Steven Pearl Dives Into What Makes Purdue 'So Freaking Good'
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With his notes in front of him, Auburn head coach Steven Pearl started reading the numbers Purdue's offense has produced this season. The more he spoke, the more he realized how much of a challenge the will pose to the Tigers in Saturday's top-25 showdown in the Indy Classic.
"They're the No. 1 rated offense in college basketball," Pearl said early in his press conference. "They're 13th nationally in rebounding margin, fifth in the country in assist-to-turnover ratio. The more they put these notes together, the more it makes me realize how freaking good they are."
Purdue enters Saturday's game with a 10-1 record and signature wins over Alabama and Texas Tech. The Boilermakers are averaging 84.6 points per game and shooting 50.5% from the field. Matt Painter's squad is also grabbing 40.4 rebounds per game and has a 1.96-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio.
This is nothing new for Auburn, though. The Tigers have already played some of the top teams in college basketball, battling Houston, Michigan, and Arizona through the early portion of the season. Pearl's team is 0-3 in those contests, meaning Saturday's game against Purdue would be the most impressive win of the season.
Pearl talks Purdue's weapons
Last year, Auburn didn't have much trouble with Purdue. The Tigers posted an 87-69 victory in Birmingham, but the final score was much closer than the game.
Auburn lost a lot of its size and talent after last year's Final Four run, and Purdue has added some size with the addition of Oscar Cluff and Daniel Jacobsen's return. That, along with the combination of Braden Smith and Trey Kaufman-Renn, makes the Boilers incredibly difficult to defend.
"Cluff adds a different dimension to their team. They're big and rebound the ball at a high level," Pearl said. "They have guys who can make shots. Braden Smith is probably the best passer in college basketball, been one of the best passers in college basketball for a long time. He does so many things that can break down defenses and gets all those guys so involved.
"Trey Kaufman-Renn is such a beast down there. He's probably the best short-roll player in all of college basketball. Anytime he catches it there, he's going to score it, or he's going to facilitate it. So, they present a lot of challenges."
Pearl didn't even mention Fletcher Loyer, one of the country's top shooters from long range. He enters the Indy Classic as Purdue's leading scorer, averaging 14.1 points per game and hitting from the three-point line at a 46.4% clip.
Much like Auburn caused problems for Purdue last year, the Boilermakers will present several challenges for the Tigers this season.
Auburn won't be surprised by anything, though. The Tigers have already played similar opponents multiple times, and Pearl knows what to expect from a "freaking good" Purdue team on Saturday.
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HOW TO WATCH PURDUE-AUBURN: Purdue and Auburn go head-to-head in the Indy Classic on Saturday. Here's everything you need to know about this top-25 matchup in Indianapolis. CLICK HERE
Dustin Schutte is the publisher of Purdue Boilermakers on SI and has spent more than a decade working in sports journalism. His career began in 2013, when he covered Big Ten football. He remained in that role for eight years before working at On SI to cover the Boilermakers. Dustin graduated from Manchester University in Indiana in 2010, where he played for the men's tennis team.
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