Good to see...

[hunkgolden]

Matt beginning to make the tough and somewhat unpopular choice of giving more playing time to his freshman shooting guard over his junior. End result is better shot selection and less long rebounds from these missed bad shots leading to breakouts the other way. Would like to see Dakota get more and more of Davis' minutes as well. Love Ray but he's just not the same defender he was last year and his lack of outside shot allows his defender to sag off and clog the middle. Dakota on the floor keeps the lane clear and he makes great entry passes. His defense is not that much of a drop-off from Davis' at this point.

OSU clearly has the better athletes but Purdue played the smarter game, took good shots, and didn't allow the Buckeyes to get out and run. Solid win.

 

[spradecki]

Matt beginning to make the tough and somewhat unpopular choice of giving more playing time to his freshman shooting guard over his junior. End result is better shot selection and less long rebounds from these missed bad shots leading to breakouts the other way. Would like to see Dakota get more and more of Davis' minutes as well. Love Ray but he's just not the same defender he was last year and his lack of outside shot allows his defender to sag off and clog the middle. Dakota on the floor keeps the lane clear and he makes great entry passes. His defense is not that much of a drop-off from Davis' at this point.

OSU clearly has the better athletes but Purdue played the smarter game, took good shots, and didn't allow the Buckeyes to get out and run. Solid win.

KS is one of the 5 best players on the roster

 

[hunkgolden]

KS is one of the 5 best players on the roster

This opinion is based on what? He's a shooting guard and his shooting stats are not good. Not sure how why people continue to call him a good shooter - he's not. He shoots a lot - mostly off balance and from well beyond the 3 point line which often leads to long rebounds turning into fast breaks for the opposition. There are 8 players I'd rather have on the floor than him - and it appears Matt is beginning to agree with me.

 

[rgarlitz]

Agree that OSU is more athletic than Purdue. That team will be very good next year. They got to the rim with such ease the entire first half.

I'm honestly not sure what to say about the shooting guard situation. We have 4 guys who can make a valid case for minutes. I think Ray Day is starting to get his defensive mojo back. Mathias and Cline are probably the most dependable shooters. KS is just so streaky. I would've said the long-term solution is to move Dakota to the 1 and let Cline and KS fight it out, but I'm starting to think that PJ will take over the 1 full time next year.

 

[boilerpt]

If KS wasn't so hyped as a shooter coming in, I'm not sure too many would consider him much of a shooter now. He presents the defense with the threat of a good shooter, but more often than not doesn't deliver. I'm much more confident in Cline and Mathias because both make better decisions with the ball (passing and shot selection).

 

[hunkgolden]

KS is one of the 5 best players on the roster

32% from 3; 60% on free throws; 35% shooting overall; 1 rebound per game; and 1 assist per game. The stats simply don't support your assertion.

 

[Purdue Grad in Texas]

I hesitate to respond in this thread, but it's a Friday.

Although I may not agree with the delivery, there's valid criticism there. KS only played 5 minutes last night. Like many others, I would love to see Kendall Stephens break out.....I do think he is one of the more talented players and has the "potential" to be a very good player, but right now, the results on the court aren't there, and I'm fairly sure he would probably agree.

I think he can be a very good shooter, but I think the poorer results are from "forced" shots......he probably takes some of the more difficult attempts of all the Boilers. However, he has shown much more promise defending, and he is a very good post-feeder IMO.

I think where CMP would play him more is if he became more of a lock-down wing defender and expanded his offensive game. We've seen flashes of that, but I think it will be difficult for him to get heavy minutes if his only production is from long-range. He can get on very good runs, but that requires some rhythm (and more minutes.....Catch 22) like in the first half of the Iowa game.

Still think he's going to figure it out.....and I think the Boilers will be that much tougher.....he has the potential to be the type of player other teams have to game-plan for.....and could provide a lot more options for the offense. But right now, it's not happening. He's not hanging his head or getting down from what I have seen.....

CMP looks like he is shortening the rotations just a bit.....it's a double-edged sword with the depth chart.

 

[boilerpt]

KS does have a ton of potential, but so do a lot of players in this league. Unfortunately, this far into his college career, I have a hard time seeing him ever maximizing it. By this point I would have expected better decisions with respect to shot selection as well as some development other areas of his offensive game. I will say that he has shown some improvement on defense.

He could surprise me next year and be the type of player that many know he could be, but I think it's more likely that he spends his last year backing up Dakota and Cline.

 

[TC4THREE]

Agree on both but I think it's important to keep in mind that either player can help us win games so they need to keep getting opportunities to play. I've said all season long that we should be playing all of our rotational players in the first half and letting their play determine how our second half rotations go. I feel terrible for Davis because I think he's playing injured and giving all he can but lately he's just not been the same player he was last year. Last night I felt was particularly rough for him on both ends of the court.

 

[02Boilermaker]

It's weird. I think KS's shot selection has shown improvement, but his shooting %'s haven't seen the corresponding increase yet. I do think he's improved in other areas on offense (passing & TOs...see below) & defense (his steal % is up half a steal per 40 min this season).

KS is one of our best at feeding the post (probably because his defender has to respect the 3 & can't sag off). His TO% this season is much better (almost half of last season's %). In B1G play, his 4.0 Asst/TO ratio ranks T-5th in the league.

Unfortunately for KS (but good for the team), the guys he is competing with for minutes are doing those things well too. Dakota is 4th in B1G play with a 4.2 Asst/TO & Cline is 3rd at 4.5 asst/TO (BTW, PJT leads the B1G at 6.0 asst/TO in league games).

The minutes are there if any of those guys can step up & consistently earn more of them; but like TC4THREE said, I still think it needs to be a game-by-game evaluation for now.

 

[BoilerFan16]

I feel terrible for Davis because I think he's playing injured and giving all he can but lately he's just not been the same player he was last year. Last night I felt was particularly rough for him on both ends of the court.

You thought Davis struggled last night defensively?? I surely didn't see that. He held their leading scorer without a basket in the first half and then was switched to Williams whenever he was in the game in the second. Williams goes for zero points in the second after 14 first half points. Now Williams did make a three over Ray in the first half off of transition, but it was a good closeout and a better shot. I thought Ray looked like him self on D last night. Loving would not have scored at all on him if the refs would have called those travel violations.

 

[TC4THREE]

You thought Davis struggled last night defensively?? I surely didn't see that. He held their leading scorer without a basket in the first half and then was switched to Williams whenever he was in the game in the second. Williams goes for zero points in the second after 14 first half points. Now Williams did make a three over Ray in the first half off of transition, but it was a good closeout and a better shot. I thought Ray looked like him self on D last night. Loving would not have scored at all on him if the refs would have called those travel violations.

He did fine on Williams in the second half but he ended up on Loving alot. I only thought Loving traveled once and he got Davis up in the air against him a number of times on shot fakes. Also thought that his guy got past him a few times in the first half that didn't lead to his guy scoring but still led to their team scoring.

 

[lbodel]

He did fine on Williams in the second half but he ended up on Loving alot. I only thought Loving traveled once and he got Davis up in the air against him a number of times on shot fakes. Also thought that his guy got past him a few times in the first half that didn't lead to his guy scoring but still led to their team scoring.

Agreed - overall, he played well defensively. But it was not his greatest outing. We also have sky high expectations of him.

 

[BuilderBob6]

He did fine on Williams in the second half but he ended up on Loving alot. I only thought Loving traveled once and he got Davis up in the air against him a number of times on shot fakes. Also thought that his guy got past him a few times in the first half that didn't lead to his guy scoring but still led to their team scoring.

Yeah he has lost something on his lateral movement. Loving went around him several times in the second half. Now, Loving is more athletic and quicker than him but usually Ray can make up for that with technique and effort. He's not 100% yet imo.

 

[Purdue Grad in Texas]

Yeah he has lost something on his lateral movement. Loving went around him several times in the second half. Now, Loving is more athletic and quicker than him but usually Ray can make up for that with technique and effort. He's not 100% yet imo.

Tend to agree here.....I think RD is regaining his footing so-to-speak defensively, but the knee injury certainly has slowed him a bit. Also showing up on the other end of the floor as well. It will be interesting to see who he covers this weekend. Jok went off big-time against Rutgers; Uthoff is a tough match-up for just about anyone.

Expectations are high for RD given last year and the beginning of this year. The good thing, is, barring any further injury.....he could be rounding back into full form right around the end of the regular season and tournament time.

 

[TC4THREE]

Tend to agree here.....I think RD is regaining his footing so-to-speak defensively, but the knee injury certainly has slowed him a bit. Also showing up on the other end of the floor as well. It will be interesting to see who he covers this weekend. Jok went off big-time against Rutgers; Uthoff is a tough match-up for just about anyone.

Expectations are high for RD given last year and the beginning of this year. The good thing, is, barring any further injury.....he could be rounding back into full form right around the end of the regular season and tournament time.

I'd put him on Uthoff. The problem is that there is absolutely nobody that Swanigan can guard.

 

[boiler62]

32% from 3; 60% on free throws; 35% shooting overall; 1 rebound per game; and 1 assist per game. The stats simply don't support your assertion.

KS is a career 36% 3pt shooter! 37% year 1 , 38% year 2 and 32% this year! DM is a 34% career 3 pt shooter!

 

[tjreese]

It's weird. I think KS's shot selection has shown improvement, but his shooting %'s haven't seen the corresponding increase yet. I do think he's improved in other areas on offense (passing & TOs...see below) & defense (his steal % is up half a steal per 40 min this season).

KS is one of our best at feeding the post (probably because his defender has to respect the 3 & can't sag off). His TO% this season is much better (almost half of last season's %). In B1G play, his 4.0 Asst/TO ratio ranks T-5th in the league.

Unfortunately for KS (but good for the team), the guys he is competing with for minutes are doing those things well too. Dakota is 4th in B1G play with a 4.2 Asst/TO & Cline is 3rd at 4.5 asst/TO (BTW, PJT leads the B1G at 6.0 asst/TO in league games).

The minutes are there if any of those guys can step up & consistently earn more of them; but like TC4THREE said, I still think it needs to be a game-by-game evaluation for now.

I agree in that he has improved overall. I wonder how much of his game has been set back by his expectation to shoot from deep on a very regular basis his freshman year and the overall bad habits as a result?

 

[hunkgolden]

KS is a career 36% 3pt shooter! 37% year 1 , 38% year 2 and 32% this year! DM is a 34% career 3 pt shooter!

I'm not sure if you meant it this way or not but you're confirming my point. 36% from 3 is nothing to be bragging about. Cline and Dakota are both at 37% from 3 this year and their shot selection is 100 times better than KS'. There have been multiple games where KS has taken an ill advised 3 that has turned into a face break the other way and has changed the momentum of the entire game. Kendall treats the ball like a hot potato sometimes and that he feels like he has to shoot it as soon as he touches it - regardless of how far away he is from the rim or how off balance he is.

I'm just glad MP has finally seen the light. He gave KS a long leash (too long imo) but he's reeling him in now. Hopefully this motivates KS to be a better player. We'll see.

 

[Beeazlebub]

It's weird. I think KS's shot selection has shown improvement, but his shooting %'s haven't seen the corresponding increase yet. I do think he's improved in other areas on offense (passing & TOs...see below) & defense (his steal % is up half a steal per 40 min this season).

KS is one of our best at feeding the post (probably because his defender has to respect the 3 & can't sag off). His TO% this season is much better (almost half of last season's %). In B1G play, his 4.0 Asst/TO ratio ranks T-5th in the league.

Unfortunately for KS (but good for the team), the guys he is competing with for minutes are doing those things well too. Dakota is 4th in B1G play with a 4.2 Asst/TO & Cline is 3rd at 4.5 asst/TO (BTW, PJT leads the B1G at 6.0 asst/TO in league games).

The minutes are there if any of those guys can step up & consistently earn more of them; but like TC4THREE said, I still think it needs to be a game-by-game evaluation for now.

His post feed in the 2nd half last night was one of the worst passes of the night. He tried to lob it in to Haas (or maybe it was Hammons, can't remember) even though Haas was triple-teamed at the time. Luckily for us, the ball was deflected to Davis & he scored his first basket of the game on a lay-up.

I'll need to watch the recording, but I think KS had come into the game on the previous possession, and was promptly removed after making that pass.

 

[*4purdue*]

Matt beginning to make the tough and somewhat unpopular choice of giving more playing time to his freshman shooting guard over his junior. End result is better shot selection and less long rebounds from these missed bad shots leading to breakouts the other way. Would like to see Dakota get more and more of Davis' minutes as well. Love Ray but he's just not the same defender he was last year and his lack of outside shot allows his defender to sag off and clog the middle. Dakota on the floor keeps the lane clear and he makes great entry passes. His defense is not that much of a drop-off from Davis' at this point.

OSU clearly has the better athletes but Purdue played the smarter game, took good shots, and didn't allow the Buckeyes to get out and run. Solid win.

I don't think I've ever read a post that was more opposite of what I think since I've been on this board.

1) I'm one of the few on here that have defended KS. I'm not sure why you think it's "unpopular" to play Cline over him... most on this board have been yelling for that for months.

2) I like DM also, but to compare his D to RD's is a joke. Have you watched us lately? Held LaChance & Dunham to 0 FG's. Held Loving in check last night. His D has been lock down this year & I think he will easily win DPOY again.

 

[dumpsterFyre]

I want Kendall to succeed, I really do. I have a soft spot for legacies.

But at the moment he doesn't offer anything more than what Cline and Mathias are giving us. He may be able to defend the outside shot or the first dribble with his long arms, but the other two are far more well rounded offensive threats.

I hope Kendall continues to get 6-8 minutes a game to see if he catches a spark. If so, Matt should play him until he cools down.

 

[dumpsterFyre]

I don't think I've ever read a post that was more opposite of what I think since I've been on this board.

1) I'm one of the few on here that have defended KS. I'm not sure why you think it's "unpopular" to play Cline over him... most on this board have been yelling for that for months.

2) I like DM also, but to compare his D to RD's is a joke. Have you watched us lately? Held LaChance & Dunham to 0 FG's. Held Loving in check last night. His D has been lock down this year & I think he will easily win DPOY again.

Agree with Point #2, but Point #1 is just being contentious.

 

[*4purdue*]

Agree with Point #2, but Point #1 is just being contentious.

Really?? I haven't seen very many people on this board calling for more minutes for KS. Most I have read think he's not good at all. I think his D and ability to take the ball to the basket have improved dramatically. That being said, I think CMP has more confidence in DM and RC.

 

[02Boilermaker]

His post feed in the 2nd half last night was one of the worst passes of the night. He tried to lob it in to Haas (or maybe it was Hammons, can't remember) even though Haas was triple-teamed at the time. Luckily for us, the ball was deflected to Davis & he scored his first basket of the game on a lay-up.

I'll need to watch the recording, but I think KS had come into the game on the previous possession, and was promptly removed after making that pass.

I remember the play & it was, indeed, a terrible decision and pass. If that play was indicative of what I've seen all year, I wouldn't have posted what I did.

If KS was pulled right after that pass, I like it. As I mentioned in my previous post, I think all 3 of those guys are in a position right now where they have to earn their PT on a nightly basis.

 

[*4purdue*]

I remember the play & it was, indeed, a terrible decision and pass. If that play was indicative of what I've seen all year, I wouldn't have posted what I did.

If KS was pulled right after that pass, I like it. As I mentioned in my previous post, I think all 3 of those guys are in a position right now where they have to earn their PT on a nightly basis.

No question about that. I thought of the 3 KS would have a good game last night. He has the length to shoot over OSU, but was pretty much a no show. I also thought DM would really struggle against OSU & while he wasn't great, he played pretty well. Cline is about the same every game, you know he's going to knock down the open shot when he gets it & he did again last night. I think Cline is going to be great in another year & CMP is going to have a hard time keeping him off the floor. But for now, yes, need to play the hot hand on any given night.

 

[SDBoiler1]

KS is one of the 5 best players on the roster

When his head is screwed on straight, I agree.

 

[SDBoiler1]

Agree that OSU is more athletic than Purdue. That team will be very good next year. They got to the rim with such ease the entire first half.

I'm honestly not sure what to say about the shooting guard situation. We have 4 guys who can make a valid case for minutes. I think Ray Day is starting to get his defensive mojo back. Mathias and Cline are probably the most dependable shooters. KS is just so streaky. I would've said the long-term solution is to move Dakota to the 1 and let Cline and KS fight it out, but I'm starting to think that PJ will take over the 1 full time next year.

Dakota clanked a lot of 3 pt attempts last night.

 

[BoilerBulldog]

I think you need to settle on either RC or KS. Thinking you will play whichever one is hot that night will cause both to press and force things, particularly if we are only talking about 5-10 minutes. I think it is better to give most of those minutes to one of them and let them get into more of a rhythm. I think based on what we've seen so far this year, that's RC. But if CMP goes with KS because he's an upperclassman and does a lot of other things well, I can't blame him. But I would prefer to see one of them getting double the minutes of the other one, similar to what we saw last night.

 

[proudopete]

Kendall had been drawing Rays man a lot this year. I think that says a lot about his defense.

He is the kind of shooter that needs a lot of attempts to get hot it seems. We haven't really needed it much up to this point so I don't think it matters.

Kendall has also played a lot of 3 this year and that may also have an effect.

I trust Painter to make the call and I am sure Kendall will be a huge part of winning some big games down the line.

 

[Dakota Girl]

I'd put him on Uthoff. The problem is that there is absolutely nobody that Swanigan can guard.

This might be a game where Swanigan loses some minutes to Vince when we run a smaller lineup for part of the game.

 

[proudopete]

This might be a game where Swanigan loses some minutes to Vince when we run a smaller lineup for part of the game.

I think this is spot on. I also hope Vince guards Utoff and Ray gets Jok.

 

[02Boilermaker]

I honestly don't remember...who did Biggie guard in the first game against Iowa? I ask because Uthoff seems to be the only Hawkeye who had an above average offensive game at Mackey & I thought Ray had him most of the time.

 

[TC4THREE]

This might be a game where Swanigan loses some minutes to Vince when we run a smaller lineup for part of the game.

We seem to not want to cut Swanigan's minutes any even if it helps us.

 

[Dakota Girl]

I think this is spot on. I also hope Vince guards Utoff and Ray gets Jok.

That would also create a few more minutes for Dakota, Cline, or Stevens which might help against the fronting 2-3 and the 3/4 1-2-2.

 

[Dakota Girl]

We seem to not want to cut Swanigan's minutes any even if it helps us.

It's a tough call. He does a lot of good things too. If he is struggling to guard though...

 

[BBG]

It's a tough call. He does a lot of good things too. If he is struggling to guard though...

Yeah I'm torn on this as he has been playing well as of late....

 

[Beeazlebub]

Yeah I'm torn on this as he has been playing well as of late....

His positives outweigh the negatives with a potential exception of when we have a lead and the other team is pressing toward the end of the game. He has some deficiencies against smaller players on the defensive end, but there is no player in college basketball I'd rather have on the court when we need a big rebound.

 

[proudopete]

His positives outweigh the negatives with a potential exception of when we have a lead and the other team is pressing toward the end of the game. He has some deficiencies against smaller players on the defensive end, but there is no player in college basketball I'd rather have on the court when we need a big rebound.

I agree with this but...
When we play a team with a 5 that can shoot from long range and Biggie is guarding a 2 or 3, we lose our rim protector and teams drive on us.
I like Biggie but we have the roster to adjust in certain games and if he's getting beat by a smaller player, I want to see Vince take that spot.

 

[FleeTheScene]

I've gone on and on at length about biggie and rays matchups but I just wanted to say that last night we were tested and I felt that Biggie was the one who kept our guys energy up. This could have been a game where our guys hung their heads a bit but it seemed to me that Biggies effort really helped keep the guys up. Only slightly behind him I'd put the effort of Johnny Hill. If we had this effort against butler or the second half of Iowa things may have been different. Really proud of the way we fought last night.