A few final musings from Purdue's 75-70 win over Northwestern, because I know how you like musings ...
• Jaden Ivey's a star. I knew it the first time I really saw him play and now you all know it, too. Not outside the realm that this sort of game he played tonight, this is his normal as early as next season.
• Kind of figured again that when Northwestern made all those threes right before half, that wasn't gonna hold up. The final score says a five-point win. The reality is this was more like a 10-point win. The reality is also that it doesn't matter one bit.
• Zach Edey was this game's most pivotal defensive player and its closer. What a luxury to have a first-team All-Big Ten-level guy go out with fouls and have another impact player come in. Who else has that luxury? Edey's going to be a great college player and then play basketball for a long time.
• Purdue's guards' control of the pace of this game really mattered. The Boilermakers pushing the ball up the floor quickly and turning defense into offense totally offset the lack of interior scoring, which they can normally count on. Jaden Ivey and Eric Hunter really did some good things in transition.
• Speaking of defense to offense, this was a great hands game for Purdue again on defense. Ten steals, four blocks, I don't know how many deflections. Stefanovic broke up a fast break all by himself. Eric Hunter was really good on D. Ivey seemed to play well on D, and made a really neat play on that steal after his shot was blocked that he turned into a dunk. That was Kramer-level will.
• Will repeat: Ivey is so good going to the basket, it still feels like he lets defenses off the hook sometimes when he shoots anything but the very best of threes.
• Good problem to have when you have a freshman you adore on the bench who was a national recruit and you can't even get him in the game. Ethan Morton didn't play for the first time this season. Even better problem to have when the other freshman playing so well you couldn't take him out is part of the reason.
• Purdue's got to get Stefanovic onboarded again and meld this newfound empowerment for Ivey with what Purdue had going before Stefanovic got sick. If that all goes smoothly and all your assets can be leveraged, Ivey's emergence can take this team to a different level offensively.
• Jumps off the box score, and not in a good way, that Purdue only outrebounded one of the worst rebounding teams in the league by two and allowed eight offensive rebounds to one of the worst offensive rebounding teams in America, but I guess that can be chalked up to Trevion Williams not being out there as much.
• I'll repeat: How often is the 7-4 freshmen the guy who ices the game at the foul line?
• Pretty ugly stretch there at the end trying to inbound the ball. Don't even know what to say about it. It's not like they don't practice it.
Thanks for reading, everyone, and have a good night.
• Jaden Ivey's a star. I knew it the first time I really saw him play and now you all know it, too. Not outside the realm that this sort of game he played tonight, this is his normal as early as next season.
• Kind of figured again that when Northwestern made all those threes right before half, that wasn't gonna hold up. The final score says a five-point win. The reality is this was more like a 10-point win. The reality is also that it doesn't matter one bit.
• Zach Edey was this game's most pivotal defensive player and its closer. What a luxury to have a first-team All-Big Ten-level guy go out with fouls and have another impact player come in. Who else has that luxury? Edey's going to be a great college player and then play basketball for a long time.
• Purdue's guards' control of the pace of this game really mattered. The Boilermakers pushing the ball up the floor quickly and turning defense into offense totally offset the lack of interior scoring, which they can normally count on. Jaden Ivey and Eric Hunter really did some good things in transition.
• Speaking of defense to offense, this was a great hands game for Purdue again on defense. Ten steals, four blocks, I don't know how many deflections. Stefanovic broke up a fast break all by himself. Eric Hunter was really good on D. Ivey seemed to play well on D, and made a really neat play on that steal after his shot was blocked that he turned into a dunk. That was Kramer-level will.
• Will repeat: Ivey is so good going to the basket, it still feels like he lets defenses off the hook sometimes when he shoots anything but the very best of threes.
• Good problem to have when you have a freshman you adore on the bench who was a national recruit and you can't even get him in the game. Ethan Morton didn't play for the first time this season. Even better problem to have when the other freshman playing so well you couldn't take him out is part of the reason.
• Purdue's got to get Stefanovic onboarded again and meld this newfound empowerment for Ivey with what Purdue had going before Stefanovic got sick. If that all goes smoothly and all your assets can be leveraged, Ivey's emergence can take this team to a different level offensively.
• Jumps off the box score, and not in a good way, that Purdue only outrebounded one of the worst rebounding teams in the league by two and allowed eight offensive rebounds to one of the worst offensive rebounding teams in America, but I guess that can be chalked up to Trevion Williams not being out there as much.
• I'll repeat: How often is the 7-4 freshmen the guy who ices the game at the foul line?
• Pretty ugly stretch there at the end trying to inbound the ball. Don't even know what to say about it. It's not like they don't practice it.
Thanks for reading, everyone, and have a good night.
