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GOLD AND BLACK ILLUSTRATED VOLUME 28, ISSUE 3 73 Abby Abel 2 5-5 • G • Jr. Breakdown: Abel, a walk-on, had her big moment against Valpara- iso Dec. 8, when she came off the bench at the end of a blowout to get the Mackey crowd to its feet. Then, she scored a career-high five points, first on a nifty runner on the right baseline, then on a three-pointer from the left wing. Miracle Gray 5 5-6 • G • So. Breakdown: Purdue is turning to Gray frequently to fill minutes as the backup point guard, and she's been serviceable, with a positive as- sist-to-turnover ratio. The sophomore isn't likely to wow offensively — she was shooting only 22.6 percent on 31 attempts before the turn of the calen- dar — but she's a high-effort player who understands where to go with the ball on offense. Nora Kiesler 12 6-6 • C • Jr. Breakdown: After being held out of several games due to head- aches, the reserve center was in the rotation again by the end of Decem- ber. Matchups often dictate her play- ing time — she's best against fellow physical bigs — so she was averaging only 7.8 minutes in her first 12 games of the season. But even that can be significantly beneficial, because Pur- due has few backup post options for Ae'Rianna Harris. Léony Boudreau 15 5-10 • G • Fr. Breakdown: Boudreau is still a developing player and a willing one. The rookie guard played in only nine of the first 16 games of the season, totaling just 32 minutes. The Cana- dian's knowledge of big-time NCAA basketball is limited, so it might take time before she can become a regular contributor. Dani Lawson 22 6-2 • F • Fr. Breakdown: Lawson is out for the rest of the season, needing microfracture surgery on her sore knees. The surgery, likely in January, will require a rehab of at least nine months, meaning the start of her sec- ond season could be delayed as well. Too bad, because Purdue could use another player in the frontcourt as soon as possible. Tamara Farquhar 25 6-0 • G • Fr. Breakdown: Farquhar's ath- leticism has been a boost to the Boilermakers, as the freshman has shown the quickness to be able to beat opponents near the basket. And she can go get rebounds. At the end of December, she was averaging 4.3 points and 4.1 rebounds in more than 17 minutes per game off the bench. Purdue has her mainly playing the 4, although if her offensive game con- tinues to grow, she could move to the wing occasionally. Fatou Diagne 45 6-4 • C • So. Breakdown: The J.C. transfer hasn't played this season and won't, after having surgery Dec. 22 for a stress fracture in a foot. Diagne has an impressive wingspan that Purdue was hoping would be a deterrent to opponents in the paint. But Diagne's not been able to practice, let alone play, yet this season. — Kyle Charters