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m e n ' s b a s k e t b a l l u p d a t e Still Hopeful Despite slow start, Painter confident team can rebound BY STACY CLARDIE SClardie@GoldandBlack.com C aptain D.J. Byrd's message to his Purdue teammates after a slow start was simple: Do your job and work hard. Neither happened frequently enough in the season's first 10 games for the Boilermakers, a big reason why they matched their worst start since 2004-05. Purdue's 4-6 start was mired by lack of consistency in following assignments, inability to make good decisions on offense and play with a competitive fire for long stretches. Some of that, perhaps, was expected with a roster packed with youth. Matt Painter had seven underclassmen in the rotation in non-conference play, including starting five true or redshirt freshmen. But it wasn't just the young group that struggled to respond — the experienced players are to blame, too, he said. "I've said we can have a young team but we can't have an immature team, and we just have an imma- ture team," Painter said. "A lot of guys haven't been through it before, but the guys who have been through it haven't played up to their abilities. They haven't given us that consistency we need. So it's really been contagious as a group in terms of being accountable and carrying out your assignment. "We need to make improvements. We're not playing hard enough. We're not playing tough enough and definitely not playing smart enough." Purdue led the nation in fewest turnovers last season, averaging only 8.7 per game. Through the first 10 games this season, the Boilermakers averaged 14.4. 2012-13 MEN'S SCHEDULE Date Game Time/ResultTV Oct. 30 MONTEVALLO (exhibition) W, 70-61 BTN Digital Nov. 3 NEWBERRY (exhibition) W, 109-68 BTN Digital Nov. 9 BUCKNELL* L, 65-70 BTN Digital Nov. 11 HOFSTRA* W, 83-54 BTN Digital Nov. 15 vs. Villanova# L, 81-89 (OT) ESPN2 Nov. 16 vs. Oregon State# L, 58-66 ESPNU/ESPN2 Nov. 21 UNC-WILMINGTON W, 66-40 BTN Nov. 28 at Clemson! W, 73-61 ESPNU Dec. 1 XAVIER L, 57-63 BTN Dec. 4 LAMAR W, 72-39 BTN Dec. 8 at Eastern Michigan L, 44-47 ESPN3 Dec. 15 vs. Notre Dame& L, 68-81 ESPN2 Dec. 18 BALL STATE 7 p.m. ESPN3 Dec. 29 WILLIAM & MARY 2 p.m. ESPN3 Jan. 2 ILLINOIS 8:30 p.m. BTN Jan. 5 at Michigan State Noon BTN Jan. 8 OHIO STATE 9 p.m. ESPN Jan. 13 PENN STATE TBA BTN Jan. 16 at Nebraska 9 p.m. BTN Jan. 19 WEST VIRGINIA 2 p.m. CBS Jan. 24 at Michigan 7 p.m. ESPN/ESPN2 Jan. 27 IOWA 3:30 p.m. BTN Jan. 30 INDIANA 8:30 p.m. BTN Feb. 2 at Northwestern Noon ESPN2 Feb. 5 at Penn State 7 p.m. BTN Feb. 9 MICHIGAN STATE 7 p.m. BTN Feb. 13 at Illinois 9 p.m. BTN Feb. 16 at Indiana 2 p.m. ESPN/ESPN2 Feb. 24 NORTHWESTERN TBA TBD Feb. 27 at Iowa 8:30 p.m. BTN March 2/3 at Wisconsin TBA TBD March 6 MICHIGAN 7 p.m. BTN March 9 MINNESOTA Noon BTN March 14-17 Big Ten Tournament (Chicago) * 2K Sports Classic — Mackey Arena # 2K Sports Classic – New York City (Madison Square Garden) ! ACC/Big Ten Challenge & Crossroads Classic — Indianapolis (Bankers Life Fieldhouse) 38 • Gold & Black IllustrateD • volume 23, issue 3 Tom Campbell Terone Johnson may be Purdue's MVP through its first 10 games, though he's had his struggles just like seemingly every Boilermaker has. Still, he's averaged a team-high 12 points per game and a career-high rebounding average of 4.7 per game. That frustrated Painter, whose team also struggled with shot selection and made only 27 percent of its three-pointers in that stretch. But there were some reasons to be encouraged, too. Purdue is rebounding better Big Ten standings (Through Dec. 17) TeamOverall/Pct. Illinois12-0/1.000 Michigan11-0/1.000 Minnesota11-1/.917 Indiana9-1/.900 Ohio State 8-1/.889 Iowa9-2/.818 Michigan State 9-2/.818 Northwestern8-3/.727 Nebraska6-3/.667 Wisconsin7-4/.636 Penn State 6-4/.600 PURDUE4-6/.400 than it ever has under Painter, ranking near the top of the Big Ten in margin for the first time in the last eight seasons. In that area, the Boilermakers showed some hustle to chase down long rebounds and also had its smaller guards mix it up. Terone Johnson led the team in rebounding in three of the first 10 games, including grabbing 10 in one game. Byrd led the team twice in that category. Painter and players insist it's just a matter of becoming more disciplined, and this season could turn quickly. "We've got size. We have people who can run. We have people who can shoot and people who can score the basketball," Byrd said. "So we just have to get in a groove to where we're playing to our strengths, moving the ball on offense and getting stops on defense because if we can get stops on defense, the way we've been rebounding, it'll be really good for us." Painter certainly wasn't ready to give up. His team is talented, and its mistakes are correctable, he said. If he didn't think that then "it would be one of those things where you'd cash your chips in and get ready for next year. That's not the case for this team. We have enough talent to win, but can we have the discipline to change some of our habits? That's the No. 1 question for us. I feel we can do that. I'm confident we can do that, but it's going to take some change from some individuals." j GBIprint.com GoldandBlack.com