Purdue Preview
December 31, 2009 01:14 PM | General
December 31, 2009
WEST VIRGINIA GAMES NOTES | PURDUE GAME NOTES
West Virginia hits the final leg of a very difficult 12-day stretch with a meeting against fourth-ranked Purdue Friday afternoon at Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, Ind.
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| Devin Ebanks congratulates Da'Sean Butler on his game-winning shot against Marquette on Wednesday night in Morgantown.
AP photo |
The sixth-rated Mountaineers needed last-second baskets by forward Da’Sean Butler to beat Cleveland State and Marquette. West Virginia used clutch play from Kevin Jones in overtime to knock off Seton Hall on the road last Saturday. And a stifling defense held Ole Miss to just 28.8% from 3-point range in a 76-66 victory over the 15th-rated Rebels at the Coliseum on Dec. 23.
On Friday, West Virginia faces its stiffest test to date playing against a Purdue team that some believe could reach the Final Four in April.
The Boilermakers (12-0) are off to their second-best start in school history and a victory over the Mountaineers on Friday would move them to within one win of their best start of 14-0 achieved during the Glenn Robinson-Cuonzo Martin era in 1994.
Purdue shows wins over St. Joseph’s, Tennessee, Wake Forest, Valparaiso, Alabama and most recently, Iowa, so far this year.
Against the Hawkeyes in its Big Ten opener, Purdue got 21 points from guard E’Twaun Moore and 16 from 6-foot-8 forward Robbie Hummel in a come-from-behind 67-56 victory.
Moore leads the Boilermakers with an average of 16.4 points per game and he has a streak of 11-straight double-figure scoring performances entering the West Virginia game.
Hummel set the Purdue free throw record with 36 straight before his streak ended at Iowa. The junior is averaging 14.8 points and 6.9 rebounds per game.
Six-ten junior center JaJuan Johnson shows averages of 13.8 points and 6.5 rebounds per game and he leads the team with 39 offensive rebounds. Purdue is strong on the offensive glass overall, pulling down an average of 15.8 offensive boards per game.
Chris Kramer (6.8 ppg.) and Keaton Grant (6.8 ppg.) complete Purdue’s three-guard lineup. Kramer is third in the Big Ten in assist-to-turnover ratio at 3.33 while Grant has been involved in an impressive 84 victories during his Purdue career.
Purdue has made three-consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances under fifth-year coach Matt Painter, a one-time assistant coach at nearby Washington & Jefferson (Pa.) College in 1994. After a 9-19 record during his first season at Purdue in 2006, Painter has put together three consecutive 20-win seasons including a 27-10 record and a trip to the Sweet 16 in 2009. Painter has made four trips to the NCAA Tournament in all, including one as Southern Illinois’ head coach in 2004.
West Virginia has also had an impressive run under Bob Huggins, making back-to-back NCAA trips in 2008 and 2009. The Mountaineers are 60-23 in three seasons with Huggins, including this year’s 11-0 record.
WVU is enjoying its highest ranking in the polls since 1982 and the most consecutive weeks in the Top 10 (seven) since 1959 when Jerry West led West Virginia to the NCAA finals.
Butler is averaging 16.5 points per game and is now 11th in career scoring at WVU with 1,623 points. He has 84 career double-digit scoring games to his credit to rank sixth all-time.
Kevin Jones has scored double figures in all 11 games this year and is averaging 15.7 points and 7.6 rebounds per game. Jones scored 19 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in West Virginia’s 90-84 win at Seton Hall last weekend.
Devin Ebanks boosted his scoring average to 14 points per game and his rebounding average to 8.9 boards per game after a 19-point, eight-rebound performance against Marquette on Wednesday night. Ebanks has scored 41 points and grabbed 25 rebounds in his last two games.
John Flowers (4.4 ppg.) and Wellington Smith (5.7 ppg.) are also expected to be in Friday’s starting lineup. This group has started the last three games.
Guards Truck Bryant (9.0 ppg.) and Casey Mitchell (7.7 ppg.) are the top two scorers coming off the bench.
West Virginia and Purdue have met four times previously with the Boilermakers claiming all four decisions. The last time these two teams met was in the consolation game of the 1981 NIT with Purdue securing a 75-72 overtime victory.
West Virginia’s last trip to West Lafayette took place in 1974 when Fred Schaus was coaching Purdue and George King was Purdue’s athletic director. The Boilermakers defeated the Mountaineers 94-83.
A 2:30 p.m. tipoff is slated for Friday’s game to be televised nationally on ESPN (Dave O’Brien and Jay Bilas).
West Virginia steps outside of Big East play two more times against Marshall on Jan. 20 in Charleston and against Ohio State in Morgantown on Jan. 23.
Note: West Virginia fans traveling to Jacksonville for the Konica Minolta Gator Bowl can tune in to WJSJ (105.3 FM) to listen to the WVU-Purdue basketball game. Air time for the Coliseum Countdown is 1:30 p.m.
