Purdue at Oregon: MASTER DISCUSSION THREAD
- By Boiler Buck
- Boilermaker Men's Basketball
- 331 Replies
Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Today, the #17-ranked Purdue Boilermakers (14-4; 6-1) stay out on the West coast and are in Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene to take on the #13-ranked Oregon Ducks (15-2; 4-2) in a key conference clash. Tip is scheduled for around 3:00 pm (Eastern time) with television coverage on NBC and Peacock. This is the only scheduled meeting between the schools this season.
Projected Starting Line-ups:
Purdue - Trey Kaufman-Renn, Caleb Furst, CJ Cox, Fletcher Loyer, and Braden Smith
Oregon - Brandon Angel, Nate Bittle, Adrian Tracey, Jackson Shelstad, and TJ Bamba
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Purdue has won six straight and is coming off a second-half comeback win at Washington on Wednesday, 69-58. Oregon has won three straight and has been off since last Sunday after sweeping a road trip to Ohio State and then Penn State.
Oregon is solid in all areas and can play inside outside, which will certainly be a big challenge for Purdue's defense in a road environment. Each of the Ducks' top-eight rotation players averages six or more points per game. They can also play different styles — a more physical one with Supreme Cook in the paint or a more skilled center with Nate Bittle. Bittle leads Oregon in scoring with 13.7 points per game and also leads with 7.8 rebounds per game. Next is guard Jackson Shelstad with 12.5 points and 3 assists per game. Shelstad also shoots 36.8% from beyond the arc and is excellent from the FT line with a 86.1 FT%. Oregon has terrific guard play next to Shelstad — Keeshawn Barthelemy and TJ Bamba can erupt in the scoring column just like Shelstad, and Jadrian Tracey is a rugged defender.
Oregon is currently 25th overall in the KenPom ratings, 21st offensively and 40th defensively. It plays with a quicker pace than Purdue with an adjusted tempo rated 141st to Purdue's 298th. Purdue is up to 10th overall in the KenPom ratings, 9th in offensive efficiency and 40th defensively.
This is Purdue's biggest true road test since Marquette, and they will need two halves like the second half last game at Washington, or this could be a long afternoon for the Boilers. In road conference play (Penn State, Minnesota, Rutgers, and Washington), they've been inconsistent at best with long-range shooting. They will definitely need better results today against a talented Oregon squad. On defense, expect Purdue to try and focus containment on Bittle and Shelstad. Bittle's 3-pt FG shooting has also opened up even more opportunities for the Duck's offense. Keeshawn Barthelemy, along with Shelstad can also get going from beyond the arc, allowing Oregon to play outside in as well.
The Boilers have been pretty solid of late with avoiding many live-ball turnovers - those would be killers today. Simply put, Purdue will need maximum execution today - expect them to still try to work through Trey Kaufmann-Renn, but this is also a game where Braden Smith will need to assert himself looking to score - and the Boilers will definitely need some production from CJ Cox, Myles Colvin, Cam Heide, and Gicarri Harris.
Matt Painter knows the challenge for his team today - "I've watched them maybe one time on film, and then I've watched a lot of highlights... But if you just look at their schedule and their record and all the people they've played and beat, it speaks for itself. If the tournament was right now, they'd be a two or a three seed. (Dana Altman) is a fabulous coach. Very familiar with him being from Creighton 20 years ago when I was at Southern Illinois."
A win today would be a huge boost for Purdue in the conference race getting a tough road win over one of the expected contenders. Can the Boilers end this trip to the West on a high note before returning home?
We shall see, starting in about an hour or so.
Boiler up, my friends.
Fantastic write up as usual....thanks.
Mentioning Marquette in the write up left a bit of a sour taste though .....LOL
