Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/274846
GoldanDBlack express • volume 24, express 24 • 17 BY KYLE CHARTERS KCharters@GoldandBlack.com T he last three seasons, the Boil- ermakers have been bounced from the second round of the NCAA Tournament, seeing their chances of advancing to the sec- ond weekend dashed. So following Purdue's early exit from the Big Ten Tournament — the Boilermakers lost 87-80 to Iowa in the quarterfinals on Friday afternoon — players were already looking ahead. The Boilers have reason to think positively of the NCAA; they're likely a fourth or fifth seed and will be playing in Mackey Are- na for the first two rounds, which are March 22 and 24. That and Purdue is now 6-1 since the injury that sidelined KK Houser in early February, the only loss coming to the then-No. 23 Hawkeyes. "We had KK go down, but we just have to will together and keep pushing through," Dee Dee Williams said in Indianapolis after Friday's loss. "That's our goal, get to the Sweet 16, get to the Final Four, and we can't look back. We can't think about this game, can't think about any other losses, just have to let them go. "We want to be ready to go to the Sweet 16." Purdue's not been to that point since 2009, when it lost to top-seeded Oklahoma in the Elite Eight. The Boilermakers missed the tournament a year later, then were selected the next three sea- sons. But No. 1-seed Connecticut eliminated them in 2011, then South Carolina and Louisville the last two seasons. The latter two have stung the most, considering Purdue was the higher seed — a fourth vs. a fifth — in both years. And the South Carolina loss came in Mackey Arena. Should the Boilermakers get by a first-round opponent in the NCAAs this season, they'll likely face a similar scenario. ESPN bracketologist Charlie Creme has Purdue as a No. 5 seed in his lat- est bracket, posted early Monday morning, playing against No. 12- seed South Dakota State in the first round. The winner would likely get No. 4 N.C. State in the second-round game. Purdue had been projected as a fourth seed before its loss to Iowa, the defeat dropping it down a notch, at least in the eyes of Creme. Coach Sharon Versyp says Purdue will simply have to wait until Selection Monday, March 17, to see where it's placed. "My opinion never matters, in anything," Versyp said. "Our RPI is 7, and you're sup- posed to look at the whole season, injuries, etc. Iowa is a great team, they're ranked in the top 25 and RPI is 28. It's not up to me. I hope we're a 4 or 5 seed." Purdue is one of five Big Ten teams in the Field of 64, according to Creme. He has Nebraska, which Purdue beat twice, as a third seed in the tourney, following the Cornhuskers' Big Ten Tournament championship. Also, he has Penn State (4), Michigan State (5) and Iowa (6) safely in. Minnesota is a bubble team, listed by Creme has one of his "first four out." Each will have to wait to see where they fall in the field. It's an unusually long one for the Boilermak- ers, who are used to a deep Big Ten Tournament run. But exiting on Fri- day, they'll have nine full days un- til they learn their tourney fate, then another four until playing their NCAA opener. "A very long wait," senior Court- ney Moses said. "For Purdue, we never go out this early in the tourna- ment. It's new. It's a really long wait, but we have to stay hungry and just stay moti- vated to go far in the tournament." Boilers learn '14-15 ConferenCe opponents In the expanded Big Ten next season, the Boilermakers and the rest of the 13 league teams will play an extended conference slate. The conference schedule is up to 18 games, from the 16 it's has been the last few years, with the addition of Maryland and Rutgers. Tom Campbell Dee Dee Williams and the Boilermakers have to wait until March 24 to learn their NCAA Tournament seeding and opponent. w o m e n ' s ba s k e t ba l l : n e w s a n d n ot e s Double vertime boilermakers look forward AP Top 25 (March 10) 1. Connecticut (36) 2. Notre Dame 3. Louisville 4. Tennessee 5. West Virginia 6. Stanford 7. Baylor 8. South Carolina 9. Duke 10. Kentucky 11. Maryland 12. North Carolina 13. Nebraska 14. Penn State 15. Texas A&M 16. N.C. State 17. PURDUE 18. Gongaza 19. Iowa 20. Michigan State 21. Oklahoma State 22. Middle Tennessee 23. DePaul 24. California 25. Bowling Green USA Today Top 25 (March 3) 1. Connecticut (31) 2. Notre Dame (1) 3. Stanford 4. Louisville 5. Maryland 6. Tennessee 7. South Carolina 8. West Virginia 9. Baylor 10. Duke 11. Penn State 12. North Carolina 13. Kentucky 14. Texas A&M 15. Nebraska 16. PURDUE 17. N.C. State 18. Oklahoma State 19. Gongaza 20. California 21. Iowa State 22. Middle Tennessee 23. Michigan State 24. Dayton 25. DePaul