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Cornell Peck brings versatility to Purdue's frontcourt and should be a viable candidate to start in his one and only season in West Lafayette. That'll be the 6-foot-6, 220-something-pound forward's ambition, obviously. "I don't really have a set position or anything like that," Peck said. "I just want to come in, play good defense and get out in transition. That's one of my biggest things: Getting off the glass and going. I just want to 83 IllustrateD volume 24, issue 1 help us win games, whether that's five minutes or 30 minutes, whatever Coach wants me to do." At Cornell, Peck averaged about 10 points and five rebounds this past season, coming off the knee injury that forced him to redshirt as a junior. "People might be surprised by my shooting and ball-handling if they remember me as a post player in high school, a 6-5 post player," he said. "I think you'll be surprised." The 6-foot Carter figures to factor heavily into a backcourt equation that was perilously thin last season for a team that struggled mightily to make jump shots, two serious vulnerabilities from a year ago that Purdue needs to remedy now. In a little more than two seasons at Seattle U., Carter made 170 three-pointers, good for second-most in school history. "At Seattle, I wasn't really that guy they looked to to score, but I was the guy who scored because I had that fire and determination," Carter said. "If somebody else isn't doing it, I'm going to step up and do it. I was never recruited there to be any sort of all-time scorer, but that's how it played out to be. I just did my job. "Here, I think the coaches are looking for me to make open shots, knock down the three and play great defense, but whatever role they have for me, that's what I'm going to do." Carter will come to Purdue highly motivated after his bizarre parting of ways with Seattle, which simply cut ties with him during last season in what appeared to be a reflection of philosophy on the part of Redhawks coaches in terms of guard play. "It definitely motivates me and has motivated me since the moment I was released from the team," Carter said. "I've been working every day and I'm not going to stop. My goal is to help get us to the NCAA Tournament. That's why I came here." Peck is equally driven, with just one season remaining in his college career and a long-awaited chance to play college basketball at its highest levels. Hardly recruited by Purdue out of Cathedral High School in Indianapolis years ago, Peck is eager to show he belongs. "I think I can be very competitive and a great player at this level," Peck said. "I want to prove it to myself and others." j f