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Gold and Black Illustrated, Vol 27, Digital 3

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GOLD AND BLACK ILLUSTRATED VOLUME 27, ISSUE 3 56 ation has done wonders producing such opportunities. The guards are central to it, but what really sets Purdue apart is its forwards. In his second year, Caleb Swanigan is beginning to show the offensive skill, anticipation and basketball IQ that compelled Painter to recruit him to play away from the basket as opposed to solely directly under- neath it. Last season, Swanigan averaged just under 2.8 as- sists per game per 40 minutes, a measure that will take into account his increased minutes this season. Now, he's averaging 4.2 per 40 minutes. And Vincent Edwards, coming off back-to-back sea- sons in which he's led Purdue in assists — the first two seasons in Purdue history it's been led in assists by a forward, by the way — is on pace again. His 41 assists are just two behind Mathias' 43. Painter saw in both Edwards and Swanigan this sort of potential when he recruited them. It's paid off. Haas will never be defined by his passing, but he too has shown progress in that area, as well as in his decision-making. Purdue's big men have been issued a simple man- date: Get one-on-one down low, score. But if a dou- ble-team comes, pass it out and re-post or get ready to rebound as the guards take it from there. "We have a lot of trust in them," Cline said, "be- cause we know how skilled they are and how easily they can score the ball." It's paid off time and again. Against Notre Dame, Purdue ran a screen-and-roll with Swanigan and Thompson. The Boilermaker point Tom Campbell A reason why Purdue's offense has been so efficient is its passing, ball movement that has given the Boiler- makers a number of open looks.

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