After Two Rounds, the Boilermakers Look Great!

by: Sam Sprunger

Sam is the President of Lounge Sports Network, as well as the co-host of B1G Talk & Boilermaker Lounge, brought to you by LSN, and streamed on the ASAP Network!
As a die-hard Purdue basketball fan, he brings a perspective that dates back to the early-1980s all the way to today!

The Purdue Boilermakers advanced to their sixth Sweet 16 appearance in the last eight seasons, after two wins, in Providence, RI (1st rd: High Point; 2nd rd: McNeese).
They limped into Providence, losers of six of their last nine games, and were not showing many glimpses of the top-7 ranked team we saw earlier in the season.

High Point
Many picked High Point to eliminate last season's national runner-up... while there were times where the Panthers pressed Purdue, forcing the Boilers to flex to get back to a more comfortable spread, but at no time after getting the lead, did they fall behind! Post play, which we've seen all season, was critical to establish and maintain the lead!
The main two, TKR & Braden Smith, were doing the things they do, but it was the other things that had plagued the Boilers, most of the season, came through about the upstart 13-seed!

Defense:
The defensive side was more than strong against High Point. On the Panther offensive side, Purdue won the rebounding battle 26 defensive rebounds to High Point's 7 offensive rebounds! If High Point didn't make their first shot on offense, they were limited, and it was a huge difference in the way the game played out!

Turnovers:
Purdue played a relatively error-free basketball, by only turning the ball over seven times! Combine that with 19(!) offensive rebounds, the Boilers provided themselves with second, third, and sometimes fourth opportunities at getting a bucket!

Bench:
Where was this bench all season?! There were glimpses of what they could do, but for the better part of 66% of the season, they were a detriment to the overall value to the roster. All four who came off the bench contributed, and overall, the bench contributed 22 points and 22 rebounds, led by Camden Heide who had a double-double with 11 pts. and 10 rebs.

McNeese
After upsetting 5-seed, Clemson, the McNeese Cowboys were next for the Boilermakers! The Cowboys were picked by some to advance to the Sweet 16, but not necessarily against the Boilers. They were the "trendy" pick to be Cinderella, this tournament (IF those people didn't pick High Point to advance). If you watched the game... you know it wasn't even close, and Purdue is going to Indianapolis to play in the Sweet 16 on Friday!

Defense:
Much like against High Point, Purdue commanded the defensive boards by outrebounding the Cowboys by 21 on the McNeese offensive side 29 (defensively) to 7 (offensively for McNeese). Purdue gave the Cowboy offense fits on getting good looks and then McNeese struggled to knock down the shots they took. That then leads to the board domination leading to one-and-done trips down the floor.

Bench:
It wasn't the same dominant contribution they provided against High Point, but the bench provided 16 pts. and 13 rebounds, led by Myles Colvin with 8pts. and 6 rebs!
Again, the bench provided production that assisted in taking the up-start underdog out of the game!

Free Throws:
The Boilermakers went 19-23 (82.6%) from the free throw line, while McNeese was 5-13 (38.5%). This is something that was preached by Coach Keady when he was at the helm in West Lafayette, and it had been a struggle, at points, this season.
Against McNeese, this was something that helped them win this game, going away! Had Purdue missed 3 more, and McNeese made 6 more, it would have been only a 5-point game (comparing it to the final score of 76-62), and we might be talking about a different outcome, because the Cowboys stopped intentional fouling with about a minute and a half left in the game!
Purdue being so good, and McNeese not being very good from the line certainly made the game the blowout the game was, in all actuality.

Purdue beat McNeese by 14 (it wasn't actually that close), and committed 19 turnovers, and were outscored in the paint, and on fast break points... what does this say to me?
These two rounds have proven the Boilermakers are starting to play like the top-10 team they were a few weeks ago, before losing those 6 out of 9 games!

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Does Purdue have an opportunity to upset the top-seeded Houston Cougars, Friday night, in Indianapolis? Short answer, yes!
Longer answer, if they play like they did in Providence, but limit the turnovers UNLIKE they did against McNeese, Purdue can beat a number 1-seed for the first time in their school's history!
They have the pieces at the top with TKR, Braden, and Fletcher. They have a bench who has been contributing, lately, and the team's rebounding at a high-effective rate!
Those combined with nothing to lose, because they're playing on "house money," actually makes them a dangerous team to play this weekend! Can they lose to Houston...? 100% yes they are capable of being run out of Lucas Oil Stadium, but with an improved defensive effort, from an already good level in the first two rounds, they're going to give the Cougars issues!

Coach Matt Painter has done a fantastic job coaching a team that was expected, and has performed at a lower level than last season's national runner-up. This team has struggled to find its identity while playing an extremely tough non-conference schedule, and was as high as #7 in the polls.
Painter also has stated, recently, that it's difficult to build a team to win the B1G, AND make a run in the NCAA Tournament. There are obviously exceptions, like last year's Boilers and this year's Michigan St., but many times the conference winners don't see the success in March, and those teams who succeed in March often struggle through a conference season in the B1G.
Welp, there were many times where Purdue strengthened themselves during their hard schedule, took lumps in the conference season, and now they are looking good in the tournament!

If they lose, Friday, nobody will be shocked, but if they win, they will put the rest of the NCAA Tournament on notice!
​Yes, after two rounds, the Boilermakers look great!