This afternoon ladies and gentlemen, it will be the top-seeded Purdue Boilermakers (26-5) versus the 9-seed, Rutgers Scarlet Knights (19-13) in the first Quarterfinal game of the Big Ten Tournament in Chicago.
Rutgers and Purdue played just once this year, with Rutgers winning a thriller at Purdue in the last seconds, 65-64. It was Purdue's first loss of the season.
Expected Starting Line-ups:
Rutgers - Clifford Omoruyi, Derek Simpson, Cam Spencer, Paul Mulcahy, and Caleb McConnell
Purdue - Mason Gillis, Zach Edey, Brandon Newman, Fletcher Loyer, and Braden Smith
Rutgers is very likely to be included in the upcoming NCAA Tournament field, regardless of the outcome of this game, and Purdue is perhaps still trying to improve its seed position as regular season conference champion. Regardless, you can expect this to be a hard fought physical game, similar to the last several between these two schools.
Although Rutgers has struggled somewhat offensively since they lost Mawot Mag to a knee injury midway though the conference season, Derek Simpson's emergence in the line-up gives them some additional production. Look for them to try and work through Mulcahy and McConnell again to get into the paint - that was successful last time out, as well as having an outside threat - Cam Spencer, who has the game winner as well from the top of the arc.
On defense, look for Rutgers to apply pressure and try to extend out Purdue's backcourt before the offense can be initiated and perhaps force some turnovers. That worked in the first half last time out when Rutgers built a double-digit lead. The Boilers seemed to figure it out a little better and battled back the second half but came up just short.
Last time out was also one of the few games Zach Edey picked up multiple early fouls, and he was limited to 28 minutes....his absence in the first half certainly didn't hurt the Scarlet Knights in building their lead. It will be interesting to see how this game gets called, but I expect there will be a lot of physical play in the paint.
For the Boilers - they will certainly need to be the physically and mentally tougher team this afternoon. Rutgers won't back down, and they'll need to bring the intensity they had in the second half of the first game from the start - and maintain it. The battle on the glass will likely be close, and Mason Gillis, Caleb Furst, and Trey Kaufman-Renn can really help out Zach Edey in keeping Cliff Omoruyi under control. Rutgers' guards have also had success either with following up from close range in the paint or long misses.
Mainly for Purdue - they will need to execute the offense and limit the turnovers (13 in the last game). They were 7/23 from beyond the arc last time - they need a few more to go in if they want to get some separation. Finally, Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer will need some help from the bench....exactly the type of opponent where Brandon Newman and David Jenkins can provide valuable minutes and match/hold up to the physical style.
This will be an excellent challenge for Purdue and could really help if it wants to make a post-season run. An opponent that is a tough match-up, which has had recent success against Purdue, and who also exposes/challenges some of the teams' weaknesses.
Can the Boilers bring the intensity needed and meet the challenge? On Saturday, the winner will face the winner of the next quarterfinal between Ohio State and Michigan State.
Boiler Up, my friends.
