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GoldanDBlack express • volume 24, express 21 • 1 BY STACY CLARDIE SClardie@GoldandBlack.com M att Painter knows what he wants his Purdue team to do in these final two weeks of the regular season. "Compete," he said Monday. That'd be a change from recently. Despite being in desperate need of any and every victory down the fi- nal stretch of Big Ten play to keep its postseason hopes alive, Purdue not only went 0-for-2 last week in prime opportunities to build its résumé but the games were not close. The Boilermakers scored but couldn't stop Michigan State from do- ing so on Thursday in a 94-79 loss in Mackey Arena and then couldn't do much of either on Sunday while suf- fering their worst conference defeat of the season 76-57 at red-hot Nebraska. And the schedule doesn't let up. The next three games are against ranked teams, including Michigan Wednesday at home and at Iowa on Sunday. After the loss at Nebraska, sopho- more Rapheal Da- vis said the team has to "care more." Painter said he agreed, but he also wants to see it not just hear players talk about it. "Everybody is taking inventory on trying to do what we need as a group, and each guy has got to be able to dig deeper and just play hard- er," Painter said. "We have too many guys playing for them- selves. That's some- thing that comes with immaturity, with inexperience and with guys not under- standing winning basketball. I think you give a little bit and work a little bit with some younger guys, but when guys have been here before … "And (we need to) just being fun- damentally sound. We have a couple guys that need to be more fundamen- tally sound. A couple guys need to just flat play harder. We have too many guys just standing out there watching." Giving more effort on defense is especially crucial in this final stretch — the next three games are against three of the four top-scoring teams during Big Ten play. volume 24, eX 22 • feb. 24, 2014 Inside | Boiler men drop two 6-8 | Big Dog returns 10–11 Women ready for senior day 17–19 | Football notes 24-26 wanted: more effort Tom Campbell Matt Painter wants his team to play harder and follow its defen- sive principles better in its final four-game stretch of the regular season. 11-5 Coach Matt Painter's record in the final four conference games of the season over the past four years, giving hope that the 2013-14 Boilermakers can right the ship. 6.68 The increase in percent- age for the Boilermakers from the free throw line on the road vs. at home. Purdue was 22-of-29 against Nebraska on Sunday. 5 A.J. Hammons' place on the single- season blocked shot list (78), tying him with JaJuan Johnson's effort in 2009. 31 Assists April Wilson needs for the remainder of the season to become tops of the school list for sopho- mores. MaChelle Joseph set the standard with 152 in 1989-90. THE NumbErs