GOLD AND BLACK ILLUSTRATED OLUME 26, ISSUE 5 67
Boilermaker fortunes will rest with underclassmen
BY KYLE CHARTERS
KCharters@GoldandBlack.com
A
year ago at this time, the
Boilermakers had been
thrown out of their locker
room and had their Purdue apparel
taken away, only earning it back after
weeks of intense offseason training.
This spring, there's no need for
such harsh punishments, with Purdue
having responded from its rare losing
season with a winning one, a nine-
win jump that was one of the best in
the country. Still, Coach Sharon Vers-
yp wants the Boilermakers' attention
now, knowing that if Purdue is to take
another step forward, like competing
at the top of the Big Ten and getting
to the second weekend of the NCAA
Tournament, it starts now.
That means getting physically stron-
ger, a trait that was missing during
Big Ten Tournament and NCAA losses
to Michigan State and Oklahoma, and
better conditioning.
The mantra "Why wait?" has be-
come Purdue's offseason buzz phrase,
Versyp's call to get going immediately.
"We really want that toughness, the
growth in those areas, and I think all
of our players are really determined
to do that," Versyp said shortly after
the season, which ended with a loss
to Oklahoma in the first round of the
NCAA Tournament in Lexington, Ky.
"And it's not so much the physicality,
it's just sustaining and being strong,
Next Step Starts
Now
Tom Campbell
Tiara Murphy played only a bit role as a freshman — and missed six games with a
stress fracture — but showed enough offensively for the Boilermakers to feel good
about point guard.
Purdue
Women's
Basketball
