Greetings, everyone, from Mackey Arena (or something like that): Big game tonight, #23 Purdue vs. #25 Wisconsin. The first ranked team Purdue will play in forever and the last it'll face this regular season.
Purdue's taken full advantage of its relatively easy slate to end the season, having beaten Michigan State and then Nebraska and Penn State on the road, looking good in doing all three. Now it gets two home games to finish up and, best case, clinch the No. 4 seed to the Big Ten Tournament.
This one's big — another Quad 1 on top of its meaning toward the Big Ten race.
Wisconsin's probably not been a disappointment, per se, this season, but I doubt its feelings toward its season thus far would be much above lukewarm. The Badgers are the league's reigning co-champs, and despite their inordinate experience, they got swept by Michigan (the second game Michigan's first coming out of shutdown), swept by Illinois (the second game without Ayo), lost their only meeting with Ohio State and may get swept by Iowa.
The co-league champ from last year, with everybody back, wasn't even a contender this season, and lost a ton of home games. Wisconsin used to be unbeatable at the Kohl Center.
Still, Wisconsin is the poster child for Big Ten cannibalism. This is a good team with a lineup older than many NBA teams that just hasn't cut it this season in the best league in America. In any other conference, Wisconsin's got 20 wins by now, not 16.
Tonight, Purdue gets its only shot at the Badgers of this regular season and I can tell you that Purdue is the more talented team, the more athletic team and the more physical team around the basket. I thought Purdue was the better of these two teams last season, but one of the two teams knew how to win and the other didn't, so their seasons diverged sharply.
Being better than Wisconsin and beating Wisconsin are two very different things, however, because winning against these guys normally requires a great deal of care and diligence, to levels a lot of teams aren't consistently capable of. Young teams can get caught in the Badger trap. Purdue doesn't necessarily play as young as it is, but that's a key dynamic tonight, because beating Wisconsin is like diffusing a bomb. Gotta cut all the right wires or else you're gonna go splat.
A few things ...
• Patiently aggressive: Wisconsin's gonna be deliberate and boring, try to take the air out of the ball and win a low-possessions game. They're not gonna turn the ball over much. It's a style that could drive an eager team crazy, and Purdue does have some eager young guys, who must be wary of bad shots, unnecessary risks and chances taken defensively that might reset shot clocks or give Wisconsin easy points at the foul line.
That said, passiveness can be worse. Purdue is going to need to score, so that fine line is a real thing.
• Trevion Williams: Purdue's won big the past two games without needing Williams to get 20-some points. It wouldn't have been able to do that a month ago, and I think tonight, it sure would help. Wisconsin's a little bit like Minnesota, where their bigs are good, but they're not nearly as physical as Illinois, Iowa, Rutgers etc on the interior. Williams should have an advantage, especially against Nate Reuvers. Zach Edey too. This applies to post scoring and the glass. Those guys need to be decisive and make good decisions, because help is going to come, and the faster you attack, or the faster you move the ball, the better.
• Ivey and Hunter: Purdue will have physical advantages all over the place, and Jaden Ivey's burst and athleticism could be a real difference-maker in particular, though Wisconsin is built to stymie the dribble. Eric Hunter isn't going to blow by many people, but sometimes when things bog down, anyone who can make a play off the dribble may need to. They're both important players tonight, Hunter more so at the defensive end because of D'Mitrik Trice.
Purdue normally does a great job containing a singular high-scoring guard and tonight it will need to do so again.
That's what I've got.
Discuss the game here or however you wish. I'll chip in during the game and be on Twitter at @brianneubert.
Full coverage to come in the wee hours of the morning.
Thanks folks.
Purdue's taken full advantage of its relatively easy slate to end the season, having beaten Michigan State and then Nebraska and Penn State on the road, looking good in doing all three. Now it gets two home games to finish up and, best case, clinch the No. 4 seed to the Big Ten Tournament.
This one's big — another Quad 1 on top of its meaning toward the Big Ten race.
Wisconsin's probably not been a disappointment, per se, this season, but I doubt its feelings toward its season thus far would be much above lukewarm. The Badgers are the league's reigning co-champs, and despite their inordinate experience, they got swept by Michigan (the second game Michigan's first coming out of shutdown), swept by Illinois (the second game without Ayo), lost their only meeting with Ohio State and may get swept by Iowa.
The co-league champ from last year, with everybody back, wasn't even a contender this season, and lost a ton of home games. Wisconsin used to be unbeatable at the Kohl Center.
Still, Wisconsin is the poster child for Big Ten cannibalism. This is a good team with a lineup older than many NBA teams that just hasn't cut it this season in the best league in America. In any other conference, Wisconsin's got 20 wins by now, not 16.
Tonight, Purdue gets its only shot at the Badgers of this regular season and I can tell you that Purdue is the more talented team, the more athletic team and the more physical team around the basket. I thought Purdue was the better of these two teams last season, but one of the two teams knew how to win and the other didn't, so their seasons diverged sharply.
Being better than Wisconsin and beating Wisconsin are two very different things, however, because winning against these guys normally requires a great deal of care and diligence, to levels a lot of teams aren't consistently capable of. Young teams can get caught in the Badger trap. Purdue doesn't necessarily play as young as it is, but that's a key dynamic tonight, because beating Wisconsin is like diffusing a bomb. Gotta cut all the right wires or else you're gonna go splat.
A few things ...
• Patiently aggressive: Wisconsin's gonna be deliberate and boring, try to take the air out of the ball and win a low-possessions game. They're not gonna turn the ball over much. It's a style that could drive an eager team crazy, and Purdue does have some eager young guys, who must be wary of bad shots, unnecessary risks and chances taken defensively that might reset shot clocks or give Wisconsin easy points at the foul line.
That said, passiveness can be worse. Purdue is going to need to score, so that fine line is a real thing.
• Trevion Williams: Purdue's won big the past two games without needing Williams to get 20-some points. It wouldn't have been able to do that a month ago, and I think tonight, it sure would help. Wisconsin's a little bit like Minnesota, where their bigs are good, but they're not nearly as physical as Illinois, Iowa, Rutgers etc on the interior. Williams should have an advantage, especially against Nate Reuvers. Zach Edey too. This applies to post scoring and the glass. Those guys need to be decisive and make good decisions, because help is going to come, and the faster you attack, or the faster you move the ball, the better.
• Ivey and Hunter: Purdue will have physical advantages all over the place, and Jaden Ivey's burst and athleticism could be a real difference-maker in particular, though Wisconsin is built to stymie the dribble. Eric Hunter isn't going to blow by many people, but sometimes when things bog down, anyone who can make a play off the dribble may need to. They're both important players tonight, Hunter more so at the defensive end because of D'Mitrik Trice.
Purdue normally does a great job containing a singular high-scoring guard and tonight it will need to do so again.
That's what I've got.
Discuss the game here or however you wish. I'll chip in during the game and be on Twitter at @brianneubert.
Full coverage to come in the wee hours of the morning.
Thanks folks.
