At the end of every NCAA basketball season, several players pop up on the NBA radars as possibilities for the upcoming draft in June. Regardless of whether they are seniors or not, the media and all kinds of pundits start prognosticating the players’ chances at the pro level. For the bulk of the NCAA tournament, the rumors were coming in loud and clear that Purdue center JaJuan Johnson may be one of those chosen ones.

Why? Well, for the statistics side of things, he was a solid choice–all Big Ten first team for the talent-laden Boilermakers and a very good tournament–and plus for being a player that was not even mentioned alongside fellow Robbie Hummel at the beginning of the season, Johnson was certainly a huge, pleasant surprise.

And he had a story too–there was a lot of coverage of his mother’s travels to the NCAA games due to people assisting in getting her there. It was truly a feel good story, and with a family that could use the money, it would seem the most natural step for Johnson would be to throw his hat into the NBA ring.

Not going to happen…at least this year.

Johnson has opted to stay at Purdue for his junior year, and you can bet that the Purdue offense will be certainly churning with him in the mix–a year older, a year wiser, a year more experienced.

Yikes.

Travis Walton

Michigan State and Purdue had some big time struggles in their second round games, with each coming down to the waning minutes before both teams snatched victory. From a seeding standpoint, Purdue was the only mild upset, with a 5 over a 4 seed in Washington. But in everyone else’s case for the Big Ten seeds, they lost and are not in the Sweet 16.  So was it really all that a surprise that only 2 of 7 got further?

Ten NCAA Observations about the Big Ten

1) Illinois could have been the biggest disappointment of the bunch. The Illini really never had a chance in their game against Western Kentucky and only a flourish at the end made it respectable. Bruce Weber better get the offense more consistent next year if the Illini want to improve.

2) Travis Walton showed fans across the country just how deep the Michigan State Spartans are with his offensive performance against USC. If things like this keep happening, the grins will be permanent in East Lansing.

3) Michigan definitely has reason to believe that they are certainly a team of the future. They beat a good Clemson team and gave Oklahoma all they could handle before folding.

4) Purdue hasn’t been winning pretty, but that doesn’t matter at this point of the game. Their depth is also something to take note of and they will need every bit of it against the white-hot UCONN Huskies.

5) Minnesota certainly impressed me in their game against Texas. I personally thought that the game was almost unwinnable as soon as I heard it announced, and the Gophers really played the Longhorns with every bit of heart they had. Tubby Smith ought to be very proud of his team and excited about their future.

6) Ohio State’s loss to Siena was kind of surprising–kind of. Siena was actually one of those teams that everyone thought could make a run–and even though the Buckeyes were playing decently close to home,  I still thought that Evan Turner would win this game for OSU. But don’t fret–I got a feeling he’ll be back and very tough next year.

7) Wisconsin’s first round victory over Florida State should have given a bit of respect to the naysayers of the Big Ten. A win over Xavier would have solidified the legitimacy of the conference. Now it’s up to the Boilers and Spartans to keep the conference faith alive.

Proponents of the Big East have said that this is best conference ever according to the talent in this year’s pool. Well, I gotta say that they are not too far from the truth. It’s clear these teams know how to win, and unlike the Big Ten teams who had their chances, can close when it counts.

9) JaJuan Johnson is quickly becoming a huge X factor in almost all Purdue games and his NBA stock is rising exponentially. While he has said he intends on returning next year, he also hasn’t ruled out going pro. I think it all depends on his performance against UCONN that may make the difference on that huge of a stage.

10) The Kansas-Michigan State match up is really an interesting one. Michigan State beat them pretty bad a couple of months ago, but Kansas has improved greatly–winning 16 of their last 19. Izzo definitely knows how to plan for this team, but can he beat them again? Bill Self certainly has the pedigree in the tournament now to really question that…

Matt Painter

Purdue is on a roll. There’s no questioning that. The Boilermakers had a shaky start to the Big Ten season but finished with a flourish, finally having everyone healthy and taking the Big Ten tournament title in Indianapolis. They didn’t necessarily “need” the title to get into the NCAA tournament, but one would certainly assume that the Boilers would get a pretty darn good seed.

Well, in my estimation, they didn’t.

Perhaps that’s just because I am biased towards the Big Ten, but when you consider that Michigan State, who won the regular season title by 4 games, got a 2 seed..umm…something is wrong here. Not to diss Michigan State by any means, but the Boilers split the season series with them, finished tied for 2nd, and they get a 5? Hmmm…methinks I smell a rat.

Maybe it was the committee’s guilt for putting so many Big Ten teams in that they didn’t want to give too much “cred” to someone other than the Spartans, but getting the cursed “5″ seed is just wrong for a team as good as Purdue. So then, what’s the realistic outlook for the Boilermakers?

Game 1: Northern Iowa

The 23-10 Panthers barely eeked by Illinois State in the Missouri Valley Conference final, but they still are a good team. The Boilermakers and Panthers share common opponents in Iowa and Indiana State, which Purdue went 3-0 against, UNI went 1-2. Northern Iowa is more disciplined than peopleknow, but Purdue is just too deep for the Panthers to keep up. Predicted result: WIN

Game 2: Winner of Washington/Mississippi State

Washington would prove to be a curious match up for Purdue, as the Huskies are 25-8 and won the regular season Pac 10 title. With the fact that they are playing basically closest to home than any team in the regional (Portland), Washington has a clear advantage over Mississippi State. They have a good offense (topping 80 points 16 times this season) and a decent defense. They are hitting their stride at the right time, winning 9 of their last 11.

But Mississippi State has done the same–winning the SEC tournament after beating LSU and Tennessee and winning six in a row. Still, I don’t think that they will upend the Huskies in their own backyard. So, with Purdue facing off against the Huskies, we’ve got a real situation with a grind-it-out Boiler team versus a scoring Huskie team. So, which prevails? At this point, I am a firm believer that defense is much more consistent than offense–especially in the tourney–so despite the fact that Purdue will be playing them in Portland, I truly think that in the end Purdue takes this nailbiter with some disciplined play and lockdown late-game defense.Predicted result: WIN

Game 3: UCONN/BYU/Texas A&M

Let’s just go with the seeding route here and say that UCONN will be facing Purdue at this point. The Huskies (hmmm, coincidence?) are one of the most solid teams in the nation and their athleticism is rivaled by only a few teams in the entire country. They are balanced and play a voracious defense, so it would take a near-perfect game from all players on Purdue to win this game. While Matt Painter will certainly be happy with a Sweet Sixteen bid for this game, the Boilers won’t go farther than this game–barring an upset by BYU or the Aggies. If that’s the case, Purdue could be playing for the Final Four, which is not a huge surprise–to me. Predicted Result: Vs. UCONN, Loss.

Two teams that are seemingly on a mission. One that is just trying to gain some respect in the basketball community despite a good record,

Etwaun Moore

the other trying to gain back the respect they lost after a preseason status of very lofty rankings. Ohio State has gone through a virtual gauntlet to reach the championship game of the Big Ten tournament, undergoing tough games against Wisconsin and Michigan State. Purdue, on the other hand, has had a bit of an easier road. They first defeated Penn State and then Illinois–and while these teams aren’t awful by any means–they are probably collectively not as stroing as OSU’s opponents. However, the Boilermakers put a whooping on both of them, which absolutely must be taken into account.

Big Tenet Prediction: Purdue 72, Ohio State 66

Well, I haven’t picked the Buckeyes yet, so why start now, right? I am doing this by sheer numbers alone–in terms of depth. Being that this is the third game in as many days for both teams, Purdue has been lauded for its depth and ability to have the game shift to many different people. Meanwhile, Ohio St. has definitely broadened its offensive horizons past William Buford and Evan Turner, but I think it’s a lot to ask John Diebler, Dallas Lauderdale, or BJ Mullens to suddenly take over. They have all been playing solid, but in a game like this, I think that Purdue will wear them down with constant rotations and a slew of transition changes that will keep the Buckeyes from taking this game. Robbie Hummel should be able to have another great game, and I foresee him being named the Tourney’s MVP.

Robbie Hummel

Remember when Purdue was ranked #10 to begin the year and was the darling of the Big Ten media day? Nope, I don’t.  Oh-remember when they started off the Big Ten season 0-2, losing to Illinois and Penn State? Me neither. Why is this so hard to remember? Because, honestly, the Purdue Boilermakers have been at the highest of highs and for them, the lowest of lows, all year long, so it’s hard to remember all of this stuff. But as they near the end of the Big Ten season, the Boilers are still in contention for a Big Ten title, albeit that losing at Michigan didn’t help them. How will they fare the rest of the season?

Read the rest of this entry »

Lawrence Westbrook

Well, if Minnesota pulls out the “W” in Champaign last night, this certainly would have been a much more pertinent and exciting post. But, alas, they did not, and with it comes a more downtrodden look at the Golden Gophers. More blah than anything. Why? Because that’s kind of what Minnesota is–blah. They aren’t flashy, they don’t have stars, but they are 20-8. Why is that? Because of their star roaming the sidelines–Tubby Smith. The team started off 16-1 but have only gone 4-7 since that time, which does not bode well for their NCAA chances. But–it is still very possible.

Read the rest of this entry »

After the first half of the Big Ten basketball season, there have been some surprises from certain players and there have been some that have lived up to their hype. While teams like Illinois and Minnesota have proven to be solid game in game out which wasn’t exactly expected, Michigan State has stayed the course and Purdue has gotten back their swagger as of late as well.

So with a little less than a month left in the season, what will the All-Big Ten team shape up to look like?

Here’s how I see it…

G Talor Battle, Penn State Nittany Lions–18.2 ppg (leads league), 5.2 assists per game (tied for first in league)–no guard has upped his game the way Battle has this year. In fact, he’s one of the main reasons the Nittany Lions have a very legitimate shot at making the NCAAs. He is not only a shoo-in for this team, but I think he has a very good shot at getting league MVP.

G Manny Harris, Michigan Wolverines–17.5 ppg (2nd), 7.3 rpg (3rd), 4.3 apg Harris has lived up to the billing that he started the year with and has really catapulted the turnaround in Ann Arbor. He’s also vastly improved in holding on to the ball this year and is every bit of the leader that Coach John Beilein needed to turn his team around.

G Craig Moore, Northwestern Wildcats–15.3 ppg (tied for 4th),76 3 pointers (43% from the arc). Kevin Coble may get all the pub and the hype, but Moore is the catalyst that allows for the defenses to extend and give Coble the open looks he needs. Moore is a sharpshooting senior who definitely can get the job done when needed.

F Evan Taylor, Ohio State Buckeyes–17 ppg (3rd), 7.5 rpg (3rd) While Taylor is 6-7, he qualifies as a tweener guard-forward. Turner is by far the biggest surprise of the 2008-09, as the sophomore has doubled his scoring average from 2008 and has really kept the Buckeyes in the Big Ten hunt. He certainly has impressed me.

C JaJuan Johnson, Purdue Boilermakers–13.4 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 55% shooting from the field. While Robbie Hummel and Chris Kramer have fought through injuries during the year, Johnson has quietly become the team’s leader and is a beast inside. Not only has he been a central buoy for the Boilermakers, he’s also proven that he has the defensive chops, only averaging 1.7 fouls per game, a phenomenal figure considering his position.

Purdue started out the Big Ten season 0-2, and it certainly wasn’t for lack of trying and injuries that decimated the Boilermakers. But after three wins over Wisconsin, Iowa, and Northwestern, the 18th ranked Boilers are over .500 and looking ahead. But–they may be wincing when they look at the next few games.

This year, it’s clear that winning on the road in the Big Ten is going to be at a premium. With the league being perhaps the most balanced that it has been in quite a long time, besides Michigan State, who is arguably playing some of the best basketball in the country, teams from basically 2 through 10th have a winnable chance every game.

That being said, the Boilermakers head to Minnesota next, where you KNOW Tubby Smith will have his team ready after getting beat by Northwestern. Then they head to Wisconsin, where it has proven to be darn near impossible to win, and the Badgers have a little more on their mind in terms of vengeance. After a home game against the upstart Michigan Wolverines, they then head to Ohio State and Illinois, both tough places to win as the visiting team.

Ouch.

But make no bones about it–if the Boilers can get past this stretch of nightmare games with an over .500 record, Purdue has the last 8 with only two very hard games–both against Michigan State, and perhaps you can throw the road game at Michigan in there. As far as the NCAA is concerned with seeding, they could put themselves in a prime position for seeding. But if they stumble to a 2-3 or even 1-4, it could be a very hard road back into the NCAA committee’s good graces.

Riding the return of injured players Robbie Hummel and Chris Kramer, the Purdue Boilermakers got their first Big Ten win of the year by defeating a good Wisconsin team that lost their first Big Ten game of the year in West Lafayette 65-52. JaJuan Johnson scored 2o points and grabbed 10 rebounds and Hummel had a great game back with 16 and Kramer, the team’s emotional and defensive leader, played 21 minutes in coming back from a leg injury. What was even more amazing was that even though Wisconsin is a great defensive team, the Boilermakers only committed 4 turnovers.

Joe Krabbenhoft scored 13 for the Badgers and was the only player in double figures. Wisconsin handled the ball almost as well, making only 8 turnovers for the entire game. However, Wisconsin did not shoot the ball well, as Trevon Hughes went only 3-11 and Marcus Landry was 3-15 from the field. Ouch.

The 14th ranked Boilers will surely fall from this ranking, but they probably won’t exit the polls altogether after this win. Purdue next plays at Northwestern on January 15 in what should be a pretty good game. Wisconsin fell to 3-1 in the conference and 12-4 overall and face 22nd-ranked Minnesota at home in what is sure to be one the best match ups in the conference this week.

0-2 in the Big Ten. If you would have asked any Purdue fan the question of whether the Boilermakers would start 0-2 in the Big Ten, they may have given some type of answer as “well, it’s always possible..” but the reality is that facing Illinois at home and Penn State on the road, the worst that people would think was a split–not a top ten team going 0-2 against 2 teams that weren’t supposed to be contenders in the least.

But it has happened. So is it time to panic yet for Purdue?

Maybe not. But there is definitely need to be very seriously concerned–losing at home against a very feisty Illinois team that has improved tremendously this year was one thing, but going on the road to Happy Valley and starting out the game down 14-0 is just too much to ask. Sure, they closed the gap, but the Nittany Lions’ momentum gained at the beginning was too much. With captain Chris Kramer hurting and hopefully back for the next game along with some scary back spasms by Big Ten Player of the year in Robbie Hummel which could really be a big time injury if it continues to nag him through out the year, facing Wisconsin at home on Sunday could be a disaster if things don’t improve.

It’s not as if the players will simply crumble, but we’re also talking about sophomores that need to have winning reinforced. I respect Matt Painter as a coach, but he doesn’t have the motivation or control that Bo Ryan, Thad Matta, and Tom Izzo have, so if the Boilers don’t get a big win soon, it may end up really in a place that it doesn’t want to be and therefore jeopardize its seeding for the NCAAs.

What is needed then? Well, the Boilermakers are certainly deeper than just Kramer and Hummel, but it is “Wan” time–and I am speaking of E’twaun Moore and JaJuan Johnson taking this team over–and working an inside outside game that will make Big Ten teams respect both parts of the Boilers game. They can shoot the three–they made nine of them against PSU–so it may mean that they rely a bit more on the outside shot. Either way, they’ve got to do something different, or it will certainly be time to go a little nuts in West Lafayette.