Purdue finishes sweep of Indiana
By JAMES HOWELL, Jr.
ISL Purdue Writer
On the opening possession of the game, center A.J. Hammons took a turnaround jumper and missed everything. The cheers of “Air Ball” rang down on the court of Assembly Hall from the crazed fans of the Indiana Hoosiers.
The Hoosiers faithful did their best to shake Purdue’s 7-foot center, but he was not fazed. He went 8-for-8 from the field the rest of the way to lead the Boilermakers to a 67-63 win over Indiana and a season sweep.
After the air ball, the Boilermakers settled down. Through the first six minutes of the game, the Boilermakers held their own. After an Isaac Haas layup with 13:47 remaining in the first half, the Boilermakers went without a basket for 5:23 until when Jon Octeus finally hit a layup.
The Hoosiers would take a two-point lead into halftime off a Kevin “Yogi” Ferrell teardrop lay in.
In the second half, the Boilermakers used impressive rebounding from Raphael Davis and continued strong post moves from Hammons and Haas to score 40 points. The Hoosiers lack of size and inability to hit the 3-point shot in the game proved to be the difference.
Hammons led the way with 20 points on his 8-for-9 shooting night. He finished with just four boards, but still made his presence known defensively with four blocks and a steal.
“Winning that contest today helped me stay focused and gave me confidence,” Hammons said. ”I took my time and didn’t even think about the crowd. This was the perfect day for me to win that contest.”
Haas also played a crucial role for the Boilermakers. Using his 7-2 frame, he was able to control the paint in the most efficient game of his Big Ten playing career. He had 12 points and nine rebounds in just 12 minutes.
Hammons, who has taken it upon himself to be a role model for Haas, was happy with the way the bigs played.
”I was proud of Isaac, because until tonight, he had never played here,” Hammons said. ”I thought tonight was going to be hard for him. To date, that probably is the best we have played together.”
Davis was the lone Boilermaker with a double-double. He finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
Davis has become known for his great and candid insight into the Boilermakers program. Following the game he reiterated one of the more popular things he has stated about the Purdue-Indiana rivalry.
“Like I tell our guys all year, this game is bigger than our team,” he said. ”It is a huge game, so we were playing for our fans and for our coaches.”
