Matt Painter Details No. 11 Purdue's 'Tough' Matchup vs. Ohio State
After a two-game road trip to the West Coast, No. 11 Purdue has a quick turnaround, hosting Ohio State at Mackey Arena on Tuesday. Boilermakers coach Matt Painter says that, despite the Buckeyes' record, he expects a really tough game in West Lafayette.
Purdue enters the game on a seven-game winning streak, winning six of those by double digits. Ohio State, on the other hand, has dropped each of its last three games, losing by a combined five points.
While the Buckeyes have had some late-game errors that have cost them, Painter said Jake Diebler and his staff are bring an extremely talented team to Mackey Arena.
"They're 2-5 in our league and they're three possessions away from being 5-2. I think you've got to keep that in perspective," Painter said. "The games they've lost, the last one (to Indiana) in overtime, and the other ones could have went either way.
"They're a very good team, Bruce Thornton is very talented, (John) Mobley (Jr.) is a guy you have to be aware of at all times."
Four Buckeyes enter Tuesday night's contest averaging double digits. Thornton is the leader, posting 17.4 points per game while shooting 52.6% from the floor and 41.1% from 3-point range.
His physical style of play and ability to knock down shots anywhere on the court could cause some problems for Purdue's defense.
"He can get to his kill spots. He's shifty, he's quick, but he's also physical," Painter said. "He can get to the basket, he can make pull-up threes, but he can also get into the paint, jump stop and make that reverse pivot shot where he fades away and knocks that down. He also plays off his shot fake and draws fouls.
"Just a versatile guard. A versatile lead guard who is good at distributing the ball, but also being aggressive and scoring."
Devin Royal — who missed last week's game against Indiana — is averaging 13.8 points and 7.4 rebounds per game. Mobley is scoring 12.5 per game and Micah Parris is adding 10.5 per contest. In other words, Ohio State has a lot of weapons.
Purdue's defense has been stifling recently, holding each of its last seven opponents to 68 points or less. The Boilermakers are also forcing turnovers at a much higher rate, with opponents giving the ball up 14.6 times per game in the last seven contests.
It's going to take another strong defensive effort from Purdue to try and quiet an Ohio State offense that has plenty of scorers on the floor.
"Across the board, they have a good team. They have good athleticism on their front line, good size, they have depth," Painter said. "It's going to be a tough game."
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