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GOLDANDBLACK EXPRESS • VOLUME 25, EXPRESS 18 • 10 can't be understated. After biding his time and getting comfortable within a new offense, Octeus has found his groove. Entering the Iowa game, his 12.5 points per game in Big Ten play led the Boilermakers. But Octeus wasn't just scor- ing, he was doing it exactly how Painter wants: Being efficient and getting to the rim. In those first six league games, Octeus led Purdue in field goal percentage (.569). Take away the nine three-pointers — of which he made only two, though both were crucial against Penn State — and his percent- age shot up to 64 percent. "I guess just the thought of being aggressive is allowing me to find my spots within the of- fense to get good shots," Octeus said last week. "Coach always says you want to shoot the shots in a game, you've got to work on it. I just have been doing that, trying to stay in the gym as much as possible. Me being able to have weekend classes (as a graduate student) allows me to be in the gym more, (and I'm) taking ad- vantage of it." The bump in point production has come as Octeus' minutes have increased. That's not an accident. Octeus has wanted to play in the 30s all season, but it's only been since just be- fore Big Ten play that he got his wish. As Purdue's backup point guards have struggled and Octeus has excelled, he's dominating the minutes. In the last nine games, Octeus averaged 33.6. That's sec- ond on the team to Davis' 34.1, the latter number boosted after a 39-minute total Saturday. Octeus wants the minutes to keep pil- ing up. "That does help a lot," Octeus said of more minutes equating to production. "I get treatment every day, so (my body) is fine." SURPRISE SPARK Entering the Iowa game, Basil Smoth- erman had one point, three rebounds and seven fouls in 37 minutes in the first six Big Ten games. He wasn't getting more minutes because Painter wasn't seeing what he needed: An energetic presence, a rebound- crasher and an efficient offensive approach. But against the Hawkeyes, Smother- man performed his role perfectly, and it produced big-time results. He was the spark to lift the Boilermakers to the streak- breaking victory with a career-high 13 points, six rebounds, two blocks, an assist PLUS-MINUS As a reminder, the figures below show how Purdue, as a team, fared when an individual was in the game. MINN MICH @WIS MARY @PSU @ILL IOWA TOT Kendall Stephens +8 +15 +1 +3 +5 +1 +6 +39 Isaac Haas +6 +2 -4 -1 +8 +1 +3 +15 Jon Octeus +15 +14 -5 -16 +9 -6 +1 +12 Basil Smotherman -8 -8 -7 +3 +1 +4 +15 0 Bryson Scott +1 DNP DNP 0 0 -3 DNP -2 Raphael Davis +4 +11 -5 -16 +7 -9 +4 -4 P.J. Thompson -9 +3 -4 +6 -2 -3 +3 -6 Vince Edwards +12 +19 -4 -12 +4 -13 -13 -7 A.J. Hammons -2 +11 -3 -9 -1 -10 0 -14 Dakota Mathias -7 -2 -4 -3 +4 -7 +1 -18 2014-15 PURDUE MEN'S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE Date Opponent Time/Result Nov. 2 CALIFORNIA (Pa.) (BTN Plus) W, 89-52 Nov. 7 CARROLL (BTN Plus) W, 90-49 Nov. 14 SAMFORD (BTN Plus) W, 80-40 Nov. 16 IUPUI (BTN) W, 77-57 Nov. 20 GRAMBLING (BTN Plus) W, 82-30 Maui Invitational - Lahaina, Hawaii Nov. 24 vs. Kansas State (ESPN2) L, 79-88 Nov. 25 vs. Missouri W, 82-61 Nov. 26 vs. BYU (ESPN2) W, 87-85 (OT) Big Ten/ACC Challenge - West Lafayette Dec. 2 NC STATE (ESPNU) W, 66-61 Dec. 6 NORTH FLORIDA (BTN Plus) L, 70-73 Dec. 8 IPFW (ESPNU) W, 63-43 Dec. 10 ARKANSAS STATE (ESPNU) W, 87-46 Dec. 13 at Vanderbilt (SEC Network) L, 71-81 Crossroads Classic - Indianapolis Dec. 20 vs. No. 21 Notre Dame (BTN) L, 63-94 Dec. 22 GARDNER-WEBB (BTN Plus) L, 84-89 Dec. 31 MINNESOTA (BTN) W, 72-68 Jan. 3 MICHIGAN (BTN) W, 64-51 Jan. 7 at No. 4 Wisconsin (BTN) L, 55-62 Jan. 10 No. 12 MARYLAND (BTN) L, 60-69 Jan. 17 at Penn State (BTN) W, 84-77 (OT) Jan. 21 at Illinois (BTN) L, 57-66 Jan. 24 No. 25 IOWA (BTN) W, 67-63 Jan. 28 No. 22 INDIANA (BTN) 9 p.m. Jan. 31 at Northwestern (ESPNU) 6 p.m. Feb. 4 OHIO STATE (BTN) 6:30 p.m. Feb. 7 at Minnesota (BTN) 3 p.m. Feb. 12 at Rutgers(ESPNU) 7 p.m. Feb. 15 NEBRASKA (BTN) 5:15 p.m. Feb. 19 at Indiana (ESPN/ESPN2) 7 p.m. Feb. 26 RUTGERS (ESPNU) 9 p.m. March 1 at Ohio State (CBS/BTN) TBA March 4 at Michigan State (BTN) 8 p.m. March 7 ILLINOIS (BTN) 4:30 p.m. March 11-15 Big Ten Tournament (Chicago) Tom Campbell It may have taken time for Jon Octeus to get comfortable in Purdue's offense, but with more minutes has come more aggression, more scoring and more production.