Halfway home- Boilers set their sights on another Big Ten Title
By ZACH VOGT
ISL Contributor
The Purdue Boilermakers came into the 2024-25 season with uncertain expectations. There was an intriguing mix of returning experience and exciting young talent. The question was always going to be how well Purdue could find a new identity after losing 2x National Player of the Year Zach Edey to the NBA. Matt Painter once again loaded up the non-conference schedule to challenge his new team into figuring things out in the post-Edey era. Within the first 13 games of the season, Purdue had battles with Alabama, Marquette, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, and Auburn. Each of those teams were ranked inside the top-25 at the time that they played, and all of them are still ranked today. The Boilers went 2-3 in those games with the two wins coming against Alabama and Ole Miss. There were some great bright spots during that stretch as well as a lot of frustration. For the first time in three years, Purdue had to find a new identity.
Those struggles carried into the beginning of the Big Ten schedule as they traveled to Penn State for their conference opener. This game got out of hand quickly for the Boilers as they stared at a 16-point deficit going into the half, and ended up losing 81-70 to start off conference play 0-1 for the second consecutive season. It wasn’t until after the new year when Purdue head coach Matt Painter decided to make a switch in the starting lineup, inserting senior Caleb Furst and freshman CJ Cox and moving sophomores Myles Colvin and Camden Heide back to the bench. This seemingly small lineup tweak at the time became the moment that Purdue had figured something out and turned the corner. What made the difference is the way the Purdue defense started to click once Furst and Cox were entered into the starting lineup. After the blowout loss to Auburn on December 21, Purdue was hovering around 70th in adjusted defensive efficiency on KenPom. The defense was struggling mightily and it seemed that they could not get connected on that end of the floor. That all changed on January 2 at Minnesota when Matt Painter made the switch.
Since then, Purdue has gone 7-1 in the month of January and are holding firmly at the 2nd spot in the Big Ten standings behind Michigan State. Their defense as a team has been incredible over that eight game stretch, only allowing an average of 61.6 points per game to their opponents. They have raised their adjusted defensive efficiency rating on KenPom from up near 70th all the way down to 22nd, and that has been the driving force in their run through January.
Offensively, Braden Smith has become the guy that was voted Big Ten preseason player of the year and has started to completely dominate games in every facet. Since the beginning of January, Smith has been averaging 16.8 points per game, 9.4 assists, 5.0 rebounds,, and 2.8 steals per game. He went through some struggles early in the season and has since turned into a surefire 1st team All-American.
Trey Kaufman-Renn has been the perfect secondary option over the same stretch, averaging 17.9 PPG and 6.0 RPG. Everything goes as those two go, and they have certainly gone as of late.
The Purdue Boilermakers are officially halfway home in their quest for a 3-peat of the Big Ten regular season championship. Here are the current standings atop the Big Ten:
- Michigan State 9-0 0.0 GB
- Purdue 8-2 1.5 GB
- Michigan 7-2 2.0 GB
- Maryland 7-4 3.0 GB
- UCLA, Illinois, Wisconsin 6-4 3.5 GB
Michigan State has yet to enter the meat of their schedule, which they are about to do as the calendar hits February. The Spartans have games against UCLA, Oregon, Illinois, Purdue, Michigan, and Maryland all within the month of February. This will serve as the perfect opportunity for Purdue to climb back into the race to win the Big Ten.
There is a metaphorical corner that every team hopes to eventually turn at the right time within their season. Purdue turned that corner on January 2, and they have not looked back. The quest for their 3rd-straight Big Ten title is in full swing as the Boilermakers enter the final stretch.
