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10 ILLUSTRATED VOLUME 25, ISSUE 3 f BY BRIAN NEUBERT BNeubert@GoldandBlack.com I t's 2 p.m. and Purdue's 15 players are among the two dozen or so people who file into the dimly lit the- atre-style film room adjacent to the Boilermaker locker room. The chairs are spacious, even for 7-footers A.J. Hammons and Isaac Haas, and cozy. It's Nov. 13, and Samford is visiting Mackey Arena the following evening for both teams' season-opening game. This is Purdue's final preparation, aside from its day-of walk-thru, for its first opponent of the year. The key players for Samford are written in black ink on the dry-erase wall, complete with jersey numbers, positions, heights, weights and con- cise, to-the-point superlatives such as "scorer," "active forward" or "energy guy 4-man." Players of nominal concern get bland descriptors like "backup point guard" or "reserve post." One of the Bulldogs' starters gets a red-inked defensive instruction tied to his name: "BLUFF & STAY." (Translation: Show like you're go- ing to come off a shooter to contain another player's dribble, but don't leave the shooter.) With free time on their hands, play- ers playfully make fun of each other, showing some behind-the-scenes glimpses of the chemistry they often talk about publicly. The players are mostly assembled and settled in as Matt Painter walks in carrying sneakers, sits down, then starts messing around with a red laser pointer, pointing it at players and visi- tors to this pregame film session. Associate head coach Jack Owens, charged with the scouting report for Samford, is nestled in the corner of the room alongside video coordinator Nick Terruso, who begins the video being projected on the wall in front of the Boilermakers, the same wall Sam- ford's personnel is scribbled on. There's no formal beginning to this tutorial. Owens just starts talking as the film starts, reviewing the basics of Purdue's game plan for the opener. For the next nearly 30 minutes, Owens runs through Samford's bread- and-butter stuff, the basics of their full-court press and ball-screen action at both ends of the floor. The video shows mostly empty gyms — one set from a closed scrimmage acquired via exchange, the other from an exhibition. That's where things start, film ac- quisition. That's Terruso's job. The scrimmage film comes via exchange. The NABC urges college teams to partake in exchange, but they are not required. Last season, Northern Kentucky balked and refused to provide tape. Almost worked. Purdue just barely es- M E N ' S B A S K E T B A L L Hands-On Approach A step-by-step look at the Boilermakers' preparation Brian Neubert Matt Painter has crafted his practices to specifically keep players moving and communicating. He values simulating real-game conditions and breaking the game down into "parts" to take a more focused approach to teaching.