To be a Purdue basketball fan is to live in fear and dread of the other show eventually dropping. A big chunk of the Purdue basketball fan base honestly thinks and feels that life is pain and that the Boilermakers are never allowed to have nice things. Recent NCAA Tournament results (losing as a #4 seed to a #13 seed North Texas last year, being ousted as a #5 seed by a #12 seed Arkansas-Little Rock in 2016) support this position. Those are just a couple examples, but there are many others, and this all provides an obvious cause for concern when the #3 seed Boilermakers take on the 14th-seeded Yale Bulldogs at 2 p.m. ET Friday.
If you’re going to be on this game, like you would wager at goldenslot, then you’ll see Purdue favored by about 16. This first round March Madness game will be staged at the home of the Milwaukee Bucks – Fiserv Forum, a venue which replaced the Bradley Center, a site in which Purdue basketball has seen glorious triumph. In 2017, they beat Vermont and then Iowa State to advance to the sweet sixteen. Is that in the cards again? All we need is for chalk to hold and that would indeed occur- Purdue basketball would be back in the fourth time in five years.
Accurate.
#Illini fans are convinced that all officials are out to get them. #MichiganState fans think an 8-8 Big Ten season naturally preludes a Final Four appearance. #Purdue fans approach every season like the crestfallen main character in a depressing French film noir https://t.co/z8FH175jSr— Paul M. Banks (@PaulMBanks) March 3, 2022
Purdue basketball GAMEDAY INFORMATION – NCAA FIRST ROUND[3] Purdue basketball (27-7) vs. [14] Yale (19-11)Friday, March 18 | 2 p.m. ET | Fiserv ForumTBS (Spero Dedes, Debbie Antonelli, A.J. Ross)
Following Purdue’s loss to Keegan Murray and Iowa Hawkeyes in the Big Ten title game, Purdue basketball coach Matt Painter was asked about March Madness disappointments in the recent past.
“I thought our guys were pretty mature,” Painter said Sunday about the upset at the hands of Arkansas-Little Rock.
“A lot of times people look at when you get upset by somebody that you didn’t respect them and I thought both times we got beat by Little Rock and got beat by North Texas, I thought our players really respected them. That just wasn’t it, we just got beat. They played better than us. Obviously the one game went to overtime.
“I think really what we learn is just you’ve got to lay it on the line. You get yourself in close games, especially on a neutral court, like anything can happen, but you’ve got to play better. You’ve got to be more efficient, you’ve got to be able to defend.
Interesting that Painter brought up defending, as guarding their opponents out on the perimeter has been their Achilles heel. Lately they have had a lot issues with turnovers too. That said, they have the pieces they need to make the Final Four. They are strong both inside and outside, and offensively, they are about as strong as it gets.
Yale was 0-4 in Quad 1 games. Lost to St. Mary’s, Auburn, Seton Hall, and Vermont.
— Travis Miller (@JustTMill) March 14, 2022
Looking ahead to Yale, Painter had this to say:
“I know Coach Jones and he’s an excellent coach and they have a good team, man. Everybody earns their way in this one. There might be a couple teams that got left out but deserve to be in there and we all understand that, but everybody that got in this tournament earned their way in this tournament and everybody is good and we’ll have our hands full.”
Purdue veteran big man Trevion Williams looked back on the disappointments of the recent past, and offered the following:
“You respect everybody you play in March Madness and that’s what it came down to for us. I think a lot of times we look at ourselves and we — obviously we know we’re a talented team and nobody — we beat ourselves a lot of times. Purdue beats Purdue. Man, in March, man, it’s about respecting every team you play and I don’t think we gave North Texas the respect that they deserve.
“Everybody’s in the tournament for a reason. Man, like I said, it just comes down to respecting each team you play.”
He also looked ahead to the matchup with Yale:
“Nobody expected to come — obviously people look at that game and say Purdue’s going to win, but, you know, that’s why you respect the teams. So I guess the lesson is just respect every team and I guess the change that we can make this year is just come in with a focus and understand that every possession counts.”
Prediction: Purdue basketball 83, Yale Bulldogs 67
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Bank (TheSportsBank.Net) and author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” as well as “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune, and co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.
