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GOLDANDBLACK EXPRESS • VOLUME 25, EXPRESS 26 • 2 to the NCAA Tournament in nine seasons was, the enduring reality is that there's a strong foundation in place to keep things moving forward. A.J. Hammons' decision whether or not to return for his senior season or take his shot at the pros looms large over the roster, as will concerns in the backcourt, where Oc- teus will be difficult to replace. But Purdue is facing the prospect of having a team next season that's more ex- perienced than anything it's had in recent seasons. And it'll return a freshman class that fac- tored heavily into the Boilermakers' success immediately. Edwards, Dakota Mathias and Isaac Haas all looked the part at times of poten- tial future standouts, while point guard P.J. Thompson finished the season playing some of his best basketball of the year. It will be another eventful offseason for the Boilermakers, with the Hammons decision, blue- chip recruit Caleb Swani- gan's choice and Purdue's likely pursuit of backcourt help again this year all upcoming. There's no telling what Purdue's complete roster will look like in eight months or so. But after Purdue exceeded all expecta- tions this season, it is clear that more can reasonably be expected starting now. "We're back on the right track," Ham- mons said. "We're going to try to keep it go- ing now." j Weekly Pic Tom Campbell Vince Edwards came close to delivering the Boilermakers to a dramatic opening-round victory with this last-second shot attempt in overtime. The shot rimmed out, sending Purdue to its first loss since 1993 in its opening game of the NCAA Tournament. It was the fifth-longest winning streak of that sort in the history of the tourney. BIG-TIME IMPROVEMENT There is little doubt the Boilermakers made big-time improve- ment this season. With victory totals as the measuring stick, here's our list of the biggest one-year improvements in the past 20 years. 2005-06 to 2006-07 1996-97 to 1997-98 2001-02 to 2002-03 2013-14 to 2014-15 +13 +10 +6 +6