Good Afternoon, Ladies & Gentleman. It's an early Sunday start with the visiting #16-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes and the #6-ranked Purdue Boilermakers in Mackey Arena, for what shapes up to be another key Big Ten Conference battle. Tip is scheduled for around Noon (Eastern) with national television coverage on CBS. Ohio State is alone in fourth (@ 6-2, 13-4 overall) while Purdue is alone in fifth (@ 6-3, 17-3 overall). The winner of this game gets a leg up in chasing down conference leader Illinois @ 8-2.
These two teams match up pretty well and usually play closely contested games, as they did last season. Both are coming off solid road wins on TH (Ohio State winning @ Minnesota, 75-64 and Purdue winning @ Iowa, 83-73). The Buckeyes' leader is junior forward, E.J. Liddell, who had 23 points and 15 rebounds in the win against the Golden Gophers. I expect Purdue's front-court defense will key on Liddell, who can also score away from the basket and from beyond the arc. In addition to Liddell, Ohio State has Zed Key, who can cause issues in the paint and on the boards, and Kyle Young, who is also capable of playing inside-outside. Trevion Williams/Zach Edey and Mason Gillis/Caleb Furst will have their hands full today. The Boilers will definitely need to limit Ohio State on the glass - the Buckeyes had 20 offensive rebounds @ Minnesota.
In the backcourt, Purdue has struggled against physical guards defending them, and has also had trouble stopping some of the better back-courts who can penetrate and create their own offense in the half-court. The Buckeyes are the 32nd best team shooting from behind the arc, Purdue is second best. Both teams have struggled on the defensive end - but that's where this match-up may be won or lost. Both teams will get some opportunities because of the strength of their front-courts. The edge here for Purdue would come from Jaden Ivey, and if Isaiah Thompson/Eric Hunter can have a similar impact as they did at Iowa. And Sasha Stefanovic is usually a pretty good indicator for how well the game goes for Purdue.
Purdue needs to play their game and out-execute Ohio State - easier said than done as the Buckeyes are well-coached and quite capable. They've beaten Duke and Wisconsin at home, but they've looked vulnerable at times on the road. Can the Boilers take advantage of being back home, limit the mistakes (including missed FT's), and make enough shots to hold off the Buckeyes?
We shall see......
Boiler up, my friends....
These two teams match up pretty well and usually play closely contested games, as they did last season. Both are coming off solid road wins on TH (Ohio State winning @ Minnesota, 75-64 and Purdue winning @ Iowa, 83-73). The Buckeyes' leader is junior forward, E.J. Liddell, who had 23 points and 15 rebounds in the win against the Golden Gophers. I expect Purdue's front-court defense will key on Liddell, who can also score away from the basket and from beyond the arc. In addition to Liddell, Ohio State has Zed Key, who can cause issues in the paint and on the boards, and Kyle Young, who is also capable of playing inside-outside. Trevion Williams/Zach Edey and Mason Gillis/Caleb Furst will have their hands full today. The Boilers will definitely need to limit Ohio State on the glass - the Buckeyes had 20 offensive rebounds @ Minnesota.
In the backcourt, Purdue has struggled against physical guards defending them, and has also had trouble stopping some of the better back-courts who can penetrate and create their own offense in the half-court. The Buckeyes are the 32nd best team shooting from behind the arc, Purdue is second best. Both teams have struggled on the defensive end - but that's where this match-up may be won or lost. Both teams will get some opportunities because of the strength of their front-courts. The edge here for Purdue would come from Jaden Ivey, and if Isaiah Thompson/Eric Hunter can have a similar impact as they did at Iowa. And Sasha Stefanovic is usually a pretty good indicator for how well the game goes for Purdue.
Purdue needs to play their game and out-execute Ohio State - easier said than done as the Buckeyes are well-coached and quite capable. They've beaten Duke and Wisconsin at home, but they've looked vulnerable at times on the road. Can the Boilers take advantage of being back home, limit the mistakes (including missed FT's), and make enough shots to hold off the Buckeyes?
We shall see......
Boiler up, my friends....
