Happy New Year, Ladies and Gentleman. Well, it's 2022 and back to Big Ten Conference play - this evening, the #23-ranked Wisconsin Badgers are in Mackey Arena to take on the #3-ranked Purdue Boilermakers in a key conference match-up. Tip-off scheduled for approximately 7:00 pm (Eastern) with television coverage on the Big Ten Network (BTN). Both teams stand @ 1-1 in conference play and are now chasing both Michigan State and Ohio State @ 3-0. Illinois is the other conference team without a loss in conference play. Although it's early in the conference race, getting two games down in the loss column to a couple of the really good teams is less than ideal.
I expect this will be a spirited match-up with Wisconsin trying to control the pace. There are some interesting match-ups in the backcourt with Johnny Davis for the Badgers and Jaden Ivey for the Boilers. Also, you can expect Brad Davison is going to be a thorn and get the crowd riled up. Purdue does have an edge in the front-court, and if Caleb Furst is back in the line-up, that only bolsters the Boilers' edge. Wisconsin sometimes struggles on the glass, so I'd like to see Purdue really try and work that advantage. However, Wisconsin does not turn the ball over much, and Purdue is near the bottom of the NCAA in forcing turnovers, so Purdue is going to need to be efficient on offense and get better with the three-point defense. And although Wisconsin doesn't overwhelm opponents, they are quite capable of winning the grind-it-out contests. Johnny Davis is the key to their offense, and he can cause problems for the Boilers when he is on just like some other guards have. Fortunately, Purdue just saw one - Ty Gordon from Nicholls, so that should be fresh in their minds.....but if Davis has the same kind of success, it could be a disappointing evening for the Boilers.
Purdue’s perimeter defense needs to be better than what it's been most of the season. I'd really like to see the Boilers amp up the intensity from the start. They've been so good on offense most of the year that some of the defensive deficiencies on defense may go unnoticed. They're quite capable, but can they be more consistent and extend the defense for entire possessions and throughout a contest?
The Boilers have a tough stretch coming up soon, can they get the new year started off on track? We shall see shortly.
Boiler up, my friends.....
I expect this will be a spirited match-up with Wisconsin trying to control the pace. There are some interesting match-ups in the backcourt with Johnny Davis for the Badgers and Jaden Ivey for the Boilers. Also, you can expect Brad Davison is going to be a thorn and get the crowd riled up. Purdue does have an edge in the front-court, and if Caleb Furst is back in the line-up, that only bolsters the Boilers' edge. Wisconsin sometimes struggles on the glass, so I'd like to see Purdue really try and work that advantage. However, Wisconsin does not turn the ball over much, and Purdue is near the bottom of the NCAA in forcing turnovers, so Purdue is going to need to be efficient on offense and get better with the three-point defense. And although Wisconsin doesn't overwhelm opponents, they are quite capable of winning the grind-it-out contests. Johnny Davis is the key to their offense, and he can cause problems for the Boilers when he is on just like some other guards have. Fortunately, Purdue just saw one - Ty Gordon from Nicholls, so that should be fresh in their minds.....but if Davis has the same kind of success, it could be a disappointing evening for the Boilers.
Purdue’s perimeter defense needs to be better than what it's been most of the season. I'd really like to see the Boilers amp up the intensity from the start. They've been so good on offense most of the year that some of the defensive deficiencies on defense may go unnoticed. They're quite capable, but can they be more consistent and extend the defense for entire possessions and throughout a contest?
The Boilers have a tough stretch coming up soon, can they get the new year started off on track? We shall see shortly.
Boiler up, my friends.....
