Why Purdue Fans Shouldn't Panic After Back-to-Back Losses to UCLA, Illinois
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WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Winning has become so common in West Lafayette that every Purdue loss seems to be magnified. So, with the Boilermakers dropping back-to-back games to UCLA and Illinois, there's a lot of worry emerging about this team's chances to win a Big Ten title this season.
But a 7-2 start in Big Ten play isn't exactly new territory for this program. Purdue has won five regular-season conference championships under Matt Painter. In four of those years, the Boilermakers actually had a lower winning percentage at some point in league play and still found a way to climb atop the Big Ten.
Purdue got off to a 7-0 start in league play before dropping the last two games. There are still 11 conference games remaining, which means there's plenty of time to make up some ground.
For those who may still be worried, here are some examples of when Purdue bounced back from rough starts to win the Big Ten.
Purdue 2009-10 (2-3 start)
In Painter's first run to a Big Ten title, Purdue started the year 14-0 and 2-0 in Big Ten play before hitting a three-game skid. The Boilermakers lost three straight games to Wisconsin, Ohio State and Northwestern, falling below the .500 mark in conference play.
How did that team respond? The Boilers rattled off 10 straight wins and only lost one more game in league play to finish the Big Ten season with a 14-4 record and win a league title.
Much like this year's team, that squad also had a "Big Three" for most of the year, relying on E'Twaun Moore, JaJuan Johnson and Robbie Hummel heavily for success. Hummel later suffered a knee injury that kept him sidelined for the remainder of that year.
Purdue 2016-17 (6-3 start)
The second Purdue team to win a Big Ten title under Painter was one led by Caleb Swanigan, Dakota Mathias, Carsen Edwards, Vincent Edwards, and Isaac Haas. This group never lost back-to-back games, but struggled to get into a rhythm early in the season.
Through the first nine games, Purdue was sitting at 6-3, with losses to Minnesota, Iowa and a Nebraska team that finished second-to-last in the conference. The Boilermakers would go on to win eight of their last nine games and claimed a league title by two games.
Purdue finished the season with a trip to the Sweet 16 and Swanigan was named the Big Ten Player of the Year.
Purdue 2018-19 (2-2 start)
Painter's 2018-19 squad might be one of the best single-season turnarounds in his tenure. Not only did this team start Big Ten play with a .500 record, it started the season 6-5 and had a stretch where it lost five-of-seven.
After a road loss to Michigan State, the Boilermakers were 9-6 and 2-2 in the Big Ten. Just getting to the tournament seemed like it would be a major accomplishment. The Boilermakers got hot, though, winning eight consecutive games after the loss to the Spartans. Purdue finished the year winning 14 of its last 16 games and went 16-4 in the conference
This was the team led by Carsen Edwards and Ryan Cline, which made a run to the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament. Edwards had one of the best postseason performances of all-time across that four-game stretch.
Purdue 2023-24 (3-2 start)
Remember the Purdue team that reached the National Championship Game? The one with two-time National Player of the Year Zach Edey? Yeah, even that team endured some early-season defeats in Big Ten play.
The Boilermakers dropped road games to Northwestern and Nebraska that year, falling to 3-2 in the Big Ten standings in early January. After the loss in Lincoln, the Boilermakers won 14 of their final 15 conference games to end the year with a 17-3 conference record and winning the league by three games.
Edey was the leader of that team, but three current Boilermakers — Braden Smith, Fletcher Loyer and Trey Kaufman-Renn — were all members of that squad, too. They've faced plenty of adversity before and know how to respond to it.
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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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