Purdue Boilermakers
Big Ten (21-12, 10-8)
Purdue has not quite had the season that it did the last two seasons. They had a combined 14 losses over those two seasons. By the middle of their conference schedule this year, they already had seven losses. They have lost a lot of talent over the course of the last few years, including E’Twaun Moore and JaJuan Johnson. The ever-steady Robbie Hummel returned from injury with another year of eligibility, which was a huge boost for the Boilermakers. This is an experienced team with an experienced coach that just could not outmatch a lot of the talent in the Big Ten.
Big Wins: 11/18 vs Temple (85-77), 2/15 at Illinois (67-62), 2/25 at Michigan (75-61)
Bad Losses: 12/3 at Xavier (63-66), 12/17 vs Butler (65-67), 1/5 at Penn State (45-65)
Coach: Matt Painter (7 seasons at Purdue)
Why They Can Surprise:
Matt Painter and Robbie Hummel. These two have been around for the last few tournament runs that Purdue has made. Since 2007, Painter’s teams have won no less than 25 games. They’ve gotten out of the first round in each of the last five years. Painter knows how to coach a team in the NCAA tournament. With the experienced players on this roster, they have a good idea of what it’s going to take to win. Hummel has been in the tournament for his entire career. He leads the team in scoring and rebounding. He will be relied on each and every game in the postseason. He will need to have great performances for them to go deep in March.
Why They Can Disappoint:
Despite their experience, Purdue is just not as talented as a lot of other teams in the country. They don’t shoot very well (43.9%), and they have trouble rebounding (-0.5 rebounding margin). They are also one of the worst free throw shooting teams in the land as well at just over 65% of their attempts. Throughout the year, this team has lost to teams they are supposed to beat. Losing to Butler at home was devastating after relinquishing a double-digit lead at the end of the game. Will they be able to rise to the occasion if they play a lesser team in the tournament? They need to prove it.
Probable Starters:
Lewis Jackson, Senior, Guard, 10.3 ppg, 4.3 apg
Ryne Smith, Senior, Guard, 9.5 ppg, 1.1 apg
Terone Johnson, Sophomore, Guard, 8.8 ppg, 1.9 apg
D.J Byrd, Junior, Guard-Forward, 8.9 ppg, 2.3 rpg
Robbie Hummel, Senior, Forward, 16.3 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 1.2 bpg
Key Roleplayers:
Anthony Johnson, Freshman, Guard, 5.3 ppg, 1.1 apg
Jacob Lawson, Freshman, Forward, 2.4 ppg, 1.9 rpg
Travis Carroll, Sophomore, Forward, 2.7 ppg, 3.0 rpg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 72.0 (78, 4)
Scoring Defense: 65.5 (128, 9)
Field-Goal Percentage: 43.9 (146, 9)
Field-Goal Defense: 44.1 (224, 9)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 7.9 (35, 3)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 36.8 (63, 3)
Free-Throw Percentage: 65.6 (275, 12)
Rebound Margin: -0.5 (208, 9)
Assists Per Game: 13.6 (110, 7)
Turnovers Per Game: 8.7 (1, 1)
Last Five Postseason Appearances:
Purdue 2011 NCAA Round of 64 win over St. Peters
Purdue 2011 NCAA Round of 32 loss to VCU
Purdue 2010 NCAA Round of 64 win over Siena
Purdue 2010 NCAA Round of 32 win over Texas A&M
Purdue 2010 NCAA Regional Semifinal loss to Duke
Purdue 2009 NCAA Round of 64 win over Northern Iowa
Purdue 2009 NCAA Round of 32 win over Washington
Purdue 2009 NCAA Regional Semifinal loss to Connecticut
Purdue 2008 NCAA Round of 64 win over Baylor
Purdue 2008 NCAA Round of 32 loss to Xavier
Purdue 2007 NCAA Round of 64 win over Arizona
Purdue 2007 NCAA Round of 32 loss to Florida
*all team stats through 3/4
See All Men’s Basketball Postseason Capsules
