's enjoyable to watch. It might still be hard to dream of playing in the tourney, but Purdue is winning games this month that they would have lost last month and now even blowing teams out once in a while.

Next up, their toughest test yet, as the Boilers travel to Ann Arbor to play #5 Michigan.

Choo-choo. The train is coming.

Enter The Leatherman

If you visit this site regularly, you've read and listened to James change from a confident fan, to questioning observer to a flat-out doubtful critic.  J and I have gone through the same changes, but ours was a bit more abrupt- I was confident that Purdue would have 20-21 wins before the season...but after watching my Boilers play in person, I quickly became wise to the fact that this Purdue team was no where near a Purdue team that we've become accustomed to.

Gone was the one guy who would step up when needed.

Gone was the continuity.

Gone was the defense.

Gone was the spark.

Gone was the hustle.

The absence of hustle made my assessment easy.  We all knew Purdue would struggle to learn how to play again. I mean, when you lose pillars of a program, it happens.  BUT, I thought aloud that since there were so many healthy young guys, this team would be indoctrinated into Painter's idea of sacrificing skin on your elbows for the sake of the team.

Instead, these guys liked to watch loose balls bounce around until they found an opponent's hands.  They didn't seem to love pestering their opponent with gnat-like annoying traits...but sagged off and mimicked a sleep walker.

Heck, even when they played hard, they could only do it for 20-30 minutes...then they'd lose interest and allow games to slip through their pillowy-soft grasp.

Not pretty, but it works.

A Matt Painter team without grit is like a boilerdowd post without analogies...it just doesn't work and no seems to be too interested in it.

BUT, a Matt Painter team with grit and toughness is familiar, inspired and a metaphorical symphony.

You typically don't see and hear fans bragging about the methodology of a timeout being called...but last night, DJ Byrd's timeout set the Twitterverse ablaze.  In a split second, after being shoved by an Illinis player, Byrd assessed the out of bounds line, the trajectory of the ball and the placement of the official in order to make a truly brilliant, game-saving timeout. Yes, I just typed that sentence.

After weeks upon weeks of Byrd scratching and clawing to be someone he simply is not, it clicked...in the form of a loose ball timeout.

Byrd IS NOT Smooge, or the Ostrich, CK3 or even Ryne Smith.  But I think he was trying to be all of those guys...all at one time...and it wasn't working. And since he was on the poster this season and was a Senior and had worked so hard in the off-season, I think he believed he and his game would transform into the number one option for Purdue in just one off-season.

But for Purdue to be consistently successful this season, David Jonathan Byrd will need to be a Leatherman, of sorts, this year.

The screw driver on a Leatherman doesn't work as well as a typical phillips or flat screw driver...but it does the job. The pliers are kind of uncomfortable in your hand because the handle has all of that crap in it, but it can still pull a nail out of a 2x4...and when in a pinch, you take this beast-of-burden tool and smack things around with it.  It's not as sleek and sexy as a Swiss Army Knife...it's more utilitarian.  It doesn't have a high-gloss surface, but a brushed, almost dull, finish.  Mine is gunked up with paint and dried glues and has battle scars from when I got myself into trouble, but only had a four year old as an assistant who didn't know what I needed when I asked for the hammer.  But dammit, that jack of some traits is a tool that's indispensable in the Bdowd household.

When Matty's Leatherman tries to be Ryne Smith, it doesn't really do the job-  He's not a pure shooter. When The Leatherman tries to be E'Twaun Moore, it really doesn't work either- he has a hard time creating space.  He's not quite big or skilled enough to be Hummel, not nuts enough to be Kramer...he's a different thing altogether.

15 points is a solid game versus a team ranked in the top-15...but none of the things Byrd did last night that were really important show up in the stat line...he made everybody else work better...and when his teammates needed a play the most, he made it.

Admittedly, I didn't want Byrd with the ball in his hands in the closing minutes as Illinois extended the pressure.  We all know that doesn't doesn't go well.  That's the time for Ronnie Johnson to do what he did last night- quickly evade swiping hands and get out of trouble.

The leading scorer had a monster stat line: 25pts, 9 reb and 4ast...but Terone Johnson is no DJ Byrd.

Not pretty, but it works.

Last night, the kid from Crawfordsville finally helped his team play a game that we all thought they were capable of playing, and did it in utilitarian, workmanlike fashion.

Byrd and his teammates all accepted their roles last night, and the end result was their first complete game and their first win versus a quality opponent of the season. Will  they all be able to know their roles come Saturday in East Lansing?

Video of DJ Byrd's Heady Timeout Play Last Night

For those who missed it because they were asleep or watching the meaningless Sugar Bowl or taking in the latest Batman movie -- or for those who just want to enjoy it again -- click below to see video of DJ Byrd doing what hustling Purdue seniors do.

Matt Painter, Evil Genius? Boilers Win, 68-61

"Wait, I thought they fired Weber."

No means no, Illini seniors!

They'll have one more shot to beat the Boilermakers in their college careers in February, but on this night, the Purdue Boilermakers looked like they grew up a bit and that perhaps the angst of the pre-con might have been worth it just a bit.

Purdue hung with the 11th-ranked Fighting Illini in the first half, shaking off some of Illinois' best punches and keeping the game close. DJ Byrd even had an open look at a transition three in the final seconds of the first half that would have given the Boilers a lead, but the 33-31 halftime score was still an improvement for a team that has struggled to compete with even moderate competition this season.

I might argue that Illinois was a bit of a soft 13-1, but a nearly top ten team is what its record says it is. Hey, until Big Ten play starts anyway, and then they turn back into Bruce Weber's team that lost 12 of 14 to conference foes to end last season.

We, like many of you, were a bit downtrodden about how this season had gone so far for our Boilers. However, one thing that we also pointed out at times was that this program was due for some serious bumps in the road and some youth. With youth and inexperience comes mistakes and growing pains. And those pains have showed this year. That said, we also felt like this is where you give Matt Painter the benefit of the doubt that he has earned and see what he can mold this very young squad into -- and how long it takes him to mold them. Whether this season turns into a pleasant surprise or not, tonight showed that, as Monty Python might say, they're not dead yet.

Speaking of those for whom reports of their demise have been greatly exaggerated, DJ Byrd rose from the ashes of a rocky start to do what we all need him to do -- be a senior leader. Perhaps DJ finally allowed himself to stop feeling the pressure to be Robbie Hummel or a big-time scorer or whatever. But tonight he began hitting clutch shots again, making the plays you need from a senior, and just illustrating to everyone else what kind of hustle is needed to win games in the Big Ten season. DJ had 15 points on 5/11 shooting, including 4/9 from three. He only got to the line once, but it was YOOOOGE, as it effectively sealed the win after a late score while being nearly tackled as the Illini tried in vain to keep him from making a bucket.

Of course, the play that made everyone fall in love with the Byrdman again was his hustling, sliding time out call with just over 20 seconds to go. Jacob Lawson -- who had just nearly been clotheslined by what should have been called an intentional or flagrant foul (and Bo Boroski was there, so you know...) -- missed both his free throws, and on the second one, DJ Byrd chased it towards the corner and, while sliding on both knees, grabbed it just as he slid to a stop, called timeout and then toppled out of bounds.

Let's just clear up something here about the naysayers on twitter and elsewhere claiming that wasn't a legit timeout -- it was. The ones they did away with were the nonsense ones where a guy is literally in the air flying out of bounds and calls timeout. This was not that. Watch it again if you need to. It may be only a partial second, but DJ grabs the ball, turns and calls time, all while teetering and then falling on his side. He was grounded and was not in the air. I won't argue with you that it was close -- but it was definitely one you could term a judgement call for the official and this time DJ got the benefit of the judgment. I'd say he deserved one.

Terone Johnson had himself really a player-of-the-game kind of night, with a career-high 25 points, plus 9 rebounds. Terone continues to be the go-to scoring guy and is turning more and more into the reliable, consistent fill-it-up guy. He reminds me a lot of E'Twaun in that sense that most of his scoring isn't all that memorable, but then you look at the scoresheet and there he is -- everywhere. Quiet confidence with a salty side. Yet another likable Boilermaker.

Jacob Lawson was the third Boiler in double-digits, with ten points in 22 minutes. He was 3/5 from the field, including a couple of rattling dunks, and 4/6 from the line, which would be good except he missed two critical ones that are only forgotten now because of DJ's manly play. Lawson also had seven rebounds and we at BS have always been fans of his -- good to see him not only starting, but getting serious minutes at crunch time.

I remember not long ago -- and on the JJ/E'Twaun teams -- how we would lament the Boilermakers' complete inability to rebound, despite some size and athleticism. Now here we are and one of Purdue's strengths is rebounding, as they're 21st in the nation, averaging over 40 boards a night. Tonight was no different, as they outrebounded the Illini, 38-31.

Tonight, the Boilers outrebounded their opponent, hung with them at the line (63% for Purdue, 64% for Illinois), and shot better than them from the field (41% to 36%). That's a formula I like. The Boilers also had only ten turnovers to Illinois' nine, but I will say it felt as though all ten of the Boilers' were in the final two minutes.

One more thought about winning these tough games -- good teams fight back and find ways to win and bad teams often find ways to fold down the stretch, as we've seen from Purdue earlier this season (and at times early last year). Winning these games takes more than just spurts of playing well and a few rebounds. The Boilers pushed their lead out to ten (61-51) with two and a half minutes to go and then the Illini responded with back to back threes to make it just a four point game. The Boilers had some sloppy play in there, including a couple of turnovers and a shot clock violation, but then they bore down and ground out a prototypical Matt Painter/Purdue Big Ten victory. I would love to see blowouts and not these kinds of nail-biters, but it's just rarely the way in this conference and for this team. For tonight anyway, it felt like our Boilers were back on track. Let's hope it continues.

1-0.

Choo-choo, muthas.

Growing up?

EsPN Wants You To Remember DJ Byrd's Flagrant Vs Nova

Many of you may have noticed this already if you're watching this abomination of a basketball game via ESPN3, our only available option, but I found it interesting.

When you click on the Purdue-EMU game and ESPN3 has to load and get the stream ready, what do you think is the default image relating to "Purdue basketball"?

Sigh.

Icy Boilers Lose 63-57

The Boilers failed to exact revenge on the thuggish Xavier Musketeers today in West Lafayette, suffering yet another bitter defeat, 63-57. Purdue played a hard-fought game, at least it felt like to me, and powered through some poor shooting and lulls in their offensive output to continue to overtake Xavier and keep it a tight game. But in the end, the Boilers went a whopping 0-for-17 from beyond the arc and fell by a mere six points.

This is unconfirmed (because Mike Hall of BTN said it), but Mike Hall said that this is the first time a Matt Painter coached Purdue team has failed to hit a three. And did they ever fail to hit threes.

DJ Byrd alone was 0/9 from long range and he did not take any shots from short range. He also was 0/1 from the line to cap a stinky day for him, one game after hitting six treys and ringing up 22 points on the road at Clemson. Hard to figure, but he's streaky.

That said, even with DJ's goose egg in 32 minutes of action, this game was well within Purdue's grasp. The Boilers led 29-26 at the half after closing the first on a 27-15 run. They weren't doing anything fancy on offense, but they were pulling down offensive rebounds and they were, at the time, making their free throws. How many times in the JJ/E'Twaun/Hummel years did we long for the Boilers to get better at rebounding? Well, here they are, a seemingly good offensive rebounding team.... and they still have trouble with free throws and suddenly don't hit threes anymore.

I saw some anger towards DJ on twitter and if you want to be mad at him, hey, he's a big boy, he's a senior, that sometimes comes with the territory of being a leader. However, I am fairly sure nobody is going to be tougher on Byrd than himself so go easy on the guy. He was also the subject of another atrocious refereeing call (welcome to Mackey, Bo Boroski!) that could have still salvaged this game for the Boilers.

In the final minute, with Purdue trailing by five, Jacob Lawson went to the line. He made the first one to cut it to four and then missed the second. There was a tangle of bodies hitting the floor and then Terone nailed a bank shot to apparently cut it down to a two point game. Ah, but know, DJ Byrd was called for the foul, the two points were wiped off the board and the thugs Musketeers came to the other end to shoot free throws and ice the game.Of course replays showed that Byrd was literally dragged to the ground by an Xavier thug/forward. Nice work, as always, officials.

While I'd love to blame this game on the officials, this loss was not on them the way it was vs Nova in New York. The Boilers had a chance just before this, when they had also cut the lead to two and had the ball. Terone strangely chose to dish to Lawson who was loping down the court to go get into position. Lawson tried a couple moves and -- almost predictably -- traveled with it and turned it back over. This play and the Byrd foul negating the Terone bucket are what really sealed this. You can't have those things happen AND shoot terribly AND not make critical free throws and still win. They did give it a decent shot, though.

This team is still growing up and having a game where little is going right and one of your leaders is ice cold is one of those things a maturing team has to learn how to overcome. They had as good a chance as X did tonight, but they didn't hit the buckets when they mattered most and the ex-cons err, I mean, Xavier did. 

Terone was the leading scorer with a solid 19 point, 10 rebound double-double. Ronnie was the other Boiler in double figures with 12. Hale had a nice 18 minutes, scoring eight points with five rebounds (four offensive). The Boilers grabbed 38 rebounds (to 26) with 15 being offensive rebounds (to 3 for X).

Overall, I felt like the Boilers did some good things in this game and, despite DJ's struggles and the collective iciness from long range, made this is a close game and in fact for a while made it seem like it was theirs. But in the end, it's just another loss and the Boilers are now at an ugly 3-4, with a 2-2 mark at home.

Next up, a winnable game versus Lamar on Tuesday night, followed by a road game to the MAC to take on Eastern Michigan (who is 5-1) next Saturday. Despite being MACtion, that game on the road will test the Boilers mettle. After that, the Boilers have a week off before facing the hated Irish in Indianapolis.

On-the-Scene Take From Mugging in MSG

I wish I was writing about the team itself more and I'll try to do that, but the travesty of officiating in last night's loss is still fresh for me and still infuriating. Being only about ten rows from the slickster Jay Wright made it even worse.

I've had an epiphany in recent years around sports -- maybe because of the birth of my son, I don't know -- wherein I don't let things affect me as much as they used to. It also could have to do with getting older and wanting my heart to not explode. Details.

But this one is sticking with me because I am tired of this same shit happening to Purdue over and over. I also am less of a blame of the officials guy than even my co-editor-in-chief here is (not to say he blames them too much at all -- but he gets more irritated at them then I tend to)...and I think things that are fresh tend to feel more significant, of course, but I think this might well be the worst series of officiating I've ever seen. Definitely in person.

And let's get something straight here -- all of you beanheads who tell us via twitter and on here that, "Dur, make your free throws and this isn't an issue" or some variant of that...yes, we know that. We allllll get it. If you make all your free throws, it's not an issue. And if my aunt had balls she'd be my uncle.

Sports don't work that way. It's just one of those things people say after the game to fill talk radio time, press conference answers or to justify an outcome to yourself. Yes, if Purdue took advantage of all their opportunities, it's not an issue. But the same can be said for Nova. They shot a dull 24 of 64 from the field, for 37% -- if they shoot just a bit better, Purdue probably is not able to take over for that 8-10 minute stretch in the second half. Who knows?

My point is that yes, you obviously want to make your free throws, but games get to where they get to because of a variety of factors. Every game is different and they all have their own ebb and flow -- that's why we watch them. Not to show up and see free throws made, high five each other and go home. We want to see what happens... and what happened to the Boilers last night was nothing short of an embarrassment on the officials' part.

Painter is too much of a gentleman, but he should complain to the NCAA -- ask them to review the calls and the inconsistency and, perhaps most importantly, the egregious thuggery that Villanova was employing throughout the night. A hockey writer that I like on Twitter was covering the game (because, no hockey, why not?) and he really pissed me off with his ignorant rants about Purdue embarrassing themselves and choking it away. But he also throughout the game was tweeting about how he was going to have to watch to the end to make sure nobody was killed, as the two teams weren't even trying not to tackle one another.

It was definitely chippy and being in the arena and being close to the action, you see a lot more than the cameras show you, as most of you know. And I saw DJ Byrd get visibly pissed off several times, almost always resulting in him committing a foul, almost as though he just thought he'd do it to stop play and give him a chance to talk to an official. On one of his threes in the second half he was knocked hard to the floor and got up with his hands in the air, pointedly looking for a while at official Brian O'Connel, who was already busy chugging down the floor the other way, not even looking back at the action and unwilling to look Byrd in the eye. On the replay, it was confirmed that Byrd had serious contact made with him, confirming what was obvious during live action. Sometimes it's hard to see and we can all agree the officials have a tough job -- this was not one of those times.

72-66, 62 seconds to go

Speaking of the officials by name, get to know these guys:

Brian O'Connell 
Bert Smith
Bo Boroski (you can just call him BoBo)

We will remember you three clowns. I hope the Paint Crew remembers them, too, in the event that any of them venture to Mackey this year.

As for other observations....

Yes, I had the J Money Signature Cocktail (premium vodka, rocks) and after she filled it halfway, I asked for a full one since I'm a big boy. She told me that's technically a "double" and would cost me $22. Sweet. I do love New York.

Standing in line for my $22 cocktail, a very attractive young woman (who definitely appeared beyond college age, as college kids look like zygotes to me now) and I began talking, mainly because I took a dig at her wearing Oregon State attire. She told me she was "friends" with a player on the team -- "the only native American" -- number 11, Joe Burton. Then, right after we were all back at her seats, a cameraman agreed with my assessment and put her on the screen. Though with fewer than 7,000 peeps in the house, all of our odds increased of getting on the 'tron.

I met the President of the Purdue Alumni Club of NYC (I'm a member of NJ) and she wholly encouraged me to join the NYC since I work in the big city and, as she put it, "we're cooler anyway." I stopped to talk to her because she had on a Purdue-themed "I love New York" t-shirt, but with Purdue Pete instead of the heart. I have to have one and she said they'd be ordering more soon to sell. Thanks, Michelle! (I think. I had a double, remember.)

I started the night at Stout, a bar on 33rd across from the Garden. There was an impressive contingent of Boilermaker alums and we had our own bar area in the basement, complete with two 'tenders, several TVs, darts, etc. I met a few alums, including two from the class of '11. One, the gentlemen, asked if I knew his brothers and said he "asks older alums this" since they graduated a while. Thanks, dude. The other was a bubbly, sweet girl who was wearing an old-school looking Purdue basketball jersey with #22 on it. "Cuonzo Martin?" I asked. "No, Stephanie White," she replied, "She won a national title at Purdue back..." "Yes, I remember," I said. "I was there when they were burning things in the middle of the street in front of the Quad."

On the floor, I'm excited by this team. Seeing all these young players getting important minutes, seeing a center in AJ Hammons who could be what this program has been missing for a while (a true, talented big man) have promising ability even as a freshman...seeing guys like Ronnie Johnson look already polished.....seeing Lawson continue to look like the most athletic guy Purdue has had in a while...seeing Terone quickly and confidently growing into his role as the scorer...Anthony Johnson clearly looking more confident an integrated into this team... and speaking of the Johnson boys, the court vision was something else I kept noticing as I watched this game from the baseline seats. From there, you can see plays develop and sort of see what the PG is seeing as he comes up. Some of the passing really impressed me -- these guys already know each other and are showing flashes of excellence and impressive court vision that will only (hopefully) get better. They'll have to fight through adversity like last night's game, but with the coaching staff on them to continue getting better, this team has be practically giddy about the future. It is indeed bright for these guys.

It's back to the Garden later this afternoon for the consolation game versus the Oregon State Beavers (yes, I have all my drunken "Boilers Use Their Johnsons to Slap Around the Beavers" jokes all ready to go). I love seeing our boys in person, so it's something I will enjoy (me and the other 500 people who will be there for the first game), but as I said, last night's mess is still sticking with me. These guys deserved better -- whether you think they "deserved" to lose due to poor FT shooting or not, they fought hard and came back several times from 8-10 point deficits and looked like the better team during most of crunch time -- until it was taken away from them.
 

Bucknell Bounces Boilers at Mackey 70-65

There's no doubt that the 2007 Baby Boilers and the 2012 Boilers have some similarities...but they're different teams.  This squad is decidedly-bigger than that team, and this one has more offensive firepower with Byrd from the outside and TJohn slashing...but with Agent Zero out due to an ankle he sprained on Wednesday, the similarities become kinda striking.

That team only had a single Senior on the roster...this team has two, but one probably won't see significant minutes this season.  In '06/'07, the Boilers lost their two biggest offensive threats; Landry and Teague...and needed to define itself.  With LewJack, Hummel and Smith gone, Purdue no longer has much of a three point threat (especially without TJohn) and has no one single player that is a go-to guy like 4 was last season.

I didn't like this game too much before I knew that TJohn was out...but with him out, I thought these Boilers would struggle against the veteran-laiden Bison.  Bucknell has all five starters back from last season...but one of them was moved to be a sixth man late last season.  Three Seniors and two Juniors do the lion's share of the work for Bucknell...and tonight their experience showed.

Purdue kept them at an arm's length for much of the night; around a 4-5 point lead, but about midway through the second half, the tide turned slowly and Purdue seemed to lose its grip on the game.  But, the young Boilers squad didn't completely lose control...and the game wasn't really put away until the closing seconds following a missed three by Byrd that would have tied the game.  After two Bucknell defenders ran into each other and ended up on the floor, Byrd was given a wide open look from 22 feet that he didn't knock down.  A moment later, he was visibly upset by the miss.

But, Byrd hit a few big shots down the stretch that almost got Purdue over the hump.  Prior to that, it was tough to ignore an argument between he and AJ.  In fact Byrd was so angry that he had to be held back by Hammons prior to a Bucknell free-throw...and AJ continued to bark at Byrd as they lined up.  I kind of would have liked to see Painter bench on or both of them...but it didn't happen.  The conflict seemed to light a fire under Byrd as he went on a mini-tear afterward.

But I couldn't help but remember a similar argument last season between Hummel and AJ early in the season in which Hummel looked as angry as I ever saw him in a Purdue uni. I don't know if AJ just pisses people off or likes tries to motivate people this way...regardless, he's drawn the ire of two captains in two seasons...I don't know if I'll ever know why, but it's noteworthy.

Hale led the Boilers with 15 points and four rebounds.  RonJohn had 12 and six...and Byrd also had 12 points to go along with three rebounds and 2 assists. AJ had the most-complete game, in my opinion, finishing with 9ast, 8pts, 5reb and 2 steals. He seemed to pick up most of the slack left in TJohn's absence...but I expected more from Byrd.  From what I read in Italy, he didn't take charge in Italy, as he wasn't given a ton of chances.  And this pre-season, in the exhibition games, he was pretty inconsistent. Tonight, once again, it took him a while to get in rhythm.

Purdue held Bucknell to 27 points in the first half...and much of that had to do with the fact that Bucknell was missing a ton of open shots...but in the second half, Purdue's youth showed as stupid fouls led to free throws and Bucknell capitalized.  That said, the officials, who I didn't recognize from the upper ring in Mackey, were pretty damned awful...but they were far from the reason Purdue lost.

Purdue allowed Bucknell's big man to establish himself too many times.  His position deep in the paint led to a double-double...and the rebounds were pretty huge. But Purdue went 7-15 from the free throw line...And there is our game, really.

Not only did Purdue not draw enough fouls, especially for a team that drives to the bucket a lot, but when they had chances, they missed way too many freebies.  And while TJohn looked better in the exhibition games from the FT line, his little brother picked up where he left off last season...going 0-4 from the line.  That's gotta change if Purdue is going to win with regularity this season.

The '07 team was a much better defensive squad right out of the gate...They didn't allow 70 points until the seventh game of the season.  And if this Purdue team is going to make noise this season, it'll take consistent, hard-nosed defense, as the offense doesn't yet have an identity.

In the closing minutes Purdue had multiple opportunities to tighten up the game, but seemed very discombobulated.  I'm not sure if TJohn would have been the guy to hit the daggers or make a game-changing drive, but he probably wouldn't have panicked as Purdue's guards did as time wound down.

Nothing surprised me tonight except for Hale's ability to consistently find the hoop.  I take that back- Lawson's two 19 footers kinda shocked me...but accept for those and a big swat, he was pretty quiet on the night. Hammons looked uncomfortable with the ball- I think he'll settle in.  But, he had a 6'11" guy guarding him who many say is an NBA prospect, and there's no denying that his size and strength will create problems for some teams.  He fills a lot of space and has soft hands; he'll improve.  Simpson's footwork looked very good to me, but following a few nice plays he looked gassed as he stood in the corner as if isolating on an NBA. I think he might be a lot like TJohn the last few seasons...the next month and one half could be hard for him as he struggles to get into game shape.

RonJohn is going to be good.  He's very smooth, has good vision, plays great on-ball defense and finishes improbable drives a la LewJack...but without the tremendous amount of contact at the end of each play. Carroll, Marcius and Simpson all played limited minutes as Purdue played a fast-paced offense for much of the game...but when forced into the half court, Purdue struggled to score.  Davis didn't play as many minutes as I thought he would...but had a great, athletic finish.  I thought he might be the guy to step into 0's minutes, but that wasn't the case.

I'm not sure when TJohn will return, but I don't think he'll be playing in Sunday's game v. Hofstra...But we do know that Matty will need to get his short-handed, youthful Boiler squad ready to play quickly.

Looking for Chemistry: Painter played 12 players as he tried to find the best combo

Purdue Basketball: A Team with a lot of Hope!

After another terrible day in Ross-Ade Stadium the Boilermaker faithful had something to look forward to as the basketball teamhad it’s second exhibition game following the Penn State debacle in football.

The team played well overall especially after starting slow.  We know now that the team responds well to motivational speeches, as they were able to come out in the second halfand blow the game away.  The Boilers scored 44 in the first half only 11 more than Newberry, but came out in the second half with a fire and vengeance. They were able to put up 65 in the second half to outscore Newberry 109-68 for the game.

Newberry is not a big team and played with a lot of quickness. They were some what like the Purdue team last season without a true big and a lack of size, but that is what you are going to find with these little schools.

Matt Painter started the line-up of Terone Johnson, Ronnie Johnson, Sandi Marcius, DJ Byrd, and Donnie Hale in this one.  You would have to assume this is going to bethe starting five for Friday as the team opens up their first game of the season.

Terone impressed me, he didn’t make too many bone head decisions and was 8-10 from the field and made his only free throw attempt.  He did have three turnovers but when it comes to Terone you generally expect a few with his flashy style of play.

The Byrd man had a better performance than he did the other night, but still wasn’t the Byrd of the past going only 2-5 from the field for 11 points, but did make all of his 6 free-throw attempts.  The Boilers are going to need Byrd to become more consistent if they want to have a chance this season.

Ronnie Johnson, the other half of the brothers of destruction, was 6-9 for the game for 16 points.  Ronnie did have five turnovers, which will happen when you are freshman, but he is likely going to become more consistent the season progresses when it comes to turning over the rock. 

Raphael Davis was the surprise of the night for everyone.  The highly touted freshman who had a disappointing first night in a Purdue jersey showed why this team isgoing to be so much fun to watch grow. He was running up and down the court grabbing rebounds and transitioning those into points.  Davis was 6-12 from the field grabbed four boards made all four of his free throws and finished with 16 points.

Simpson had eight points as well in only 13 minutes of play.  He was able to grab four rebounds as well in the effort.

Donnie Hale continued to build off what he started in the opener and had a solid game as well even though the stat-line doesn’t say it.

Hammons had a decent night also going three for five from the field for eight points and six rebounds plus two blocks.  In only 14 minutes of play these are somepretty decent stats.

I’m still most intrigued by the big men right now.  You have three guys in Simpson, Hale, and Lawson that will competing for minutes and have three guys that are going to be competing for the bigger forward spot in Hammons, Carroll and Marcius.

According to GBI, Simpson will not be redshirted this season, which makes you wonder if Lawson is going to be redshirted, as Hale as established himself as a starter already in my mind.  It’s a good problem to have too many big men, something Boilers haven’t had to think about for a while and it should been entertaining to watch.

One thing I loved about this game was the consistency infree throws with the Boilers going 76 percent for the game as well as the three-point percentage with that being 46 percent.

One thing I hated was the lack of ball control. Part of this is being a young team but it is just not Boilermaker like to turn the ball over 19 times.

Overall I thought this game was a good tester for facing small squads, but when it comes down to big time teams it’s hard to really tell how the Boilers are going to look.  I think we will know a lot more after Friday night’s match-up about this squad.