Michigan Coach Juwan Howard on Purdue: 'We'll See Them Again, And We'll be Ready to Compete'

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — The Purdue and Michigan basketball programs find themselves in a unique situation after meeting for the first time this season Saturday at Mackey Arena.

Following an 82-76 victory for the Boilermakers, the two teams will play at the Crisler Center in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on Thursday, Feb. 10, for their second matchup in six days. The game is scheduled to tip off at 9 p.m. ET.

Purdue was originally scheduled to hit the road and play Michigan on Jan. 11, but due to health and safety concerns within the Wolverines' program, the game was postponed. It would later be rescheduled by the Big Ten.

"It's part of our league. It's part of what we've dealt with for the last — now it's going on two years with COVID," Michigan head coach Juwan Howard said after Saturday's game. "We don't make excuses for it. We've got to go out there and see. I remember how in the NBA, when you're in the playoffs, it's like a chess match for a five or seven-game series.

"Each team is trying to make adjustments to see what they can do to help give themselves an advantage. So we'll see them again, and we'll be ready to compete."

Michigan, once a preseason conference favorite, now owns an 11-9 overall record and is just 5-5 in Big Ten play. It had defeated Purdue in each of the last five meetings dating back to March of 2018, including two wins at Mackey Arena.

Before Saturday's matchup, the Wolverines were the only team in the country to boast two victories against the Boilermakers in West Lafayette since the 2014-15 season.

Now, with just eight games remaining in the regular season, Purdue is among several teams jostling for the top spot in the conference. But before the Boilermakers can even turn their heads toward a rematch with the Wolverines, they welcome Illinois to Mackey Arena on Tuesday.

The Fighting Illini, coming off a 74-57 road victory over Indiana, sit atop the Big Ten with a 10-2 conference record. Purdue and Wisconsin are both one game behind at 9-3 in league play.

Purdue coach Matt Painter did not divulge whether there would be an inherent advantage or disadvantage that comes with playing the same team twice in the span of a handful of days.

"I'd answer if we were playing nobody before then," Painter said. "But we've got to play a game before then. We've got to play Illinois on Tuesday, so that's going to be a tough game. Just like this is a tough game, they're all tough. So we'll see."

Tipoff against Illinois is scheduled for 9 p.m. ET, and the game will be aired live on ESPN. The last time the two teams met, Purdue snuck away from Champaign, Illinois, with a 96-88 win in double overtime on Jan. 17.

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