Coach: Matt Painter - 138-64 (.683)
Lost: F JaJuan Johnson, G E’Twuan Moore
 |
| This was the last time Robbie Hummel stepped foot on a court in a NCAA game. Purdue fans are ready to put this image behind them and hope Robbie can lead this young team back to a BIG championship. |
Returning: F Robbie Hummel (RS Sr), PG Lewis Jackson
(Sr), G Kelsay Barlow (Jr), F DJ Byrd (Jr), G Ryne Smith (Sr), G Terone Johnson
(So), F/C Travis Carroll (So), F/C Sandi Marcius (RS So), G John Hart (RS Jr),
New faces:
F Donnie Hale, PF Jacob Lawson, G Anthony Johnson (Redshirt)
Preview: Each of the last two seasons
Boilermaker fans believed not reaching the Final Four would be considered a
disappointment. We all know what happened.
Now Hummel is healthy (presumably) but without fellow classmen JaJuan
Johnson and E’Twaun Moore. Perhaps the
most fundamentally sound player in the conference, Hummel is able to score from
anywhere on the floor, is a strong rebounder, excellent passer, and a solid
defender. He will need to transform his
game from facilitator to scorer in order for the offense to be successful, no
small task for an unselfish player. Also
returning is waterbug point guard Lewis Jackson. LewJack is grease lighting at getting to the
rim but his inconsistent outside shot allows defenses to sag and clog up the
middle. His intense on-ball defense and improved free throw shooting make him
an asset to have on the floor. Fellow
guard Ryne Smith hit 44% of his threes last year and will need to duplicate
that success again to keep defenses honest.
Kelsay Barlow and DJ Byrd are excellent role players capable of guarding
the 1-4 positions while scoring just enough.
Without JaJuan Johnson a quartet of players will be looked upon to make
up for his lost production. Travis Carroll and Donnie Hale are the more gifted
offensive players while Sandi Marcius and Jacob Lawson (if he doesn’t redshirt)
can cause nightmares on defense. There
will likely be a lot of mixing and matching throughout the season to maximize
matchups. But the team will be looking
most anxiously at guards Terone and Anthony Johnson to be scorers. Terone
struggled with his shot last year but showed he can slash to the basket. Anthony can fill it up but will need to show
his defense is ready to play for Painter.
It will likely take several games for these players to gel and find
their roles on the court - and with Painter’s track record there’s little
reason to expect they won’t – but once they do, with their bullying defense and
methodical motion offense Purdue will be a team no one wants to face.
Shot in the dark at the starting 5:
PG Lewis
Jackson
G Ryne Smith
G Terone
Johnson
F Robbie
Hummel
F Travis
Carroll
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