Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/270685
GoldanDBlack express • volume 24, express 23 • 4 G ood for Purdue, that it put itself in position in second halves of the last two games to beat ranked teams and earn that elu- sive quality win. Good for the Boil- ermakers that they've played some of their better basketball the past couple games and done so short-handed, no less, with Sterling Carter done in by a knee injury and Jay Simpson idled by, well … something. Good for Purdue that it's shown some measure of pride late in a season that's gone so horribly sideways. But unfortunately for Purdue, when all is said and done, it barely matters. At the end of the day, Purdue lost in overtime to Michigan on Glenn Robinson III's buzzer-beater. Of course, it had to be Glenn Rob- inson III who handed the Boiler- makers their second loss of the season in a game they didn't even trail in regulation. And at the end of the day, the Boilermakers lost at Iowa, done in by shoddy guard play, their pen- chant for untimely turnovers and a composure deficit that first showed itself months ago and has never really gone away. Purdue is a horribly inconsistent basketball team, but the high end of its spectrum is nowhere near as high as its low end is low. At its best, Purdue is still a basketball team with precious little margin for error; at its worst, it's just bad. These past two games, the lat- ter has reared its bitter little face at the worst possible times, un- dermining Purdue as it's stood on the verge of actual quality Big Ten wins, of which the Boilermakers re- ally don't have any. Everyone else in the league does, I might add. There's something almost tragic about Purdue losing games in which A.J. Hammons plays really well, because when he's on and engaged, there are few players in the game more influential. And it doesn't happen every night, so the Boilermakers mustn't squander their opportunities. Hammons has played two very good games back to back and Purdue's 0-2, because for Purdue this year, if it's not one thing, it's another. Against Michigan, it was turn- overs, for which you couldn't have scripted worse timing, and foul trouble; in Iowa City, it was turn- overs from start to finish, the prod- uct of simply wretched guard play. Ronnie Johnson has played so well so often lately, but Iowa was rock bottom. Bryson Scott has a chance to be a very good player for Purdue, but Iowa was one of those games you want freshmen to learn from. Between the two point guards, they committed 11 of Purdue's 16 turnovers, seven by Johnson, four by Scott — to accompany 0-for-3 shooting — in just 10 minutes. Purdue's a loss at Wisconsin, where the Boilermakers will not be favored, away from slipping to .500 and a senior day loss to Northwest- ern away from finishing the regu- lar season with a losing record. The Wildcats are bad, but 1-0 against Purdue in 2013. Purdue's on the wrong bub- ble, the NIT's, in a season in which an opportunity to return to the College Basketball Invitational should be politely, but swiftly, de- clined should one by presented. Better was expected. It has not been delivered. With a more talented, more experienced (though still not ex- perienced) roster, Purdue is flirting with last season's depths after be- ing a consistent winner for so long. Right now, that's what Purdue needs most: Consistency. It's great that it's represented itself fairly well these past two games; doing so two months ago would have been even better. Purdue has gotten better. It just doesn't seem to matter all that much anymore. j Neubert can be contacted at BNeubert @GoldandBlack.com f r o m e d i t o r b r i a n n e u b e r t too little, too late BOILERMAKERS Follett's Purdue Bookstores West | Black & Gold Mine | follettspurdue.com BOILER UP! ™ With the latest in Purdue Basketball Gear!