Purdue Scores 11 Points in One Half, Seems to Miss Robbie Hummel

Update: Literally as I was publishing this post, E'Twaun Moore rolled his ankle. It's not Purdue's day.

And now, Exhibit A in why sometimes teams playing poorly is not good thing, but instead the sort of thing that might make viewers wish they had those cool Men in Black memory wipes: Minnesota led Purdue 37-11 at the half.

It's not a misprint, just the result of a half of missteps from the Boilermakers, who are so reduced by Robbie Hummel's injury that calling them shadows of their former selves would be an insult to shadows. JaJuan Johnson had seven of their 11 points. The team as a whole had more rebounds (eight) than made shots (five). They shot 18.5% from the floor. E'Twaun Moore missed more shots in the first half than Minnesota did as a team.

The good news, if it is good news, is that this has to be rock bottom. If Purdue followed a half of basketball as bad as their first 20 minutes with a similar performance, it would be even more surprising than a rousing comeback. Either way, this game isn't great to watch.

I guess the Big Ten spent its watchability quotient on the first semifinal and their cool commercials.

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