Coming off their fourth home loss of the season the Boilermakers will head on the road to Columbus to face the Buckeyes. The Buckeyes are losers of two straight with losses to Michigan State and Iowa. That loss to Iowa was especially brutal as they lost by 17 on the road and the game wasn’t really that close. Ohio State currently sits at 17-11 (9-8) overall and are sitting on the wrong side of the bubble. That’s why this game against the Boilermakers is so important to them. Here’s a look at their remaining
schedule:
- Home against Purdue
- at Penn State
- Home against IU
That home game against IU could be a play-in game of sorts with each team fighting to find a way into the NCAA Tournament in seasons that have been disappointing.
Ohio State is led by senior guard Bruce Thornton who leads the Buckeyes in points (20), assists (3.8), and steals (1.2). If you want to slow down the Buckeyes you have to start with Thornton. He’s the straw that stirs the drink if you want to use that phrase, and I do.
The main think I’m sure you’re wondering when you’re looking at Purdue opponents is how do they shoot the three? Well, as a team they shoot 34.7% which is great if you’re a Purdue fan. John Mobley is there main three point specialist with 73 makes on 179 attempts this season which is good for 41%. However, we know there’s going to be an Ohio State player who normally shoots 30% from three who will shoot 60% against the Boilermakers. Who are some candidates for that? Well, Christopher Tilly, their center has taken 51 three pointers this season for just 24% so given Purdue’s penchant to allow big men to hit threes I’d keep an eye on him. To quote Paul Heyman “that’s not a prediction, it’s a spoiler”.
Purdue has been playing better on the road of late which is a strange thing to say as for the past 5 seasons Mackey Arena has been a fortress. This season though it’s seen four losses which is unheard of in this decade. Purdue has won their last three on the road, Maryland, Nebraska, Iowa, and look to make it four in a row tomorrow. It would be incredible that Purdue has a chance to win their 7th and 8th Big Ten road games in their final two road contests, but won’t win the Big Ten conference crown. Just shocking.
Drew will have much more on this one from a statistical standpoint, but for me, the vibes are good for this game. I feel like the team will be motivated after the loss to Michigan State and they understand that they need to get these victories to get the best seeding possible for March. Unlike a lot of the very online fanbase on Twitter (not you all, I love you all) I’m trying to keep a positive outlook on what I still think could be a very special March and this team has just three regular season games left to shore up their profile for Selection Sunday.
