Word came out just before tipoff here at Mackey Arena that there would be a change to the starting lineup. Antione West was late to a film session and after starting in the previous game he was pulled from that role as punishment. Luke Ertel would get the start in his place. Purdue came into this one just 1-2 on the season after losing to Valparaiso and struggling against Illinois State except for a 6+ minute stretch. My hope was that we would see improvement all around including from the three point
line and in getting the ball inside to Daniel Jacobsen.
John Wooden Memorial Player of the Game (JWMPOTG): Gicarri Harris had a great game tonight. He led Purdue with 23 points while also grabbing 5 rebounds and dishing out 4 assists. He came off the bench in this one which could change next game. We will see.
With Luke Ertel inserted into the starting lineup I think he viewed it as his big chance to cement himself in a starting lineup that has been in flux. He made Purdue’s first bucket, a three pointer, and assisted on their next to Daniel Jacobsen. The young man had great energy out there and it will be intersting to see him battle with Antione West to see who can stay in that staring lineup.
The game was tied up early at 7-7 and then Purdue went on a nice run fueled by good three point shooting. A 16-4 run made the score 23-11 and it again showed, much like their 6+ minute run against Illinois State, what this team can be when they lock in. However, after that run things stalled out a little for Purdue. From the 6:06 mark in the first half until the end of the half Purdue made just three field goals and that included a bucket by Gicarri Harris at the buzzer that made it 37-28. Plus, after starting the game 4-7 from deep Purdue would finish the half 5-18 from deep which means they went on a 1-11 cold streak from deep. It’s that sort of shooting that will lose Purdue some games this season. Of note in the first half Omer Mayer continued to struggle shooting the ball going 0-3 in the first half. That means to start the year he is 4-28 from the floor for a crisp 14%. Purdue desperately needs him to get back to the form he showed at the end of last season. One final note on the first half is that Enzo Shahrvin played much better defense out there tonight. Maybe he just needs a bit more time to get acclimated to the US college game?
Before we move onto the second half I want to quibble with the officials. The fouls were extremely uneven, in Purdue’s favor, for much of the first 20 minutes. And that’s fine. The officials saw that disparity made multiple bogus calls on the Boilermakers. There’s this compulsion among Big Ten officials to keep the fouls even but that’s simply not what fouls are for. One team CAN commit more fouls than their opponent. In fact, if you think about it, it’s quite weird how often the fouls tend to even out. It really shouldn’t be that way.
The second half started out a bit clunky as the officials called foul after foul after foul with the majority of them going against the Boilermakers. Purdue was called for their 9th foul of the half with 11:39 to go. It was some ugly basketball. Purdue however found a way to keep at it and extend the lead. Purdue was led by Gicarri Harris who in the second half alone was 3-3 from deep. He scored 15 of his 23 in the second half to keep Ohio at arms length. Purdue would shoot the ball much better in the second half. Just compare their first half three point shooting of 5-18 against their second half of 5-13. It feels like this is just the team that we are going to have this season. They will be frustrating, there will be growing pains, but there will also be individual moments of brilliance. Purdue hasn’t had a season like this in a long time but if there’s one thing to say we know it won’t be boring.
Here’s some quick hitters from this game:
- Enzo Sharhvin played 13 minutes and looked the best he ever has in a Purdue uniform. I know he didn’t exactly stuff the stat sheet, he finished with 1 rebound, 2 blocks, 2 steals, and 1 assist to go along with 2 turnovers, but he did a great job sealing off his man and put in a much better effort on both ends. Continued improvement from him could be huge.
- Omer Mayer continued to struggle and is almost unplayable right now. He played just 9 minutes and was 0-5 from the floor. Not sure what Painter can do to kick him in the butt (metaphorically speaking of course) but it needs to happen soon.
- Daniel Jacobsen found himself in foul trouble for a lot of the second half. He only got four shots off tonight and finished with 9 points.
- Purdue kept turnovers in the single digits finishing with 9.
- Purdue ended up outrebounding Ohio by 10.
- Purdue was 18-20 from the line for a crisp 90%.
- Antione West had another good offensive game for the Boilermakers. He was 5-11 from the floor, scored 17 points, grabbed 3 rebounds, and had 4 assists.
- While Luke Ertel got the start and started out hot he didn’t stay that way. He played just 17 minutes and was 1-7 from the floor. He dished out 2 assists.
Purdue now moves to 2-2 on the season. Jed will have more on this one later on.
