GOLDANDBLACK EXPRESS • VOLUME 25, EXPRESS 25 • 11
Basil Smotherman 5
F • 6-6 • So.
Little things matter more as
the games get bigger and the
sophomore's best way to help
win an NCAA Tournament game
is through those little things.
He has to rebound and defend
above all else and play with ener-
gy without allowing that energy to get the best of
him. Sometimes he takes unnecessary chances on
defense trying to generate steals and it compro-
mises Purdue defensively. It's a fine line to walk,
but the wiser he chooses his battles, the better.
Kendall Stephens 21
G • 6-6 • So.
As a forgettable sophomore
season — in context, mind you
— winds down, Stephens has
been showing flashes, including
a 3-for-3 three-point shooting
performance against Wisconsin.
Purdue would like more than
flashes though from a player much was expected
from this season. His all-around offensive game
has improved, but not to the point yet where he
can really be productive inside the arc. As was the
case last season, he has to keep focusing on taking
the highest-percentage (for him) shots possible
and nothing but.
Isaac Haas 44
C • 7-2 • Fr.
The rookie big man is struggling
right now, an experience that
might be good for him in some
small way down the line. His
struggles to play with physicality,
without smashing people, have
been a season-long process and
he's learning, one would think, that playing the
game as high as possible all the time is valuable.
When he rebounds the ball or mobilizes to shoot
and brings the ball down to normal-sized-people
levels, he negates his natural advantages. It will
be an offseason emphasis, not that's it's not right
now.
P.J. Thompson 3
G • 5-10 • Fr.
Firmly established right now,
it would seem, as Purdue's No.
2 point guard, Thompson has
begun doing some very posi-
tive things for the Boilermakers,
whether it was in serving as their
foremost spark against Illinois or
in him scoring nine points off the bench against
Wisconsin. He's not playing flawlessly by any
means and he still has limitations that show up oc-
casionally, but coaches trust him and he's reward-
ing their trust right now in a variety of ways.
Bryson Scott 1
G • 6-1 • So.
While Thompson's minutes have
spiked recently, Scott has moved
back to being a non-factor. He did
not play in the Big Ten Tourna-
ment, presumably again a matter
of coaches trusting him to carry
out assignments. It's been a long,
frustrating year for the sophomore and you won-
der now what his future may hold for him after
the season. The point guard position will be wide
open again next season.
Jon Octeus 0
G • 6-4 • Sr.
The only Boilermaker
who's set foot on the floor
in an NCAA Tournament
game — in 2013 for Colo-
rado State — Octeus has
spoken all year in rever-
ent tones about his Big
Dance experience, using
it as a motivational carrot for his teammates.
Whether it worked or not, there's no telling,
but he's getting his wish for a return trip. Matt
Painter says NCAA tourney experience mat-
ters. Octeus has at least some, unlike the rest
of his team. He's been a fine leader all season.
Maybe it kicks up a notch now.
Dakota Mathias 31
G • 6-4 • Fr.
The freshman shooting
guard has gotten better
and better as the season
has gone on, to the point
where he's become a cru-
cial, crucial player for the
Boilermakers right now.
You've seen him become
more and more assertive in trying to make
plays, in addition to simply providing a stable,
heady presence on the floor. He's a freshman
who's now playing like a veteran.
A.J. Hammons 20
C • 7-0 • Jr.
Hammons is Purdue's best
chance for NCAA Tourna-
ment success, but he will
have to be ready to have a
couple fights on his hands.
Cincinnati will take it to
him physically. Should the
Boilermakers pass that
test, Kentucky will throw NBA front-liners at
him in waves. This is a great opportunity for
the junior to not only carry his team to post-
season success but enhance his professional
stock also, though there is no reason at all to
believe that weighs on his mind in any way,
shape or form presently.
Rapheal Davis 35
F • 6-5 • Jr.
The Big Ten's Defensive
Player-of-the-Year won
Round 2 against the con-
ference's leading scorer,
D.J. Newbill, at the Big
Ten Tournament, as he
and Octeus combined
to hold him to 6-of-18
shooting. Purdue has a long history of win-
ning its opening NCAA tourney games. Why?
Defense. Unfamiliar opponents aren't ac-
customed to being guarded the way Purdue
has historically guarded, and it's been a shock
to their systems. Davis has been the catalyst
behind the Boilermakers getting back to
that M.O.
Vince Edwards 12
F • 6-7 • Fr.
Edwards hasn't been as
productive across the
board as he was earlier in
the season, but his contri-
butions have often been
timely. He made big shots
and key passes in the reg-
ular-season finale against
Illinois and made two of the biggest plays of
the game vs. Penn State in the conference
tournament. His three-pointer after the Lions
went up six with nine minutes left might
have been the biggest shot of the game; his
drive through the entire Penn State defense
for the game-tying bucket was very impor-
tant as well. His future is very, very bright and
this NCAA experience will be big for him,
along with the other freshmen.
Gold and Black's Men's Hoops Lineup
The
Starters
The
Reserves
The
Deep
Bench
Jacquil Taylor 23
F • 6-10 • Fr.
Neal Beshears 30
F • 6-7 • Sr.
Jon McKeeman 2
G • 6-1 • Jr.
Stephen Toyra 11
G • 6-3 • Jr.
–Brian Neubert
For
Season
Stats Click
Here
