A solid win on Thanksgiving Thursday!
Purdue battled the Wolfpack toe to toe in the first half, controlling the game just 33 to 32 at the break. But, the second half was all Purdue, as Coach Painter and his staff made adjustments that led to the Boilermakers controlling the game.
36
The total number of rebounds for the undersized Purdue Boilermakers. It feels funny to say Purdue and undersized, but we have become so accustomed to Purdue having a 7-foot center on the court with another bullying power forward that a 6-9, 230-pound post master in TKR seems undersized.
He and Cam Heide are the smallest combos at the 5 & 4 in recent memory, but they are effective. Years ago, we talked about Grady Eifert being a glue guy, that is Cam Heide with this group. An undersized four that shoots the three well and plays with relentless energy, he and Renn led Purdue in rebounding today, and the Boilermakers outscored the Wolfpack by 11.
22
The total number of points that Trey Kaufman-Renn scored today. His flurry of spins, hook shots and up & under had the NC State Bigs all over the place. NC State pressured the ball, allowing Trey to set high pick and rolls, where Smith often found him.
It seems like another year of a post-player leading Purdue in scoring is coming to fruition. Don’t look now, but TKR is now in the Top 10 for the KenPom National Player of the Year.
8
The number of players that seem ti be the main rotation men. Burgess was the 9th man today and only played two minutes the entire game. He is a nice piece to have if foul troubles occur to either the power forward or center position, but, the starting five, plus Harris, Furst, and Cox seem like who Coach Painter is starting to trust the most.
6
The total number of turnovers that Purdue had against a high-pressure defense. There were times when Purdue struggled to initiate the offense, but the Boilermakers still took care of the ball, forcing more turnovers than what they had.
Purdue has struggled this year with taking care of the ball, but when they do, they are tough to beat. See today’s results and when Purdue beat #2 Alabama.