Why Iowa's Ben McCollum Says Purdue is the 'Epitome of a College Basketball Program'
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It hasn't taken Ben McCollum long to understand the type of culture Matt Painter has established at Purdue. The Iowa coach has a lot of respect for what's been built in West Lafayette, and how the Boilermakers go about their business.
Wednesday night will mark the first time McCollum has coached against Painter. Already, the Iowa leader has been impressed by Purdue's staff by what he's seen on film. He doesn't believe the staff in West Lafayette gets enough credit for its offensive prowess.
"I don't think their coaches get enough credit for how good they are at setting people up, particularly their point guards and their fives," McCollum told reporters on Tuesday. "They're elite at getting those people in positions to accumulate a few assists, accumulate some points. And then those guys are great at being coachable and being tough enough to be able to do those things.
"They're the epitome of what it means to be a college basketball player and a college basketball program."
The "coachable" part is what stands out about the program Painter has built. Braden Smith, Fletcher Loyer and Trey Kaufman-Renn have spent their entire careers at Purdue. Gicarri Harris, CJ Cox, Daniel Jacobsen, Jack Benter, and Raleigh Burgess were freshmen a season ago, and all returned to the program.
In an era where entering the transfer portal is so easy, Painter has been able to retain a good portion of his production. It's a big reason why Purdue heads into Wednesday night's game against Iowa with a 15-1 record and a 5-0 mark in Big Ten play.
Purdue has the "perfect pieces"
McCollum also doesn't need experience coaching against Purdue to understand the troubles it can present. The Boilermakers have the No. 1 adjusted offensive efficiency rate in KenPom, shoot nearly 52% from the floor, and over 39% from three-point range.
"They have the perfect pieces. They're just built so well, and they're so well coached offensively," McCollum said. "Obviously, [Braden Smith] and their bigs, and they space it with shooting. You've got your primary play-maker, but a lot of it is designed through their plays, through their actions, and they have a lot of them."
The Boilermakers have a team that can bludgeon you on the interior with Oscar Cluff, Trey Kaufman-Renn, and Daniel Jacobsen, or can bury you with triples from guys like Fletcher Loyer, CJ Cox, Gicarri Harris, Jack Benter, and Braden Smith.
Opponents have to pick their poison with Purdue. So far, the combination of physicality in the post and quality perimeter shooting has the Boilers sitting in the top spot of the Big Ten standings.
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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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