SB Nation - Robbie Hummel

One giant Kramer Moment

BoilerTMill — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 05:23:14 -0000

Chris Kramer cements his place atop the Dead Hooker in the Trunk Scale. (AP Photo/ Butch Dill)

Wow!

What else can you say? That was a transcendent performance by our senior leader and the heart of our team. JJ, Robbie and E'Twaun get much of the glory and the press. Chris Kramer, however, keeps hustling. He makes plays that change games. You readers have joined me in calling them Kramer Moments. Tonight truly was one giant Kramer moment. He was an assassin. He ripped out their freaking souls in their own building and loved doing it. Shoot, some Alabama students got so incensed they got themselves kicked out.

Purdue basketball: Where Fans get so irate they get thrown out happens.

Just look at the closing sequence. We were down five with 5:51 left. We then flipped the switch:

Kelsey Barlow: Rebound putback

Alabama turnover

Hummel 3 (assist to Kramer) ties it.

Defensive stop leads to D.J. Byrd free throw for the lead.

Kramer steal and score.

From there it was savvy clock management. We milked possessions, killed the clock with the lead, and made Alabama pay for their missed opportunities with time. We hit some free throws and closed the game out with defense. For the record, Alabama scored one point in the final six minutes. They didn't hit a field goal in the last 8:45. In their own building!!!

I hate using boxing analogies because they are overused, but this was like a fighter absorbing punch after punch after punch for 11 rounds without falling down. When it mattered most we unleashed an ungodly fury that flattened the Crimson Tide. You could almost see the moment the defense found The Switch. They never had a chance when we got rolling. We finished the game on a 14-1 run and in the process ripped a team's heart out Temple of Doom style. Every opponent down the road will see this game and know that we will NEVER be out of any game.

Positives from the Alabama game:

Chris Kramer - Gee, you think? 14 points (ties a season high). Three huge steals. 8 for 8 from the free throw line. The best play came with about 35 seconds left. Alabama inbounded the ball and Kramer hounded the guy for 8 seconds before making the steal. He couldn't do anything! Anthony Brock could only dribble around. He couldn't pass, drive, or shoot because Kramer was just hounding him. Eventually Kramer knocked the ball loose (how?) and came up with it (WTF?). He made Alabama waste the clock for him before not even allowing a shot. That was the most impressive one on one defense I have ever seen.

What level is he now at on the Dead Hooker in the Trunk Scale? I say at least level 6.

Robbie Hummel - Somehow he had a quiet 23 points. He was 3 for 5 from long range though, the biggest being the one that tied it at 64. Another hidden stat was that he had two blocks, one at a critical juncture when we were making the comeback. He did this while playing 39 minutes and even while running the offense at times.

Offensive rebounding - Yes the closeout defense was fantastic, but we don't get the chance to close the game without some huge offensive rebounds in the second half. That is what allowed the comeback. They all seemed to be the type of rebounds I get too. Alabama stood around expect the ball to come to them, only to have a guy slide in, grab it, and put it back before they realized he was there. As someone who did that for four years at the co-rec, I know it demoralizes the other team. That's especially true when it is a 5'11" white guy doing it. We had six offensive rebounds where we immediately scored on putbacks in the second half, including three on three straight possessions!

E'Twaun Moore - I saw The Look in the second half. Once we got the lead E'Twaun wanted the ball and he wanted to finish them off with the scenario I have described multiple times (3 point lead, shot clock winding down, dagger basket). I love that he wants the ball in these moments. I love even more that we have a whole team full of closers now.

D.J. Byrd - The freshman played his best game to date. I was impressed, as he hit some really big shots for us. He had two triples and had a chance for another when he gave us the lead. Work on the free throws a little and you'll be fine, son. D.J. Byrd is the perfect type of player we need right now. He is talented, but young. W don't need him to do a lot, but when we do get something from him it is great. He is learning the college game at a good pace and is starting to break out a bit.

Negatives from the Alabama game:

JaJuan Johnson - He played a good second half, but we have got to keep him out of first half foul trouble. We're playing with fire there. Patrick Bade looked lost tonight. Even when Sandi Marcius comes back he is a true freshman with less experience than Bade. I see JJ's position as our one true weakness. On the positive side, we're learning to survive without him. Poor JJ is so shell-shocked from fouls this year you can see he is more timid on defense. He hardly goes for even easy blocks now because he fears the whistle.

Patrick Bade - Please keep your head up, Patrick. Just do your thing and learn. He looked lost tonight, but he'll get better.

First half offense - Just atrocious. I don't even think it was Alabama's defense. We just never could get in any kind of rhythm. Even then, if it wasn't for offensive rebounds at the end we don't win.

First half bounces - Is it me, or did it seem like every little friendly roll, carom, or bounce went Alabama's way in the first half. That's what had me worried. This game had the feel of a loss because things weren't going our way in the Little Things department. That's why we have a Chris Kramer though. He makes things go our way.

What next:

Ball State, SIU-Edwardsville, and Iowa. We're going to be favored heavily in each, so it is time to take care of business. There is no reason we can't be 12-0 before facing West Virginia on New Year's Day. Who knows, with an upset or two here and there it could be a battle between #1 and #2.

I can't get over how impressive this win was though. This team has so much fight in them. They refuse to lose even with two players hurt and one of our main players on the bench with foul trouble. We turned this game around by sheer effort of will. We fought so hard that you could see the dejection on Alabama's faces at the end. This is the type of demoralizing loss that send a program into a spiral. We didn't just win the game, we broke their will. I never thought I would see a Purdue team do that.

So enjoy the week off, fellas. Get plenty of study time because it is Finals week and we need you all eligible second semester. I'll see you on Saturday at Conseco. As for the fans, we get a bigger arena to sell out this time. Make the drive to Indy and make Conseco Fieldhouse our home away from home for the first of four games this year.

Wrapping up the Valpo win (With some Boilermakings Notes)

BoilerTMill — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 17:41:06 -0000

More photos » by Michael Conroy - AP

E'Twaun for 3-twaun! (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

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8-0 is 8-0. I think we are all very pleased with that result so far. With the exception of the South Dakota State game, we have dominated every "lesser opponent" and never let them hang around for a potential upset. Cal State Northridge, Central Michigan, Buffalo, and Valparaiso never had a chance with the way we started. We have reserved our slower starts for some of the bigger games (Wake, St. Joseph's) but have recovered quickly.

Maybe I had a small part in this. I questioned JJ, Robbie, and E'Twaun after the Wake Forest game about being a second half team. Since then, we have rocked opponents with dominant first halves. Maybe they took my question personally and have decided to make a concerted effort to start games better. Then again, maybe we're simply that much better than Buffalo and Valparaiso. It is probably the latter, but we'll see what happens against Alabama.

Ultimately, that is the story of this game. We played a team that we should dominate and did exactly that. Remember two years ago when we struggled with teams like Indiana State and even lost at home to Wofford? Those days seem like the distant past right now. We have come to expect easy games against lesser competition. That is a very good place to be in. Any game in which we get a Walk-on Whiteout near the end (Bubba Day, Stevie Loveless, Kyle Coleman, Dru Anthrop, and Mark Wohlford. Think about it) is a good day.

Positives from the Valpo game:

Defense on Brandon Wood - I totally forgot to mention this in the preview, but seeing Chris Kramer play against Wood was impressive. Some might think it was a case of him playing good defense against a great scorer. The thing is, Kramer is familiar with Wood. Huntington North and Kokomo are both North Central Conference opponents. Kramer's Vikings played Wood's Wildkats when Wood was a sophomore and junior. Kramer got the better of Wood both times then, and he had him last night by forcing him into four turnovers. Wood did most of his scoring very late when the game was already decided and Kramer was on the bench.

Robbie and E'Twaun from deep - They got it going early and often, finishing a combined 8 of 9 from the field. I got to see Robbie's first three and once he splashed it you could almost see the light go back on for him as he ran back up the court. He had the look of, "there it is!" in regards to finding his shot.

Keaton Grant's health - Keaton showed the knee is just fine with a great burst for a breakaway dunk in the first half. It was amazing to see him pull away from the defender like that. We need to get him involved a little more in the offense, but I am confident that his experience and leadership will come around in Big Ten play.

Offensive balance - JJ gave us 19 and 8 without really having to try that much. E'Twaun had 19 and shot 70% from the field. Hummel had 15 and hit all his threes. Keaton had 10. Kramer even had nine and six assists. As a team we shot 53% from the field with extensive time for the freshmen and subs. We were better than 45% from long range and almost 80% from the line. If we can consistently get those numbers from our starters we will win a lot of games. It shows that every single player, even Kramer, is an offensive threat. Kramer is a bit like me with his jumper. He is deadly when left open from 15-18 feet. If he steps out to 3-point land the accuracy goes away.

Negatives from the Valpo game:

Robbie Hummel's near injury - I don't think I am alone when I say that I nearly crapped myself when Robbie went up for a late second half rebound only to have his legs cut from under him and land on his spine. I am only 30 and shouldn't have that feeling for about 60 more years minimum. Evan Turner's injury is way too fresh in our minds, as is Robbie's from last year.

Boilermakings notes:

Here are some odds and ends I have found lately that weren't quite enough for a full Boilermakings, but they need to be mentioned:

Lost Letterman interview with Walter Jordan - This is a pretty good podcast with the former Boiler.

Cuanzo Martin off to a 7-0 start - Screw other coaches and their coaching trees. Gene Keady is the Godfather of undefeated teams!

Ladies lose Big Ten opener to Northwestern - This team is just decimated by injuries this year. Looks like the NCAA streak is in serious jeopardy.

Brees on Leno - Our favorite quarterback was awesome last night.

Curtis Painter now 2^nd string behind Peyton Manning - I mentioned this one yesterday, but it will be good to see him get some regular season reps after the Colts clinch everything. He won't get a start barring an absolute disaster that would cause rioting in the streets of Indianapolis (Manning getting hurt), but he will add to the Cradle of Quarterbacks title. If not for the Brandons (Kirsch and Hance) we would have a Michigan-like streak of consecutive starting QB's that played in the NFL. Will Elliott join that group?

If he does start I had better get my shotgun from my dad's house and some canned goods.

"It was like he had three guys in his pocket..."

BoilerTMill — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 16:52:35 -0000

More photos » by Michael Conroy - AP

If that is not a WTF look I don't know what is

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That is what coach Dino Gaudio had to say about Purdue's second half defense last night. He didn't even have any preamble when he began his section of the press conference after the game. After Wake Forest's Ishmael Smith torched Purdue for 10 first half points and the Demon Deacons held a 31-29 halftime lead, Purdue cranked up its defensive intensity. Smith hit just 2 of 6 second half attempts after going 5 of 9 in the first half.

"He couldn't do anything. It was like he had three guys in his pocket the entire second half." - Dino Gaudio

There is a reason that the Paint Crew, which was in postseason form all night, serenaded Wake Forest in the closing minutes with, "BIG TEN BASKETBALL clap clap clapclapclap."

I did get a chance to ask one question in the presser. (As a sidebar, I did have a "holy shit!" moment when I walked into the press room at the exact same time E'Twaun, JJ, and Robbie did. It was like, "Hi, guys." as I was 3 feet away from them. Fortunately I maintained my composure and didn't go fanboy). I asked the guys if they felt they were becoming a second half team after the way this game and the St. Joseph's game played out. Here was JaJuan's response:

"We don't want it to be that way, but it is kind of how it has been. You want to go out and have that good start but right now we feel like anything can happen in the second half."

Enough hard-hitting real journalism. Let's break this game down.

Positives from the Wake Forest game:

Purdue's hosting ability - If I hadn't been so flustered and freaking out (more on this in a moment), I could have really enjoyed sitting down and seeing the placard that said, "Purdue welcomes Travis Miller" right in the press section. Talk about a moment of vindication after working on this blog for over three years. I've covered tons of high school games since 1999, but this was like getting called up to the Majors after toiling for ten years in the minor leagues. Everything was first class on Purdue's end. I owe a big thank you to Randy at Rush the Court for setting everything up, as well as Purdue's basketball SID Cory Walton and his staff for everything on Purdue's end. Let's hope this does not turn into a cup of coffee situation and instead becomes a 10-year journeyman career.

E'Twaun Moore - I thought I saw it in the Tennessee game, but I saw it even more in person last night. E'Twaun is developing The Look. He is getting the ball in his hands specifically looking to take over the game. I wish I had remembered to ask him about this last night now. You can tell at certain moments that he wants to dominate the game, and he has the confidence now that he can do it. I absolutely love it.

Chris Kramer - Okay Paint Crew, if there are members that read Hammer & Rails I have a new chant for you. In the LiveBlog last night I mentioned that we needed a Kramer Moment. Basically, it is whenever he makes a great defensive move and causes another turnover or any great play for that matter. The next time he does it, let's get a Kramer Moment chant going. Some top Kramer moments: His swim move, the shot from his knees, His tomahawk jam against Illinois two years ago. The man keeps his legend going. He really is the Secretary of Defense, adding four more steals and a sweet assist to Robbie on a break last night.

Robbie Hummel - He'll break out of his shooting slump. That's what many of these next few games before West Virginia are for. In the meantime, I love that he continues to work hard on the glass and at the defensive end. He knows what he needs to do too. His response to going 0 for 6 from 3-point land: "That's unacceptable."

JaJuan Johnson - 21-9-3. I'll take those numbers from him any night of the week. Is there a more special moment than when he gets the ball and everyone in the building knows a thunderdunk is coming?

Rebounding - Anytime you out-rebound a bigger team it is a very good thing.

The Paint Crew - I made this comment several times last night, but that was the loudest I have ever heard Mackey Arena. Even the alumni were loud. It absolutely gave me chills and it took every fiber of my being to maintain professionalism and not go nuts with you. They thoroughly disrupted Wake's offensive flow int eh second half (though foul trouble helped as well).Someone on the GBI football board proposed a similar group for football next season, even having it including young alumni who want to get loud and crazy during games. Sign me up!

Negatives from the Wake Forest game -

My 5pm until about 7:30 - For about two and a half hours things could not have gone worse in trying to get things going. A sampling:

Leaving Indy at 5pm should give me plenty of time, but traffic slowed things by about 20 minutes on 465.
Getting the press pass and parking pass from Mackey, then actually getting parked behind Ross-Ade, was a trial. As a result, I had approximately the National Anthem to get the laptop up and running. Next time, I'll try and have everything mailed to me. It would have saved me half an hour at least.
I had to scramble down to the press room to get the wireless access code. That wa the one very small negative that it wasn't at the press row, but in Purdue's defense I thought I would have more time to get to the press room pre-game.
Cover It Live refused to let me sign in, and wouldn't e-mail me the new password. I finally had to create a new account, redo the code, e-mail it to Rush the Court, and re-input it into my Open Thread. This is why we have nothing for about the first eight minutes of the game as I was in panic mode, texting, e-mailing, and flashing between sites. This was after running full-tilt from the back of the R Lot behind Ross-Ade to Mackey.
The first half went well. Everyone was playing nice in the comments, so I turned off moderation. Then things went a little south. Purdue took over the Cover It Live chat and ruined the neutrality of it a bit. Since this was for the national (and neutral) Rush the Court it ended up being a little counter-productive. While it is awesome so many of you readers showed up to chat, I need to moderate things better next time if I am there for Rush the Court. Hence, there will be more moderation on my end instead of turning it off like I did. You guys can, however, leave plenty of comments in the Hammer & Rails open thread away from the Cover It Live. Chalk it up to a lesson learned.

This made my evening feel like an unmitigated disaster on the way home. I know I didn't really get to enjoy much of the game, but it was fun running the liveblog. I would give myself a D as far as coverage for this game and the actual assignment. The only saving grace was getting an actual question in at the press conference. Had the main reason for me being there been this site, the grade is easily raised to a C.

3-point shooting - We all know 1 for 15 isn't going to cut it. It looked like we were leaving everything short on our home rims. Ah well. The shots will start falling eventually.

Up next:

We now have a pair of wins in the bank that are growing interest, with St. Joseph's potentially joining that group if they continue to have a good year. Soon I'll be able to d the non-conference opponents tracking sheet again to see how our portfolio is doing.

I do think this is a major step forward though. One journalist asked how things were different his year from last year in terms of experience. She mentioned that we had a close loss in a preseason tournament (Oklahoma) and a loss at home in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge (Duke). Those are now wins for us this year (Tennessee and Wake) in similar circumstances. Robbie pointed out that experience was the big factor now. This team now knows it can win these types of games. That is a huge step. The difference between thinking you can win and knowing you can by actually doing it is huge. We're going to be favored in every game now until a huge West Virginia game. The only real test in that stretch will be December 12^th against Alabama.

It is now time to work on the freshmen. DJ Byrd and Patrick bade need a lot of work, plus we still don't have Sandi Marcius back. These next few games will get their legs under them and have things running smoothly for that next big test.

Around the ACC: 12.2

MRickman84 — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 13:36:20 -0000

It was a rocky start to the Challenge with the ACC going 0-3 with the UVA, State and Wake losses, but the conference bounced back a bit in the second slate of games. Today will decide whether the ACC will win its 11th straight ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

NC State 53, Northwestern 65

So what was going on in this game? Two starters for State--Scott Wood and C.J. Williams--both had 0 points in a combined Tossed in with Javi Gonzalez's performance, those three starters combined for 3-21 shooting. Tracy Smith had an inspired game with 23, but Michael Thompsons's 22 points and Northwestern's 49% shooting (43% from 3) were enough to give the Wildcats the W.

Wake Forest 58, Purdue 69

We all know how this turned out. Nothing to see here. Turnovers, Purdue making 14 more FTs and the Boilermakers taking 12 more shots than the Deacs really told the story. E'Twaun Moore, JaJuan Johnson and Robbie Hummel combined for 54 points in the win.

Maryland 80, Indiana 68

This one was close for a long time, but the Terps pulled away in the last 5 minutes. Greivis Vasquez continued his poor shooting, going 4-14. He's gotta figure this out and fast, although he had 23, 5 rebounds and 8 assists. 13 of his 14 pionts came off FTs. Vasquez's shooting has obviously suffered, but he is becoming a better point guard overall and is making better decisions (1.83 A:TO). Milbourne had 19 and 7, while Eric hayes added 14. Indiana did not shoot well at all, but Maurice Cheek led Indiana with 19 points in the loss.

UNC 89, Michigan State 82

In a rematch of last year's National Championship game, the Tarheels absolutely blitzed Michigan State in the first half, shooting lights out and looking unstoppable. The Spartans settled down in the second half, cutting the lead down, but in the track meet, UNC just had too much firepower. Ed Davis had a career game with 22 points and 6 rebounds. Larry Drew looked really strong, adding 18 points and 6 assists. UNC shot 58% while Michigan State shot 2-20 from beyond the arc.

Virginia Tech 70, Iowa 64

Props to Iowa for hanging tough in this game. Iowa is not a very good basketball team at all, but they played inspired basketball yesterday. It didn't help the Hokies' cause that they shot 4-15 from deep, but they committed only four turnovers and looked under control the whole game. Malcolm Delaney had 18 points and 5 assists. I don't know what to make of this VT team, but 5-1 with a loss against Temple doesn't look terrible. Let's see how they look in the rest of their non-conference schedule.

Q&A with Hammer and Rails

MRickman84 — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 17:30:16 -0000

We had a chance to talk with the excellent Purdue blog Hammer and Rails for the Deacs' upcoming game against the Boilermakers on Tuesday. You can find our questions and their answers after the jump.

What does the loss of Lewis Jackson mean for the team?

Not as much as I thought after seeing Kelsey Barlow play in the Paradise Jam. We’re used to playing point guard by committee. Keaton Grant and Chris Kramer played that role in the 2007-08 season before LewJack arrived. They can handle things, while Barlow grew up quite a bit as a freshman in the Virgin Islands. If there is such a thing as a fortunate injury it is this one because we are so guard heavy. Even former walk-on Mark Wohlford can bring the ball upt he floor a little. Where we miss LewJack the most is his ability to penetrate and score. Barlow isn’t quite there yet, but he is getting close.

How do you plan on defending Wake's bigs?

This is where injuries can be an issue. 6’9" freshman Sandi Marcius has yet to play because of a foot injury, but he is very close to returning. He may even be back for this game. We need him. Aside from JaJuan Johnson we don’t have a true, dedicated post player. Robbie Hummel is a good rebounder, but he plays on the perimeter more offensively. Freshman Patrick Bade has done well in relief of Johnson so far, but he is still very green. Both Bade and Johnson fouled out against Tennessee and we were lucky the Volunteers did not attack the paint on the final play.

To be quite honest, our lack of depth on the interior is a major reason that I think we are one year away from truly contending for a national championship. We have JaJuan Johnson and that is it. We have some promising bigs coming in the next recruiting class, but they won’t help us this year when they are still playing high school ball. We will be fine if we can keep JJ out of foul trouble, but that is a big if.

Obviously we know what we're getting from E'Twaun, Hummel, Johnson and Kramer, but who is the X-Factor that Wake should be looking out for?

Our X-factor is that we can have any player we put on the floor go for 10-15 points on any given night. Case in point: in the Paradise Jam semifinal Mark Wohlford had 10 points (he had four points in his career coming in) and Ryne Smith had 16. These guys are role players, but they carried the day. We are at our best when our role players like Smith, Wohlford, Grant, and other can contribute. They free up the floor for JJ, E’Twaun, and Robbie.

Speculate: Why will Purdue make the Final Four?

Because it is a goal and it is so close to home. I was junior at Purdue in 2000 when we made the elite 8. We fell to Wisconsin in the west regional final. It was out third loss in four games against the Badgers that year. The Final Four was also in Indy, costing Gene Keady maybe his best chance of making a Final Four.

This team is ready for that step. They have seen it on the schedule and know how close it is. I don’t want to make the Final Four. I want to win the whole damn thing.

Same deal: Why won't Purdue make the Final Four?

Depth in the middle. As I said before, we have JJ and that is it. We have another true center on his way in Travis Carroll, but he won’t be here until next year. That is why I want JJ to say for his senior season. He can helped lead us to a title while teaching Carroll as his understudy. We would also have Marcius, Bade, and Donnie Hale (another 2010 recruit) to provide depth in a very weak area this year. Basically, I view our 2010-11 team as the best team in Purdue history is JJ, Robbie, and E’Twaun stay because all the pieces will fit perfectly. If they all stay, anything less than a national title in 2011 will be a disappointment in my eyes.

Who has made the biggest jump from last year?

It is a tie between Ryne Smith and Mark Wohlford so far. Kelsey Barlow, Patrick Bade, and DJ Byrd are freshmen. Event though they are very talented, they are still freshman. Smith was the 10th player in a nine man rotation last year as a freshman. He has improved his game greatly and is emerging as a 3-point shooting specialist so far. He went apeshit in the second half against St. Joseph’s. Anyone who can regularly throw the ball in the basket from 20 feet away like Smith is good enough to be on my team. Wohlford is a great story. He is a former walk-on that was cut as a freshman, worked his way back on the team, and is now a regular contributor as a senior. He is a tenacious defender and every point he gives us on offense is a bonus. He even had a big three in the Tennessee game.

It's prediction time: who wins, what's the score and why?

The Boilers are playing at home, and I will pick this Purdue team against any team in the country in Mackey Arena. The core group has lost only four games at home to Wofford, Duke, Illinois, and Northwestern. The Wofford and Northwestern games were severe aberrations. I saw this team in person systematically dismantle Michigan State in Mackey Arena last year 72-54. Those Spartans then had a pretty good postseason run. I am concerned about Wake’s size, but I can’t pick against the Boilers at home. Purdue 74-70

The TDG Big Ten Basketball Preview

GopherNation — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 16:45:15 -0000

I have intentionally held off with a Big Ten basketball preview, waiting until we could see a few games and get a feeling for how teams are adjusting to the key gains and losses from a year ago. Gopher Nation has plenty to look forward to this season. As we all know everything is returning with some key additions added. An NCAA tournament bid and likely a win or two is expected. But what about the road before the NCAA Tournament. The long and difficult Big Ten season comes first and this team has a chance to really be a factor in the B10 title race. Let's take a brief look at each team in my expected order of finish.

1 - Purdue (NCAA) - Were it not for Purdue having injury issues a year ago they could very likely be defending a Big Ten title this year. Robbie Hummel was last year's preseason B10 POY and he should not be fully healthy to lead the rest of a very talented roster. The bulk of the talent lies in the junior class for the Boilermakers and this team is athletic and deep. Injuries and other uncontrollables aside, what may be the difference between a Big Ten title and a top 2 finish could come down to coaching. Matt Painter is an excellent coach but who knows if he'll be capable of steering his team accurately to win a Big Ten regular season title. Guys like Tom Izzo, Bo Ryan, Bruce Weber and Tubby Smith have the resume of winning multiple titles. I think after this year Matt Painter adds a Big Ten regular season title to his resume.

Likely Starting lineup
PG - E'Twaun Moore
SG - Chris Kramer
SF - Keaton Grant
PF - Robbie Hummel
C - JJ Dawson

2 - Michigan State (NCAA) - I know that Michigan State is the consensus title team and for very good reason. Tom Izzo is a great coach, his team is coming off a national runner-up season and he returns the vast majority of his roster. But my gut tells me they have a great season but one that ends the regular season looking up one spot in the B10 standings. It is really hard not to like Michigan State. They too are deep, very athletic, play great defense and as I mentioned they are very well coached. But I think the one key loss will be the loss that makes the difference. Goran Suton meant a lot to the Spartans a year ago and while this team still has very talented players like Kalin Lucas, Chris Allen and Durrell Summers (with guys like Raymar Morgan and Delvin Roe off the bench); Suton will be missed. Freshman Garrick Sherman may be very good but he's not the same thing. From year to year team's take on different personalities and even the loss of just one player can change the dynamic of a team. Michigan State will be great, they'll be extremely dangerous in the NCAA Tournament but I think they fall a game or two short of Purdue this year.

Likely Starting lineup
PG - Kalin Lucas
G - Chris Allen
G - Durrel Summers
PF - Draymond Green
C - Garrick Sherman

3 - Ohio State (NCAA) - In this early season the Buckeyes have looked fairly strong. And leading their early season charge is the outstanding play of Evan Turner, who looks like the early favorite for Big Ten POY (very early, I know). Turner has notched a double-double in all four games averaging 21.7 ppg and 14.7 rpg. OSU has a lot of very nice pieces outside of Turner, which isn't surprising considering the recent string of very highly ranked recruiting classes in the Thad Matta era. OSU has some offensive weapons but they are lacking in a couple key areas. First of all they are not an overly deep team. Jon Diebler is a lights out shooter and Turner might be the best player in the conference but they can only carry them so far. Matta has been going with an eight man rotation so far this year with heavy minutes for the starting five. Secondly this team is not overly strong in the paint. Their perimeter is as good as anybody's in the conference but Kyle Madsen and Dallas Lauderdale will not strike fear into the hearts of the conference's coaches.

Likely Starting lineup
PG - William Buford
SG - Jon Diebler
SF - Evan Turner
PF - David Lighty
C - Kyle Madsen

4 - Minnesota (NCAA) - There was a time when my maroon goggles would have had me rank the Gophers one spot higher. The potential (probable?) losses of Royce White and Trevor Mbakwe greatly lessened my optimism. But then the impressive play of Rodney Williams to start the year has me thinking big things again, just not as grand as before. As we all know the Gophers are deep and defend very well. I think the improvement of the sophomores and the athleticism that Williams brings to the table makes this team dangerous. Over the course of a long season I don't think we have what it takes to finish in the top 2 but this team is good enough to beat anybody on their schedule.

Likely Starting lineup
PG - Al Nolen
SG - Lawrence Westbrook
SF - Rodney Williams
PF - Damian Johnson
C - Ralph Sampson III

5 - Illinois (NCAA) - this might be the team I know the least about but I do know enough to know that this team is well balanced and has the roster make-up that is well suited for Bruce Weber. Demitri McCarney, Mike Davis and Mike Tisdale are known quantities around the Big Ten. These guys averaged a combined 33 points, 14.7 rebounds and 7.2 assists per game last year. They compliment each other well and this year they add a couple dynamic freshmen to the backcourt in DJ Richardson and Brandon Paul. In the early goings these kids have 11.3 and 16.7 respectively, although they have yet to play any team of substance. Overall this will be a very good team that will only get better as the season goes along.

Likely Starting lineup
G - Brandon Paul
G - DJ Richardson
G - Demitri McCamey
PF - Mike Davis
C - Mike Tisdale

6 - Michigan (NCAA) - Manny Harris is such a great player who can win a game on his own and probably has the best pro potential in the conference. A lot of people would put the Wolverines as high as third on their prediction list based mostly on the talent of Harris and DeShawn Sims. But I'm not 100% sold on the rest of the team. John Beilein is a great coach and in year three he should really have his guys and his system working well. But once again I'm not sold on the rest of the roster and in this year's Big Ten a guy like Manny Harris will win you a few but on the nights when teams slow him down Michigan will be rather vulnerable. Decent depth, great scoring and not great interior size. A sixth place finish may seem very low but the difference between the 4th through 7th place teams could really only be a couple games.

Likely Starting lineup
PG - Darius Morris
G - Manny Harris
G - Laval Lucas-Perry
F - Zack Novak
F - DeShawn Sims

7 - Wisconsin (NCAA) - Rule #1 in Big Ten basketball, never underestimate Bo Ryan and the Badgers. This isn't a great Badger team but there is some talent here with Trevon Hughes, Jason Bohannon and even Jon Leuer is having a pretty good season thus far. It may be easy for Gopher fans to overlook Wisconsin since we did sweep them last year (that was fun to write), but this team is capable of not only beating the Gophers but finishing at least a few spots higher than this. Maybe this is wishful thinking or maybe I'm not sold that the talent is there, not even for Bo Ryan.

Likely Starting lineup
PG - Trevon Hughes
SG - Jason Bohannon
SF - Tim Jarmusz
PF - Jon Leuer
C - Keaton Nankivil

8 - Penn State (NIT) - The Talor Battle show will be a lot of fun to watch in Happy Valley. Penn State is perfectly demonstrates why I wanted to wait a couple weeks before I started my B10 preview. I once would have put PSU a spot or two higher, but after losses to UNC-Wilmington, Tulane and a 2-pnt win over Davidson (Steph Curry is no longer there folks) I am thinking that 7th might be too high. This team will go as far as Taylor Battle will lead them but the development of freshman Tim Frazier at PG and how well their interior rebounds is what could be the difference between another NIT run and the NCAA Tournament. Their Big Dance resume is already in bad shape, they'll will have to finish a lot higher in the conference standings to avoid the NIT again.

Likely Starting lineup
PG - Tim Frazier
SG - Talor Battle
SF - David Jackson
PF - Jeff Brooks
C - Andrew Jones

9 - Indiana (NIT) - Great recruiting class and I am a huge Tom Crean fan, but this year will be tough for a young Hoosier squad to make much noise in the Big Ten. The conference is the deepest and most talented that it has been in a very long time. Other years a hot, young team like Indiana could make a run into the top 5, but not this year. This will be the sheik team next year and this year you'll likely seen them stun a few top 4 teams along the way. But learning to play at the Big Ten level is not an easy adjustment no matter how talented you are. I wouldn't be completely shocked to see them finish higher, but not likely this year.

Likely Starting lineup
PG - Verdell Jones III
G - Jeremiah Rivers
G - Maurice Creek
PF - Tom Pritchard
C - Christian Watford

10 - Northwestern - This may have been the year for the Wildcats to make the tournament, but the loss of Kevin Coble effectively ended that dream. This is a surprisingly talented NU roster and with the way they defend and execute their precision offense they should never be taken lightly. But with Coble out for the season they'll rely on Michael Thompson and John Shurna. There are a couple intriguing freshmen to go along with Thompson and Shurna

Likely Starting lineup
PG - Michael Thompson
SG - Jeremy Nash
SF - Drew Crawford
PF - John Shurna
C - Luka Mirkovic

11 - Iowa - The outlook for the Hawkeye season is so bleak that they cannot help but surpass expectations this year. Scoring has been the problem this year for Iowa. There will be games when they are hot from behind the arc and maybe they'll get a few conference wins. But for the most part you can expect a lot of losses for Iowa (that too was fun to type).

Likely Starting lineup
PG - Cully Payne
SG - Anthony Tucker
SF - Matt Gatens
PF - Jarryd Cole
C - Brennan Cougill

I know that people hate preseason polls and predictions but at the conference level this is a lot of fun. Everyone has much hope and optimism for the season, except Iowa fans. There are eight teams capable of making a run to the NCAA Tournament (although Penn State is already on life support). The Big Ten should be a blast to watch this year.

Since I'm taking a wild stab at the standings here is my best guess at some post season individual awards.

All Big Ten First Team

PG - Kalin Lucas
SG - Manny Harris
SF - Evan Turner
PF - Robbie Hummel
F - DeShawn Sims

All Big Ten Second Team

G - Taylor Battle
G - Demetri McCamey
F - Jon Diebler
F - Damian johnson
C - JJ Dawson

Big Ten All Freshman Team

G - Brandon Paul - Ill
G - D.J. Richardson - Ill
F - Rodney Williams - Minn
F - Christian Watford - Ind
F - Garrick Sherman - MSU

Paradise Jam Finals Preview: #7 Purdue vs. #10 Tennessee

Will — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 19:15:10 -0000

by Brennan Linsley - AP

26 days ago: Purdue's E'twuan Moore scores past an attempted block by South Dakota State's Clint Sargent, during a game in the Paradise Jam basketball tournament, in Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, Friday, Nov. 20, 2009. Moore was the top scorer of the game, with 22 points which helped Purdue win 74-63. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley)

View full size photo »

The marquee matchup everybody wanted will take place tonight in the Paradise Jam Tournament finals, as Purdue and Tennessee square off in the first top ten showdown of the college basketball season. The Vols were untested by East Carolina in their first game in the Virgin Islands, but pushed throughout by DePaul in a defensive battle won by UT 57-53. Purdue has struggled in the first half of both of their Paradise Jam games, but pulled away in the second half each time: they lead South Dakota state by two at the break in the opener before winning by eleven, and led St. Joseph's by only one before outscoring them 54-30 in the second half.

The Boilermakers went 27-10 last year, winning the Big Ten Tournament and advancing to the Sweet 16. They returned six players with starting experience, but lost guard Lewis Jackson to a foot injury. Like all good teams, Purdue can hurt you from inside and outside. The Vols will face one of their most difficult tests of the season in terms of post defense, going against 6'8" Robbie Hummel (13 points, 6 boards per) and leading scorer 6'10" JaJuan Johnson (15 points, 7 boards per). Hummel is also capable of stepping out and hitting the three. Guard E'Twaun Moore dropped 22 on South Dakota State and is the team's second leading scorer.

The contrasting styles of both teams may hold the greatest key to victory: the Vols want to run and have struggled in the halfcourt offense ever since Chris Lofton and JaJuan Smith left, while Purdue would love to slow the pace and use DePaul's blueprint with their superior talent to grind the Vols down. If Purdue can slow Tennessee down, will the Vols be able to score in their halfcourt offense? And how will Tennessee defend against Purdue inside?

The Vols will need Scotty Hopson to play well - a good performance against a top ten team will ease everyone's mind about his 2 for 11 display yesterday, but if Hopson struggles again, we'll have to throw that inconsistent label back on him for now. If Cameron Tatum heats up from outside again, even better. We know we'll get the usual from Tyler Smith and Wayne Chism, but will it be more than Purdue gets from Hummel and Johnson?

This will be a great test for the Vols against what should turn out to be the type of team we'll have to beat in March to reach our ultimate goals. Tennessee hasn't won a tournament of any kind in nine years...can this group break the trend and make a huge statement that this team is good enough to achieve its goals and reach new heights this season? 8:30 PM EST, Fox College Sports (simulcast on Fox Sports Net).

For more on Purdue, check out Hammer & Rails.

Boilermakings for 11/10

BoilerTMill — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:48:24 -0000

Let's get right to it:

Show up for the Seniors: beat State - you now have even less of an excuse not to come on Saturday, as the Athletic Ticket Office has announced some more ticket deals. Students can get in for just $10. We have had a great student section all year, but let's get even more out there. If you are a student and you know someone who hasn't been coming, find them and get them to come for $10! Is $10 too steep? How does free sound? All current and former members of the U.S. Armed Forced and their families can get in gratis on Saturday. All United Way agency clients can get in gratis as well.

While you're coming, bring some food as well - As is tradition for the final home game of the season, the Gleaner's food bank will be accepting canned foods and donations around Ross-Ade Stadium. It really is a great Saturday. Pay a low price, see some football, and donate to a good cause all in one.

Basketball wraps up exhibition season - It's not that I am lazy, it's just that I can't get excited about blowing out a division II team. Maybe we need to join the Big East so the games are exciting. I'll get into basketball coverage full swing later this week with the Cal State Northridge preview. I'll let the Boiled Sports guys handle things with their take on this one. Some things to bear in mind from the box score alone:

Mark Wohlford played 11 minutes. He may not play 11 minutes all season.
Ryne Smith played 21 minutes. That likely won't be his average.
Coach Painter seemed content to let the younger guys get some time, which is good.
Rebounding was much better.
Robbie Hummel might be ready to finally contribute a bit as a role player, at least according to basketball expert Terry Hutchens.

Volleyball continues to struggle - After beginning the season in the top 25 the women's volleyball team appears to have fallen off a cliff. Purdue is just 3-10 after a 5-1 start to the season and will need a dramatic turnaround to make the NCAA Tournament. Sits the Michigan schools this weekend after getting swept by Minnesota last week.

Women's soccer makes NCAA Tournament - Thanks to late double overtime wins over Indiana and Iowa the Boilers (12-5-3) are headed back to the NCAA tournament. Their foe in round one will be Central Michigan, with the Notre Dame-IUPUI winner awaiting in round two. Central Michigan is in via the MAC's automatic bid. Purdue carries a #23 ranking into the tournament.

Joey Elliott named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week - Beating OSU and Michigan in the same season will do that. Ryan Kerrigan needs serious consideration for Defensive Player of the Year. He leads the Big Ten with 11 sacks, and his one of Tate Forcier on the 2-point conversion try does not count. Boo for weird statistics.

If you're into torrents, this is for you - MGoBlog was masochistic enough to post a link to a full torrent of Saturday's win in all its 720p glory. Torrent experts, please explain how I can get this badboy working.

The Return of the podcast - Finally, the Hammer & Rails podcast returns tomorrow night, as I will be talking with Ben of the Michigan State SBNation blog The Only Colors. We're going to spend roughly the first half hour talking about football, then the last half hour discussing basketball and how nice the view from the top of the conference looks for both of us. Listen live at the link at 8pm ET/7pm CT/3pm Hawaiian.

Linking Laconically can't help being a contrarian

KJ@theonlycolors — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 02:34:46 -0000

[Warning: I'm apparently unable to write anything remotely positive about football links any more. Skip down for (relatively) happier basketball links.]

Burnt Like a Couch on Grand River: The Michigan State Secondary - The Rivalry, Esq.
Brilliant commenter: "A perfect storm of defensive incompetence of an ongoing nature and offensive brilliance of a highly-surprising nature."
Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio to ask Big Ten about dubious calls | freep.com | Detroit Free Press
I don't understand the focus on the TD play, rather than the overturned fumble on the previous play, which was the clearly egregious officiating decision.
Mark Dantonio clamps down on information, access at MSU | detnews.com | The Detroit News
Isn't this something you do for Michigan week, not for Western Michigan week?
Bill Cubit: To challenge Michigan State, Broncos first must 'fix ourselves' | Western Michigan Broncos - - MLive.com
Apparently, Western is the MAC version of us.
There's hope at U-M, MSU: Basketball season starts soon! | detnews.com | The Detroit News
Wait a minute. Since when does U-M get to be in this headline?
MSU's Raymar Morgan might miss season opener | freep.com | Detroit Free Press
Also, Roe will not play in the second exhibition game. Optimistic (read: irrational) spin: Better to get injury issues out of the way early.
The Hunt: No. 38, Gonzaga - The Dagger - NCAAB - Yahoo! Sports
These guys come to town in less than two weeks.
Discounts on Entertainment, Shows, Events, Tours, Attractions & More | Travelzoo
Get your discounted tickets to see the Spartans in Atlantic City at the end of the month.
Good start for Purdue | jconline.com | Journal and Courier
Boilermakers force 32 TOs but get out-rebounded in first exhibition game. (HT: Hammer and Rails)
IU unveils new look as 'a Big Ten team' " Evansville Courier & Press
Good. Maybe they won't screw up all our scatterplots this year. (HT: Gasaway)
Basketball Prospectus | Articles | Use This All-American Team Instead
Mr. Gasaway's All-American picks: Cole Aldrich and four non-AP All-Americans.

Bonus nonlaconical basketball prediction related to that last link: One of Mr. Gasaway's All-American picks is Evan Turner. Implicit in that selection is that Turner will outperform Kalin Lucas, who is both the defending and preseason Big Ten Player of the Year, this season. Given that (1) I just recently took some issue with Gasawayian comments regarding Lucas and (2) I was picking Kalin Lucas to be Big Ten Player of the Year way before it was cool to pick Kalin Lucas to be Big Ten Player of the Year, it may come as some surprise that I agree with the Turner pick.

Last season, Lucas and Turner basically finished in a dead heat for the conference player-of-the-year honor. Lucas likely got the edge with most voters due to MSU's team success. This year, I see several reasons that Turner may move a notch higher than Lucas on the prodcutivity scale:

David Lighty will be back to ease Turner's defensive responsbilities.
Turner's been practicing at point guard over the offseason, which may help cut down on his turnovers (and boost his assists).
Turner shot 44.0% on 3-pointers last season but only took 25 shots from beyond the arc. If he can maintain a percentage near/above 40% and take a few more 3-pointers, that would boost his scoring numbers significantly.

Lucas, meanwhile, could see a reduction in his scoring numbers:

With Travis Walton gone, he'll need to expend more energy on the defensive end of the court.
Walton's departure also means there will be more scoring options on the floor with Lucas, as Chris Allen, Durrell Summers, and Korie Lucious (and hopefully Delvon Roe and Raymar Morgan) see increased playing time. That should result in less need for Lucas to manufacture scoring opportunities late in the shot clock. (Upside could be more assists, particularly in conference play.)

Plus it's no fun if you just go along with the official party line, right? On that note, I'd make one change to the official preseason All-Big Ten team. Lucas, Turner, Manny Harris, and Robbie Hummel are locks. But I'd go with JaJuan Johnson over Talor Battle (still all juniors!).

Battle certainly had some spectacular moments last season--the most spectacular occurring in East Lansing--but his conference shooting numbers were pretty mediocre (.444/.300/.688) and he may have an even harder time getting off good shots this year following the graduations of Jamelle Cornley and Stanley Pringle.

Johnson, meanwhile, was pretty clearly the most effective big man in the league last season, averaging 13.4 points (on 53.8% FG shooting), 5.6 points, and 2.1 rebounds per game in conference play. With a healthy Robbie Hummel around to prevent defenses from collapsing on Johnson, he could be even more productive this season.

Battle gets a slot on my second team, with Demetri McCamey, Raymar Morgan, Kevin Coble, and DeShawn Sims.

More previewy stuff tomorrow.

Basketball 2009-10: The Returning Players

BoilerTMill — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 13:39:43 -0000

I can barely contain my excitement. Growing up in Indiana, basketball is in my blood, and I can literally feel it coming around the corner. It felt like it began this morning when ESPN released its preseason coaches poll and Purdue was rated 7^th.

So I have decided to make basketball a three part preview before next week's exhibition opener. Part 1 was up a few weeks ago talking about the huge crop of eight newcomers to the program. Today I'll hit on the returning players and what wee need from them in addition to what they already give us. Finally, I'll talk about the schedule in part three and what we can expect as a reasonable record.

The reason this team is so highly ranked is because of its returning cast. All five starters are back. A key player off the bench is back. These are all guys that have now been around for quite awhile, so much is expected of them. Lewis Jackson is the only returning starter that is not at least a junior, and big things are expected of him too.

Seven months ago I said we needed to remember this moment because we would be back to avenge it.

Consider us back.

JaJuan Johnson - My regular readers know that I am trying subtle hypnosis to get JaJuan to stay in West Lafayette after this season. I am of the opinion that if he stays, we will win the 2011 national title because he will have an experienced Sandi Marcius as a backup and a young Travis Carroll to teach for the future. Having those three on the same team for one season in 2011 could help Purdue jump into the realm of the country's elite.

We know what we're going to get from JJ. He has a solid mid-range jumper. He is developing into a great low post player. No one abuses the rim on thunder dunks like him. If anyone ventures within five feet of him the ball will quickly be going the other way on a swat. Now we just need him to become a dominant rebounder. Ultimately, I can see that part of his game holding us back if he doesn't develop. We no longer have Calasan and Green to help him on the boards. Marcius' development will help in this, as will Patrick Bade's. The game at Michigan last year showed what can happen when JJ gets in foul trouble, so it is critical that we don't rely on him too much.

Seriously, how much fun is this? I can't dunk, so will someone who can please tell me?

Back to the hypnosis: It's too early, JaJuan. Education is important. You want to win a title and be a legend. You're not 21 yet so you haven't experienced Harry's or the Cactus...

Robbie Hummel - I honestly don't know how Robbie does it. He is a scorer, a rebounder, a deadly accurate shooter. He is also a tenacious rebounder and hustler. Robbie is a player that makes everyone else around him better because of the matchup problems he creates. If we have a smaller guy on him he can go inside and open up the 3-point shot for E'Twaun and Keaton Grant. If teams go big on him he draws that big man outside, opening up the middle for JJ. There really is no great way to guard him.

If Robbie can stay healthy this year Purdue has an excellent chance at a special season. Robbie single-handedly kept the UConn game in last year's tournament close. Purdue can win a lot of games with just Robbie Hummel playing well. With Hummel and everyone else playing well, it is very hard for them to lose games. We just need Robbie to be Robbie this year and stay healthy. If everyone steps up around him I don't think there is a team in the country we can't beat.

E'Twaun Moore - If 2008 was Robbie's breakout year as a freshman and 2009 was JJ's as a sophomore, the third of that "Baby Boilers" group is due this year. I think we have yet to see E'Twaun's talents as a pure scorer. I call him a scorer because he is a player that can create his own shot nearly anywhere on the floor. He is capable of taking over a game and exploding for a personal 12-0 run at any time.

E'Twaun has been far from a disappointment so far. He is a consistent scorer. We know we're getting 13-15 from him every night. What I want to see from him is the ability to just go apeshit and drop 30 on anyone at any time. I know he has it within him. We saw flashes of it last year in the losses to Oklahoma and Penn State, where he put the team on his back for long stretches. We also got a taste when he had a season high 26 on 10 of 14 shooting against IU. There was also the game at Illinois in 2008 when he went for 24 on 10 of 12 shooting. I want E'Twaun to be a bad, bad man that other teams fear. I want him to be the assassin that closes games out with absolutely backbreaking baskets. You know the type, when a team needs a stop and they defend until the shot clock runs down only to have someone drill a 17 foot jumper with a hand in his face. E'Twaun is that type of player, and this is his year.

Chris Kramer - Is he really a senior? I know I have talked about him coming back to play football next year, and that is a rumor that continues to grow legs. We still get one more year of basketball and Chris has made his goal clear: he wants his Defensive Player of the Year award back.

Kramer is the type of player where you love him if he is on your team, but hate him if you're facing him. I am convinced the man cannot feel pain. He is tenacious and drives other teams nuts with his mere presence. His scoring has gone down every year, but we don't need him to be a scorer. If he can generate a few points every night on turnovers and icing free throws that is fine with me. We have plenty of other guys that can score. Kramer generates plenty of offense through steals and assists even if he isn't the guy that actually puts the ball in the basket. We just need Kramer to be Kramer.

Keaton Grant - Any time you can have a guy like Keaton Grant come off the bench you know you're a good team. His scoring was down a little last year, but that is because he had a reduced role in the offense and was still recovering from knee surgery. With him completely healthy we have another great 3-point shooter. In 2008 he shot 44% from long range, but dipped to 35% last year with more attempts.

Keaton needs to be a shooter, plain and simple. We need him to return to his 2008 shooting form where he buried nearly every open look from beyond the arc. Part of the reason his numbers dropped could be because they moved the 3-point line out a foot, but he can still be a dangerous weapon off the bench from long range.

Lewis Jackson - I thought LewJack was the missing piece coming into last year. We needed a distributor who could force tempo and make us run at times. He filled that role perfectly, and now we just need him to mature both on and off the court. He offseason arrest for alcohol and pot was not a step in this direction. One has to think he is on very thin ice coming into this season, as he is already suspended for both exhibition games and the opener against Cal State Northridge. Honestly, it is a pretty toothless suspension. We don't need him in the exhibitions and Cal State Northridge is a game we should win regardless of who plays. Still, LewJack must learn and grow.

As a point guard, LewJack needs to improve on his assist to turnover ratio (nearly 3:2 last year, so not bad) and he needs to be a better free throw shooter. He is going to have the ball in his hands a lot at the end of games. He also will be driving the lane a lot and drawing contact, so 58% from the line won't cut it.

Ryne Smith - I have read a lot about how Smith has bulked up and is ready for more minutes this year. He is an interesting case. If you read the message board chatter after last season ended, Smith was a candidate for transfer because surely the newcomers would take what few minutes he had. It appears he has bulked up and improved his shooting stroke though.

Smith is almost exclusively a 3-point shooter. He was 6 of 21 from the field last year, but only four attempts were inside the arc. He was 5 of 17 from 3-point range, so if he has improved his stroke I know we can use him as a 3-point shooting specialist for a few minutes each night. In the college game you always have room for a kid that can just shoot the basketball, especially from long range. Smith gives us another option in this area.

Mark Wohlford - Wohlford is the only returning player that is not expected to have a huge impact on the court. The walk-on has only played in 18 career games, mostly as a final minute replacement when we've had a big lead. He has four career points. Wohlford will still be a leader though.

We have a lot of walk-ons. Bubba Day, Stevie Loveless, Kyle Coleman, and Dru Anthrop give us a virtual practice squad of players. Wohlford will likely take on a leadership role in this group, giving us essentially our own team to practice against. How can you not like that? If Wohlford has to play in a game and can give us anything at all it is gravy.

Final Analysis:

There is a reason we're ranked #7 in the preseason and on the short list for the Final Four. This is a damn good basketball team with a lot of returning talent plus some pretty good freshmen. All the parts fit each other well. That is the biggest aspect, especially in the style we play. We are not an individualistic team. We don't feature one guy that when you stop him, you stop us. We thrive on spreading around the scoring and playing team defense.

Tell me, Digger: Will you be using the highlighter to point out how wrong about Purdue you have been? If so, let me give you a few more so you don't run out.

Of course, the media doesn't like this. We'll probably piss of Digger Phelps all season long by <gasp> playing defense and doing what we need to do to win games. So what if we don't score 95 points per game. Who freaking cares! You don't need to score 95 when you can hold opponents under 60. The object of the game is to win. It doesn't matter if you win by 1 or 100. This team is built to win basketball games, and it will win a lot of them.